Elemental mixing at the interface of a thin-film solar cell was studied by means of atom probe tomography. A Cu-depleted and Cd-doped region ( in width) was detected at the surface, proving the existence of a buried p-n homojunction within the absorber layer. Furthermore, CdS was found to infiltrate open pores existing in during the chemical bath deposition. This could explain why chemical bath deposition of CdS leads to higher solar cell efficiencies compared to physical vapor deposition of CdS.
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.© 2011 American Institute of Physics.
2011
American Institute of Physics
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