Photoluminescence studies of CdS layers for solar cells

Photoluminescence (PL) measurements were performed on polycrystalline CdS films grown by close space sublimation (CSS) or by chemical bath deposition (CBD) in order to observe the evolution of emission features according to the deposition technique and post-deposition treatments. CdS is naturally n-type because of the presence of sulphur vacancies and in most of the observed samples, a donor-acceptor pair involving the sulfur vacancies could be identified at 1.65 eV. Different complexes emissions could be identified depending on the deposition technique and post-growth treatment. The best efficiencies were measured on CdTe/CdS based solar cells for which the CdS layer presents an excitonic donor bound PL peak as well as an emission corresponding to interstitial cadmium (© 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)