High-Quality AgGaTe2 Layers on Si Substrates with Ag2Te Buffer Layers

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AgGaTe2 layers were successfully grown on Si substrates by the close-spaced sublimation method. The Si substrates were confirmed to be etched during AgGaTe2 layer growth when the layer was grown directly on the substrate. To eliminate melt-back etching, a buffer layer of Ag2Te was introduced. It was found that the Ag2Te buffer layer changed into the AgGaTe2 layer during the growth process, and a uniform AgGaTe2 layer with an abrupt interface was formed. Both the diffusion of Ga into Ag2Te and the growth of AgGaTe2 occurred simultaneously. It was confirmed that uniform AgGaTe2 layers could be formed without any traces of the Ag2Te layer or melt-back etching by tuning the growth parameters. A solar cell was also fabricated using the p-AgGaTe2/n-Si heterojunction. This solar cell showed conversion efficiency of approximately 3%.