An expanding thermal plasma for deposition of surface textured ZnO:Al with focus on thin film solar cell applications

Abstract

A new method for low temperature deposition of surface textured ZnO:Al is presented utilizing an expanding thermal plasma created by a cascaded arc. Films are deposited at 200°C at the rate of 0.65–0.75 nm s −1 exhibiting low resistivity (<10 −3 Ω cm), high visible transmittance (>80%) and a rough surface texture. First application in p-i-n a-Si:H solar cells indicates promising light trapping properties.