Conduction Mechanism in n-CdSe/p-ZnTe Heterojunction

Abstract

This work reports on fabrication using vacuum evaporation and characterization of n-CdSe/p-ZnTe heterojunctions. Before forming the junction, CdSe and ZnTe layers were characterized for crystal structure and chemical composition to account for observed electrical properties. The heterojunction was characterized by current–voltage (I–V) measurements, temperature dependence of reverse saturation current, admittance, and capacitance–voltage (C–V) measurements. I–V characteristics of the heterojunction exhibited clear diode nature with rectification ratio of 9.05 at ±0.5 V and ideality factor n = 3.34. From the temperature dependence of the I–V characteristic, a barrier height ?<inf>b</inf> of 0.36 eV was determined for the CdSe–ZnTe junction. Conduction mechanism analysis revealed contributions from both thermionic and space-charge-limited conduction. Furthermore, the shunt leakage current was found to be space-charge limited, showing symmetry in current near V = 0 V. The dependence of capacitance on frequency and bias voltage has been analyzed to identify the bulk and interface defects. These measurements indicate the presence of bulk defects and high series resistance, severely affecting current transport. © 2016, The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society.