Photovoltaics will play a critical role in the global energy transition to a fully renewable energy supply. To reach this goal, in-depth characterization and understanding of photovoltaic materials is critical. Cathodoluminescence (CL) imaging can play an important role in this endeavor. The technique can be employed to image local defects and band structure of photovoltaic (PV) semiconductor materials on small length scales. It is a contactless nanoscale imaging method for studying bulk, thin-film, and micro/nanostructured PV materials. CL is particularly powerful for studying second-generation thin-film PV such as CdTe, CIGS, GaAs as well as novel third-generation materials such as Perovskites, CZTS, III/V nanowires and more.
CIGS (Cu(In,Ga)Se2 is a compound semiconductor material that is used to make efficient thin-film solar cells. Using CL imaging one can gain insight into the optoelectronic properties of CIGS. In particular, when studying a CIGS film in cross-section one can measure the gradient in band-gap which is present in these cells in the growth direction.
This can be linked to the elemental composition using the appropriate models. Such information can be used to better understand cell behavior and ultimately develop more efficient cells.
The CL information obtained from PV materials can be used for growth optimization, failure/defect analysis, and checking the (in)homogeneity in the material, to name some examples. CL analysis can be combined with other SEM techniques for a more complete analysis. In particular, EBIC, EBSD, ECCI, and EDS are often combined with CL imaging. The technique can be applied to a range of PV materials and geometries including thin films, multi-junction cells and nanostructured solar cells.
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