Numerical modelling of CuBi2O4 thin film solar cells with SCAPS-1D: Bridging the gap ideal and non-ideal conditions

Abstract

Several simulation studies have been conducted in copper bismuth oxide (CuBi2O4) based solar cells (SCs) using SCAPS-1D simulator, demonstrating a high photoconversion efficiency (PCE) of up to 33 % under ideal conditions. The introduction of non-ideal conditions such as resistive losses, optical, and recombination losses could provide the actual performance of the SCs. In this letter, we applied all nonideal conditions to the SCs structure consisting of Mo/CuBi2O4/TiO2/ITO/Al with varied thicknesses of absorber layer of CuBi2O4 from 50 nm to 2 µm and evaluated the photovoltaic (PV) parameters and PCE of SCs. Under ideal conditions, cells exhibited a PCE of 31.23 % and 3.55 % with an absorber layer thickness of 2000 nm and 50 nm, respectively. The introduction of nonideal conditions with an absorber layer thickness of 50 nm, exhibited a drastic reduction of PCE from 3.55 to 0.46 % and other PV parameters such as open circuit voltage (Voc) from 1.19 to 1.04 V, short circuit current density (Jsc) from 4.27 to 0.77 mA/cm2, and fill factor (FF) from 69.40 to 56.42 %. The increase in thickness of the absorber layer further to 2000 nm did not improve the PCE of SCs.