A comprehensive review on Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin film for solar cell: forecast issues and future anticipation

摘要

Past few decades, light absorbing materials based on CuInGaSe2 and CdTe have been used for fabrication of thin film solar cells. But main issues arising from these absorbers are the limited availability and toxicity of some of their constituents, viz. In, Cd, and Te. At present, light absorbing materials based on Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) is a best alternative to develop low cost and environmentally friendly component for next generation thin film solar cells. CZTS and their selenium alloy based devices showed the necessary potential for the development of thin film solar cells (TFSCs). There have been numerous attempts to synthesize TFSCs based on CZTS absorber. Various techniques available to deposit thin film absorber layer rely on vacuum and non-vacuum based methods. In this review, we focused on various deposition methods, their shortcomings and potential improvement for deposition of CZTS thin film. We have also addressed various parameters that affect CZTS thin film and its device performance including condition of annealing, variation of composition and doping of different elements. Finally, we have discussed the challenges and approaches for resolving the issue in the synthesis of CZTS based thin film solar cell.