SbS Thin-Film Solar Cells Fabricated from an Antimony Ethyl Xanthate Based Precursor in Air.

The rapidly expanding demand for photovoltaics (PVs) requires stable, quick, and easy to manufacture solar cells based on socioeconomically and ecologically viable earth-abundant resources. SbS has been a potential candidate for solar PVs and the efficiency of planar SbS thin-film solar cells has witnessed a reasonable rise from 5.77% in 2014 to 8% in 2022.

4.9% Efficient SbS Solar Cells from Semitransparent Absorbers with Fluorene-Based Thiophene-Terminated Hole Conductors.

Fluorene-based hole transport materials (HTMs) with terminating thiophene units are explored, for the first time, for antimony sulfide (SbS) solar cells. These HTMs possess largely simplified synthesis processes and high yields compared to the conventional expensive hole conductors making them reasonably economical. The thiophene unit-linked HTMs have been successfully demonstrated in ultrasonic spray-deposited SbS solar cells resulting in efficiencies in the range of 4.

Control over MoSe formation with vacuum-assisted selenization of one-step electrodeposited Cu-In-Ga-Se precursor layers.

Cu(In,Ga)Se (CIGS) absorbers are prepared by direct current electrodeposition process followed by selenization of precursors. Selenization of electrodeposited layers is performed in a tubular furnace at 550 °C in elemental selenium atmosphere using Ar as carrier gas. The effect of evacuation of tube prior to the selenization on the formation of CIGS absorbers is studied.