Substrate structured Sb2S3 thin film solar cells fabricated by rapid thermal evaporation method

Abstract Sb2S3 thin film solar cells have been attracting much attention because of its excellent the photoelectric properties. By now, all the works on Sb2S3 solar cell were focused on the Sb2S3 thin film solar cells with sensitized structure or superstrate structure. However, Sb2S3 solar cell with substrate structure was rarely reported. The substrate structure of the Sb2S3 solar cell has unique advantages in device interface optimization, film growth, and application on flexible devices, and so on. The study of the substrate structure has great significance for improving the efficiency of the device and expanding its application range. In this work, Sb2S3 thin films were deposited on Mo-coated glass substrate by the rapid thermal evaporation (RTE) method. The Sb2S3 thin film quality is improved by combining adjusting the substrate temperature and evaporation time. Finally, a 1.75% efficient Sb2S3 thin film solar cells with the substrate configuration of SLG/Mo/Sb2S3/CdS/i-ZO/AZO/Ni:Al was fabricated. Experimental and SCAPS simulation results show that deep level defects in the absorber layer and interface of the absorber layer and the buffer layer are the main reason for limiting the efficiency of devices.