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Secondary crystalline phases identification in Cu\(_2\)ZnSnSe\(_4\) thin films: contributions from Raman scattering and photoluminescence

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Abstract

In this work, we present the Raman peak positions of the quaternary pure selenide compound Cu\(_2\)ZnSnSe\(_4\) (CZTSe) and related secondary phases that were grown and studied under the same conditions. A vast discussion about the position of the X-ray diffraction (XRD) reflections of these compounds is presented. It is known that by using XRD only, CZTSe can be identified but nothing can be said about the presence of some secondary phases. Thin films of CZTSe, Cu\(_2\)SnSe\(_3\), ZnSe, SnSe, SnSe\(_2\), MoSe\(_2\) and a-Se were grown, which allowed their investigation by Raman spectroscopy (RS). Here we present all the Raman spectra of these phases and discuss the similarities with the spectra of CZTSe. The effective analysis depth for the common back-scattering geometry commonly used in RS measurements, as well as the laser penetration depth for photoluminescence (PL) were estimated for different wavelength values. The observed asymmetric PL band on a CZTSe film is compatible with the presence of CZTSe single-phase and is discussed in the scope of the fluctuating potentials' model. The estimated bandgap energy is close to the values obtained from absorption measurements. In general, the phase identification of CZTSe benefits from the contributions of RS and PL along with the XRD discussion.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the following projects PTDC/CTM-MET-113486/2009, PEst-C/CT-M/LA0025/2011, RECI/FIS-NAN/0183/2012 (COMPETE: FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027494) from the Fundaç ao para a Ciência e Tecno-logia.

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Correspondence to Pedro M. P. Salomé.

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Salomé, P.M.P., Fernandes, P.A., Leitão, J.P. et al. Secondary crystalline phases identification in Cu\(_2\)ZnSnSe\(_4\) thin films: contributions from Raman scattering and photoluminescence. J Mater Sci 49, 7425–7436 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-014-8446-2

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