Electrical and optical properties of CZTS thin films prepared by SILAR method

Abstract

In the present work, Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin film was deposited onto the glass substrate by simple and economic SILAR method and its structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties were analyzed. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirms the formation of CZTS with kesterite structure and the average crystallite size is found to be 142 nm. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) image shows that the film has homogeneous, agglomerated surface without any cracks. The prepared CZTS film shows good optical absorption (104 cm−1) in the visible region and the optical band gap energy is found to be quite close to the optimum value of about 1.54 eV for solar cell application. The refractive index of the prepared film is found to be 2.85. The electrical resistivity of the film is found to be ∼10−2 Ω cm at room temperature.

Keywords

• Thin films
• Absorption
• Sol–gel
• Chalcogenides
• Semiconductors