Implications changing of the CdS window layer thickness on photovoltaic characteristics of n-CdS/i-AgSe/p-CdTe solar cells

Abstract

Rietveld refinement techniques have been used to investigate the structural characteristics of CdS window layers at various thicknesses in the current study. The structural parameters were improved as the thickness of the CdS-layer was raised, according to XRD patterns. This, in turn, was owing to the increase in the crystal's size for the studied thin layers. For the Ni/n-CdS/i-AgSe/p-CdTe/Pt heterojunction that was successfully fabricated employing an AgSe buffer layer deposited directly on the p-CdTe absorber layer and then the CdS window layer deposited on these mentioned layers, the photovoltaic properties were determined under the dark and illuminated conditions. In dark conditions, from the forward and reverse (current-voltage) data, the essential behavior related to the fabricated devices has been determined. In addition, the heterojunction resistance, the shunt resistance, the series resistance and the rectification rate were all determined. As well, in the illumination case, the open-circuit voltage, the short-circuit current, the fill factor, the power conversion efficiency, (PCE), the photoresponsivity, the quantum efficiency, the dependence of generated photocurrent on the light intensity, the dependence of generated photocurrent on wavelength (λ) for the studied solar cells have been computed and discussed.