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Volume 11
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10.3390/coatings11010052
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Article

Numerical Insights into the Influence of Electrical Properties of n-CdS Buffer Layer on the Performance of SLG/Mo/p-Absorber/n-CdS/n-ZnO/Ag Configured Thin Film Photovoltaic Devices

by
Asmaa Soheil Najm
1,
Puvaneswaran Chelvanathan
2,3,*,
Sieh Kiong Tiong
4,
Mohammad Tanvirul Ferdaous
5,
Seyed Ahmad Shahahmadi
4,
Yulisa Yusoff
4,
Kamaruzzaman Sopian
2 and
Nowshad Amin
1,4,*
1
Department of Electrical, Electronics and System, FKAB, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
2
Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Selangor, Malaysia
3
Graphene & Advanced 2D Materials Research Group (GAMRG), School of Science and Technology (SST), Sunway University, No. 5, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Sunway 47500, Selangor, Malaysia
4
Institute of Sustainable Energy, Universiti Tenaga Nasional (@The National Energy University), Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
5
UNITEN R&D Sdn Bhd, Universiti Tenaga Nasional (@The National Energy University), Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Coatings 2021, 11(1), 52; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11010052
Submission received: 12 November 2020 / Revised: 16 December 2020 / Accepted: 21 December 2020 / Published: 6 January 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Thin Film Dynamics: Theory and Computer Simulations)
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Abstract

A CdS thin film buffer layer has been widely used as conventional n-type heterojunction partner both in established and emerging thin film photovoltaic devices. In this study, we perform numerical simulation to elucidate the influence of electrical properties of the CdS buffer layer, essentially in terms of carrier mobility and carrier concentration on the performance of SLG/Mo/p-Absorber/n-CdS/n-ZnO/Ag configured thin film photovoltaic devices, by using the Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator (SCAPS-1D). A wide range of p-type absorber layers with a band gap from 0.9 to 1.7 eV and electron affinity from 3.7 to 4.7 eV have been considered in this simulation study. For an ideal absorber layer (no defect), the carrier mobility and carrier concentration of CdS buffer layer do not significantly alter the maximum attainable efficiency. Generally, it was revealed that for an absorber layer with a conduction band offset (CBO) that is more than 0.3 eV, Jsc is strongly dependent on the carrier mobility and carrier concentration of the CdS buffer layer, whereas Voc is predominantly dependent on the back contact barrier height. However, as the bulk defect density of the absorber layer is increased from 1014 to 1018 cm−3, a CdS buffer layer with higher carrier mobility and carrier concentration is an imperative requirement to a yield device with higher conversion efficiency and a larger band gap-CBO window for realization of a functional device. Most tellingly, simulation outcomes from this study reveal that electrical properties of the CdS buffer layer play a decisive role in determining the progress of emerging p-type photo-absorber layer materials, particularly during the embryonic device development stage.
Keywords: CdS; buffer layer; carrier mobility; carrier concentration; SCAPS-1D; photovoltaic CdS; buffer layer; carrier mobility; carrier concentration; SCAPS-1D; photovoltaic

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MDPI and ACS Style

Najm, A.S.; Chelvanathan, P.; Tiong, S.K.; Ferdaous, M.T.; Shahahmadi, S.A.; Yusoff, Y.; Sopian, K.; Amin, N. Numerical Insights into the Influence of Electrical Properties of n-CdS Buffer Layer on the Performance of SLG/Mo/p-Absorber/n-CdS/n-ZnO/Ag Configured Thin Film Photovoltaic Devices. Coatings 2021, 11, 52. https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11010052

AMA Style

Najm AS, Chelvanathan P, Tiong SK, Ferdaous MT, Shahahmadi SA, Yusoff Y, Sopian K, Amin N. Numerical Insights into the Influence of Electrical Properties of n-CdS Buffer Layer on the Performance of SLG/Mo/p-Absorber/n-CdS/n-ZnO/Ag Configured Thin Film Photovoltaic Devices. Coatings. 2021; 11(1):52. https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11010052

Chicago/Turabian Style

Najm, Asmaa Soheil, Puvaneswaran Chelvanathan, Sieh Kiong Tiong, Mohammad Tanvirul Ferdaous, Seyed Ahmad Shahahmadi, Yulisa Yusoff, Kamaruzzaman Sopian, and Nowshad Amin. 2021. "Numerical Insights into the Influence of Electrical Properties of n-CdS Buffer Layer on the Performance of SLG/Mo/p-Absorber/n-CdS/n-ZnO/Ag Configured Thin Film Photovoltaic Devices" Coatings 11, no. 1: 52. https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11010052

APA Style

Najm, A. S., Chelvanathan, P., Tiong, S. K., Ferdaous, M. T., Shahahmadi, S. A., Yusoff, Y., Sopian, K., & Amin, N. (2021). Numerical Insights into the Influence of Electrical Properties of n-CdS Buffer Layer on the Performance of SLG/Mo/p-Absorber/n-CdS/n-ZnO/Ag Configured Thin Film Photovoltaic Devices. Coatings, 11(1), 52. https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11010052

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