Fabrication and electrical properties of Si/PS/ZnO:In solar cell deposited by rf-magnetron sputtering based on nanopowder target material

Indium doped zinc oxide (IZO) nanopowder synthesized by sol–gel method has been grown onto p type porous silicon substrate by rf-magnetron sputtering at room temperature. The obtained IZO thin films with a thickness of about 400 nm using indium concentration of 4 at%, were polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite structure and preferentially oriented in the (002) crystallographic direction. Atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used to study the films morphology. The obtained IZO films, generally used as TCO in solar cells, have a typical columnar structure and very smooth surface. From electrical characterizations: current–voltage (I–V) on dark and under illumination and capacity–voltage (C–V) at different frequency measurements, we can conclude that we have Schottky electronic behaviors where the depletion-layer is developed principally in p-type silicon region. The grown structure is promising for photovoltaic application.