journal article·2025-06Open access

Highly Efficient Bifacial Narrow Bandgap Ag‐CuInSe2 Solar Cells on ITO

Amanat Ali, Dong‐Hwan Jeon, Wonjoon Kim, Van‐Quy Hoang, Jaebaek Lee, Dae‐Ho Son, Jin‐Kyu Kang, Kee‐Jeong Yang, Dae‐Kue Hwang, Shi‐Joon Sung, Dae‐Hwan Kim

Advanced Energy Materials· Volume 15· Issue 23

Abstract

Abstract Bifacial CuInSe₂ (CISe) solar cells hold significant promise for various applications but are constrained by relatively low power conversion efficiencies. This study boosts performance through reducing CISe absorber deposition temperature and using low‐Ga back grading for an optimum gallium‐to‐indium ratio (Ga/(Ga+In); GGI) profile. Low deposition temperatures reduced ITO back contact thermal degradation, while low Ga concentration reduced GaOX formation and CISe/ITO charge recombination. Ag incorporation significantly improved key photovoltaic parameters, including open‐circuit voltage (VOC) and fill factor (FF), while reducing Cu2−XSe secondary phase formation. This approach enables high‐quality CISe growth below 420 °C‐substantially lower than conventional temperatures. The study achieves record efficiency in the narrow bandgap CISe category, with Ag‐alloyed devices demonstrating a champion rear‐side efficiency of 8.44% at 390 °C, and a front‐side efficiency of 15.30% at 420 °C. Under the assumption of double‐sided total 2.0 solar illumination in an albedo environment, a champion bifacial power generation density (BPGD) of 23.1 mWcm−2 is achieved. Results indicate that lower deposition temperatures enhance rear‐side performance, highlighting the role of low‐temperature processing, low Ga doping, and Ag alloying in suppressing carrier recombination losses in CISe solar cells.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: Chalcogenide Semiconductor Thin Films · Quantum Dots Synthesis And Properties · Copper-based nanomaterials and applications

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Division of Energy & Environmental Technology Daegu−Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 Republic of Korea

Department of Interdisciplinary Engineering Daegu−Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 Republic of Korea

Funding

National Research Foundation of Korea · Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology

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