NON-VACUUM METHOD OF MANUFACTURING LIGHT-ABSORBING MATERIALS FOR SOLAR CELL APPLICATION
First Claim
1. A bath formulation for electroplating a Cu—
- Zn—
Sn alloy or a Cu/Zn/Sn metal stack on a conductive substrate comprising;
a) a solvent system that contains sodium and/or potassium salts of citrate mono-/di/tri-basic, said salts of citrate having a concentration ranging from 100 mM to 500 mM;
b) one or more ionic compounds of copper, zinc, and tin, said ionic compounds being salts of chloride, nitrate or sulfate and having a concentration ranging from 5 mM to 300 mM;
c) one or more surfactants and aldehydes, said surfactants comprising sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), N,N-dimethyl-N-dodecylglycine betaine and Polyethylene glycol (PEG), said aldehydes comprising propenal, aromatic aldehyde, benzaldehyde, formaldehyde, said surfactants and aldehydes having a concentration ranging from 0.1 mM to 10 mM.
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Abstract
The present invention describes a method of producing a p-type light-absorbing semiconductor copper zinc tin selenide/sulfide (Cu2(ZnxSn2-x)(SySe1-y)4) (abbreviated CZTS) with electrochemical deposition. It can be used in the production of solar cell when combined with an n-type inorganic or an organic semiconductor layer. The present method comprises a one-step or a sequence of depositions using electroplating to fabricate a low-cost and large-area CZTS solar cell, without using expensive and complicated deposition techniques or highly toxic and flammable chemicals in the production process. The present method significantly reduces the cost and energy requirement for production of solar cell.
10 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A bath formulation for electroplating a Cu—
- Zn—
Sn alloy or a Cu/Zn/Sn metal stack on a conductive substrate comprising;a) a solvent system that contains sodium and/or potassium salts of citrate mono-/di/tri-basic, said salts of citrate having a concentration ranging from 100 mM to 500 mM; b) one or more ionic compounds of copper, zinc, and tin, said ionic compounds being salts of chloride, nitrate or sulfate and having a concentration ranging from 5 mM to 300 mM; c) one or more surfactants and aldehydes, said surfactants comprising sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), N,N-dimethyl-N-dodecylglycine betaine and Polyethylene glycol (PEG), said aldehydes comprising propenal, aromatic aldehyde, benzaldehyde, formaldehyde, said surfactants and aldehydes having a concentration ranging from 0.1 mM to 10 mM. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15)
- Zn—
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11. A bath formulation for electroplating a selenium layer on a metal or semi-conductor alloy substrate comprising:
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a) a solvent system that contains one or more than one kind of tetra-alkyl-quaternary ammonium salt and 20-60% of polar solvent, said tetra-alkyl-quaternary ammonium salt comprising choline chloride, betaine, acetyl choline chloride, methyl triphenylphosphonium bromide, and tetrabutylammonium chloride;
said polar solvent comprising water, alcohol, carboxylic acid, amine, and amide;b) one or more selenium compounds, said selenium compounds comprising selenium tetrachloride, selenium dioxide, selenium sulfide, selenium oxychloride, selenous acid, and selenic acid, said selenium compounds having a concentration ranging from 5 mM to 100 mM; and c) one or more surfactants and aldehydes;
said surfactants comprising sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and Polyethylene glycol (PEG), said aldehydes comprising benzaldehyde and formaldehyde, said surfactants and aldehydes having a concentration ranging from 0.5 mM to 4 mM. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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Specification