Electrical and optical properties of Sb-doped ZnO thin films synthesized by sol–gel method

Sb-doped ZnO thin films with different values of Sb content （from 0 to 1.1 at.%） are deposited by the sol-gel dip- coating method under different sol concentrations. The effects of Sb-doping content, sol concentration, and annealing ambient on the structural, optical, and electrical properties of ZnO films are investigated. The results of the X-ray diffraction and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy （UV-VIS） spectrophotometer indicate that each of all the films retains the wurtzite ZnO structure and possesses a preferred orientation along the c axis, with high transmittance （〉 90%） in the visible range. The Hall effect measurements show that the vacuum annealed thin films synthesized in the sol concentration of 0.75 mol/L each have an adjustable n-type electrical conductivity by varying Sb-doping density, and the photoluminescence （PL） spectra revealed that the defect emission （around 450 nm） is predominant. However, the thin films prepared by the sol with a concentration of 0.25 mol/L, despite their poor conductivity, have priority in ultraviolet emission, and the PL peak position shows first a blue-shift and then a red-shift with the increase of the Sb doping content.     

Influence of annealing temperature on the performance of Ge film and photon-counting imaging system

<正>Compared with the traditional image intensifier with phosphor screen readout,the photon-counting imaging detector with charge induction readout is more beneficial in several aspects(e.g.,good imaging properties and time resolution) to astronomy,reconnaissance,bioluminescence,and materials research.However, the annealing temperature during the tube-making process can affect the properties of the Ge film,and consequently impair the performance of the detector.Therefore,the influence of annealing temperature on Ge film and on the detector is studied in order to determine the crucial parameters.The Ge films are prepared on ceramic and quartz glass by the use of an electron gun.They are analyzed by scanning electron microscope(SEM),high-resistance meter,and X-ray diffraction(XRD).The results show that the optimum substrate and annealing temperature are ceramic plate and 250℃,respectively.     

Effects of optical interference and annealing on the performance of poly （3-hexylthiophene）： fullerene based solar cells

<正>In this paper,the effects of optical interference and annealing on the performance of P3HT:PCBM based organic solar cells are studied in detail.Due to the optical interference effect,short circuit current density(J_SC) shows obvious oscillatory behaviour with the variation of active layer thickness.With the help of the simulated results,the devices are optimized around the first two optical interference peaks.It is found that the optimized thicknesses are 80 and 208 nm.The study on the effect of annealing on the performance indicates that post-annealing is more favourable than pre-annealing.Based on post-annealing,different annealing temperatures are tested.The optimized annealing condition is 160℃for 10 min in a nitrogen atmosphere.The device shows that the open circuit voltage V-（OC） achieves about 0.65V and the power conversion efficiency is as high as 4.0%around the second interference peak.     

Influence of post-deposition annealing on the structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films prepared by sol–gel and spin-coating method

Thin films of zinc oxide have been deposited onto (0001) sapphire substrate by sol–gel and spin-coating methods. The XRD pattern showed that the crystallinity of the annealed ZnO films had improved in comparison with that of the as-grown films. Photoluminescence spectra revealed a two-line structure, which is identified in terms of UV emission and defect-related emission. The emission intensity was found to be greatly dependent on heat treatment. Host phonons of ZnO and a shift of the _E2$E_2$ (high) peak from its position have been observed from Raman spectra. The surface morphologies of the film had been improved after annealing was observed from AFM images.     

Effect of dopants on the structural,optical and electrical properties of sol–gel derived ZnO semiconductor thin films

Undoped, Ga-, In-, Zr-, and Sn-doped ZnO transparent semiconductor thin films were deposited on alkali-free glasses by sol–gel method. 2-methoxyethanol (2-ME) and diethanolamine (DEA) were chosen as a solvent and a stabilizer, respectively. The doping concentration was maintained at 2 at.% in the impurity doping precursor solutions. The effects of different dopants on the structural, optical, and electrical properties of ZnO thin films were investigated. XRD results show that all annealed ZnO-based thin films had a hexagonal (wurtzite) structure. ZnO thin films doped with impurity elements obviously improved the surface flatness and enhanced the optical transmittance. All impurity doped ZnO thin films showed high transparency in the visible range (>91%). The Ga- and In- doped ZnO thin films exhibited higher Hall mobility and lower resistivity than did the undoped ZnO thin film.     

Performance improvement of CdS/Cu（In,Ga）Se2 solar cells after rapid thermal annealing

In this paper, we investigated the effect of rapid thermal annealing (RTA) on solar cell performance. An opto-electric conversion efficiency of 11.75% (Voc=0.64 V, Jsc = 25.88mA/cm2 , FF=72.08%) was obtained under AM 1.5G when the cell was annealed at 300℃ for 30s. The annealed solar cell showed an average absolute efficiency 1.5% higher than that of the as-deposited one. For the microstructure analysis and the physical phase confirmation, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectra, front surface reflection (FSR), internal quantum efficiency (IQE), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were respectively applied to distinguish the causes inducing the efficiency variation. All experimental results implied that the RTA eliminated recombination centers at the p-n junction, reduced the surface optical losses, enhanced the blue response of the CdS buffer layer, and improved the ohmic contact between Mo and Cu(In, Ga)Se2 (CIGS) layers. This leaded to the improved performance of CIGS solar cell.     

Effects of annealing temperature on the electrical property and microstructure of aluminum contact on n-type 3C–SiC

The 3C-SiC thin films used herein are grown on Si substrates by chemical vapor deposition. A1 contacts with differ- ent thickness values are deposited on the 3C-SiC/Si （100） structure by the magnetron sputtering method and are annealed at different temperatures. We focus on the effects of the annealing temperature on the ohmic contact properties and mi- crostructure of A1/3C-SiC structure. The electrical properties of A1 contacts to n-type 3C-SiC are characterized by the transmission line method. The crystal structures and chemical phases of A1 contacts are examined by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectra, and transmission electron microscopy, respectively. It is found that the A1 contacts exhibit ohmic contact behaviors when the annealing temperature is below 550 ℃, and they become Schottky contacts when the annealing tem- perature is above 650 ℃. A minimum specific contact resistance of 1.8 × 10-4 Ω cm2 is obtained when the A1 contact is annealed at 250 ℃.     

Influence of post-deposition annealing on the structural,optical and electrical properties of Li and Mg co-doped ZnO thin films deposited by sol–gel technique

Lithium (Li) and magnesium (Mg) co-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were deposited by sol–gel method using spin coating technique. The films were deposited on glass substrates and annealed at different temperatures. The effects of annealing temperature on the structural, optical and electrical properties of the deposited films were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Ultraviolet–Visible absorption spectra (UV–VIS), photoluminescence spectra (PL), X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS) and Hall measurements. XRD patterns indicated that the deposited films had a polycrystalline hexagonal wurtzite structure with preferred (0 0 0 2) orientation. All films were found to exhibit a good transparency in the visible range. Analysis of the absorption edge revealed that the optical band gap energies of the films annealed at different temperatures varies between 3.49 eV and 3.69 eV. Room temperature PL spectra of the deposited films annealed at various temperatures consist of a near band edge emission and visible emission due to the electronic defects, which are related to deep level emissions, such as oxide antisite (O_Zn), interstitial zinc (Zn_i), interstitial oxygen (O_i) and zinc vacancy (V_Zn) which are generated during annealing process. The influence of annealing temperature on the chemical state of the dopants in the film was analysed by XPS spectra. Ion beam analysis (Rutherford back scattering) experiments were performed to evaluate the content of Li and Mg in the films. Hall measurements confirmed the p-type nature of the deposited films.     

ZnO电子传输层对于反型结构聚合物太阳电池光浴效应的影响

采用金属氧化物电子传输层(ETL)的聚合物光伏器件在制备完成之初通常性能表现低下, J-V曲线呈异常“S”形. 当器件受白光持续照射后, 该不良状况会逐渐好转, 此过程称为光浴(light-soaking). 光浴现象普遍被认为是ETL界面问题所致. 从器件结构着手, 研究了ZnO 纳米颗粒ETL相邻的两个界面在光浴问题上的作用. 制备了功能层相同的(电极除外)正型、反型器件及复合ETL结构器件, 发现光浴现象仅出现于包含ZnO/ITO界面的反型器件中, 证明该界面是导致光浴现象的主要原因. 分析认为: ZnO颗粒表面O₂吸附形成的电子陷阱增加了ITO/ZnO势垒厚度, 使得光生电子无法逾越而成为空间电荷积累, 从而导致器件初始性能不佳. 器件经光照后, ETL内部受激而生的空穴电子对填补了ZnO缺陷, 提升了ETL的电荷选择性并减小了界面势垒厚度, 被束缚的光生电子得以隧穿至ITO电极, 反型器件性能最终得以改善.     

多温度阶梯退火对有机聚合物太阳能电池器件性能的影响

以聚3-己氧基噻吩(P3HT)作为给体,富勒烯衍生物(ICBA)作为受体,制备了体异质结结构的聚合物太阳能电池,研究不同热退火条件对器件的光伏输出特性及稳定性的影响.研究发现,采用多温度、阶梯退火比单一温度退火能使器件的光伏输出性能明显提高,与此同时器件的寿命显著延长,可以在未封装的环境下保持器件性能的稳定,减缓器件的衰退.     

Effects of acetone-soaking treatment on the performance of polymer solar cells based on P3HT/PCBM bulk heterojunction

The improvement of the acetone-soaking treatment to the performance of polymer solar cells based on the P3HT/PCBM bulk heterojunction is reported. Undergoing acetone-soaking, the PCBM does not distribute uniformly in the vertical direction, a PCBM enrichment layer forms on the top of the active layer, which is beneficial to the collec- tion of the carriers and blocking the inverting diffusion carriers. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） analysis reveals that the PCBM weight ratio on the top of the active layer increases by 20% after the acetone-soaking treatment. Due to the nonuniform distribution of PCBM, the short-circuit current density, the open-circuit voltage, and the fill factor are enhanced significantly. Finally, the power conversion efficiency of the acetone-soaking device increases by 31% compared with the control device.     

基于聚多巴胺/氧化锌复合阴极缓冲层的倒置聚合物太阳能电池的研究

利用多巴胺氧化自聚合形成聚多巴胺(PDA)与ZnO结合形成PDA/ZnO复合阴极缓冲层,制备了以P3HT:PC_(61)BM为活性层的倒置结构聚合物太阳能电池,通过改变PDA的自聚合时间来分析复合阴极缓冲层对器件性能的影响.实验发现,随着PDA的自聚合时间的增加,聚合物太阳能电池的光电转换效率先增大后减小,当自聚合时间为10 min时,相应器件光伏性能达到最优值,其开路电压V_(OC)为0.66 V,短路电流密度J_(SC)为9.70 mA/cm~2,填充因子FF为68.06%,光电转换效率PCE为4.35%.器件性能改善的原因是由于PDA/ZnO复合阴极缓冲层减小了ZnO与ITO之间的接触电阻,同时PDA中存在大量的氨基有利于倒置太阳能电池阴极对电子的收集.     

MoO3/Ag/AI/ZnO intermediate layer for inverted tandem polymer solar cells

We report an MoO3/Ag/Al/ZnO intermediate layer connecting two identical bulk heterojunction subcells with a poly（3-hexylthiophene） and [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester （P3HT and PCBM） active layer for inverted tan- dem polymer solar cells. The highly transparent intermediate layer with an optimized thickness realizes an Ohmic contact between the two subcells for effective charge extraction and recombination. A maximum power conversion efficiency of 3.76% is obtained for the tandem cell under 100 mW/cm2 illumination, which is larger than that of a single cell （3.15%）. The open-circuit voltage of the tandem cell （1.18 V） approaches double that of the single cell （0.61 V）.     

MoO_3/Ag/Al/ZnO intermediate layer for inverted tandem polymer solar cells

We report an MoO3/Ag/Al/ZnO intermediate layer connecting two identical bulk heterojunction subcells with a poly(3-hexylthiophene) and [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester(P3HT and PCBM) active layer for inverted tandem polymer solar cells. The highly transparent intermediate layer with an optimized thickness realizes an Ohmic contact between the two subcells for effective charge extraction and recombination. A maximum power conversion efficiency of 3.76% is obtained for the tandem cell under 100 mW/cm2 illumination, which is larger than that of a single cell(3.15%).The open-circuit voltage of the tandem cell(1.18 V) approaches double that of the single cell(0.61 V).     

Plasmonic effects and the morphology changes on the active material P3HT:PCBM used in polymer solar cells using Raman spectroscopy

There is no consensus yet that the enhancement effects of plasmonic device are predominantly caused by plasmonic effects or induced morphology changes in the optoelectronic `materials. Herein, we present a detailed Raman characterization of a typical organic P3HT:PCBM system comprising silver nanowires (Ag NWs) with different size, which can simultaneously study the plasmonic effects and the morphology changes. The direct comparison of the Raman spectra of non‐annealed and annealed samples indicates that the morphology of plasmonic samples has changed before annealing and the morphology of plasmonic samples and reference sample after annealing is not distinguishable. This indicates that the interaction between P3HT and Ag NWs with different size can be explained by plasmonic effects after annealing. Moreover, in‐situ Raman spectroscopy is used to study the morphology changes in plasmonic samples with different diameters of Ag NWs during heating process. This method can distinguish the plasmonic effects and morphology changes of plasmonic device. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cu(In,Ga)Se2太阳能电池快速热退火效应

利用光致发光（PL）分析快速热退火对Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS)电池的影响,研究退火对薄膜缺陷的影响。Cu(In,Ga)Se2电池的PL谱中总共有 7个峰,即2个可见波段峰和5个红外波段峰。退火温度较低,可减少薄膜体内缺陷,提高载流子浓度,改善薄膜质量;退火温度过高,则会引起正常格点处元素扩散,元素化学计量比改变,体内缺陷增加,吸收层带隙降低,反而会对CIGS薄膜造成破坏。     

Surface modification of CIGS film by annealing and its effect on the band structure and photovoltaic properties of CIGS solar cells

The composition of Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGS) films employed in CIGS solar cells is Cu deficient. There can be point defects, including Cu vacancies, Se vacancies, and metal anti-site defects. The surface composition and defects are not well controlled right after CIGS film fabrication with a three-stage co-evaporation process. This fabrication technique can result in a large variation in cell efficiency. In order to control the CIGS film in a reproducible way, we annealed the CIGS film in air, S, or Se. With this annealing procedure, the Cu content of the CIGS surface was significantly reduced and Ga content was strongly increased. An intrinsic CIGS layer with a lower valence-band maximum and a wider ban gap was formed at the surface. By annealing the CIGS film, the open-circuit voltage and fill factor were significantly improved, which indicates that the surface intrinsic layer acts as a hole-blocking layer so that the surface recombination rate is suppressed. In addition to CIGS film annealing, with subsequent annealing of the completed devices using rapid thermal annealing, the efficiency and reproducibility of CIGS solar cells were markedly improved.     

Overcoming the thickness paradox: Systematical optimization of inverted polymer solar cells

Inverted structure comes out to be a promising alternative for making polymer solar cells (PSC) with high efficiency and long-term stability. Vertically stacked functional layers with planar shapes often suffer contradictions in holding high optical absorption and excellent charge transfer/hindrance capability to construct well performed inverted PSC devices. Here, we give an example of rational control of the thickness of electron transport layer (ETL), hole transport layer (HTL) and organic active layer (OAL) to achieve a synergistic effect on promoting the overall photovoltaic behaviors. With in-depth exploration of the interaction between device performance and layer thickness, we obtain the optimized device ITO/ZnO Ncs (45 nm)/P3HT:PCBM (70 nm)/MoO₃ (1 nm)/Ag (70 nm) exhibiting an V_oc of 0.63 V, J_sc of 12.52 mA/cm², FF of 54% and PCE of 4.26%.