Numerical analysis of CZTSSe solar cell with different BSF layers for performance improvement

Abstract

This work reports the performance improvement of the CZTSSe solar cell by using a back surface field (BSF) layer between the back contact and absorber layer. Firstly, a cell model with Cadmium (Cd) free buffer structure (Mo/CZTSSe/Zn(O, S)/ZnO/ITO) is developed using SCAPS-1D software. To improve the performance, thickness and composition ratio of the absorber (CZTSSe) and buffer (Zn(O, S)) layer are optimized through simulations. The efficiency of 14.39% is achieved for a Sulphur content of 40% and 70% in CZT(SxSe1-x)4 and Zn(O1-x Sx) respectively. Further performance improvement is attempted by using a back surface field (BSF) layer between the back contact and the CZTSSe absorber layer. The P+-MoSe2, P+ - Si0.75Ge0.25, and SnSe layers are used as BSF layers to investigate their effects on performance improvement. Inclusion of the BSF layer gives further scope for optimization of the absorber layer thickness. It is observed that the use of SnSe as a BSF layer produces maximum power conversion efficiency of 17%. These findings will be helpful for the research community working in the area of high-performance and low-cost CZTSSe based solar cells. © 2021 SPIE.