Measurement of contact resistivity at metal-tin sulfide (SnS) interfaces

Abstract

We measured the contact resistivity between tin(II) sulfide (SnS) thin films and three different metals (Au, Mo, and Ti) using a transmission line method (TLM). The contact resistance increases in the order Au < Mo < Ti. The contact resistances for Au and Mo are low enough so that they do not significantly decrease the efficiency of solar cells based on SnS as an absorber. On the other hand, the contact resistance of Ti to SnS is sufficiently high that it would decrease the efficiency of a SnS solar cell using Ti as a back contact metal. We further estimate the barrier heights of the junctions between these metals and tin sulfide using temperature-dependent TLM measurements. The barrier heights of these three metals lie in a narrow range of 0.23–0.26 eV, despite their large differences in work function. This Fermi level pinning effect is consistent with the large dielectric constant of SnS, and comparable to Fermi-level pinning on Si. The contact resistivity between annealed SnS films and Mo substrates under light illumination is as low as 0.1 Ω cm2.