Wet chemical etching of cadmium telluride photovoltaics for enhanced open-circuit voltage, fill factor, and power conversion efficiency

• Published in: Journal of materials research Vol. 34; no. 24; pp. 3988 - 3997
• Main Authors: Bastola, Ebin, Alfadhili, Fadhil K., Phillips, Adam B., Heben, Michael J., Ellingson, Randy J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 30.12.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Applied and Technical Physics; Atoms & subatomic particles; Biomaterials; Cadmium; Cadmium telluride; Cadmium tellurides; Chemical etching; Circuits; Contact resistance; Current voltage characteristics; Efficiency; Energy Conversion and Storage Materials; Energy conversion efficiency; Etching; Inorganic Chemistry; Interfaces; Intermetallic compounds; Iodine; Iodine compounds; Materials Engineering; Materials research; Materials Science; Morphology; Nanotechnology; Open circuit voltage; Organic chemistry; Photovoltaic cells; Quantum efficiency; Raman spectra; Raman spectroscopy; Scanning electron microscopy; Spectrum analysis; Temperature dependence; Thin films; Topography; X-ray diffraction; X-ray spectroscopy; Zinc telluride

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) is one of the leading photovoltaic technologies with a market share of around 5%. However, there still exist challenges to fabricate a rear contact for efficient transport of photogenerated holes. Here, etching effects of various iodine compounds including elemental iodine (...