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Effects of deposition time and post-deposition annealing on the physical and chemical properties of electrodeposited CdS thin films for solar cell application

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Abstract

CdS thin films were cathodically electrodeposited by means of a two-electrode deposition system for different durations. The films were characterised for their structural, optical, morphological and compositional properties using X-ray diffraction (XRD), spectrophotometry, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) respectively. The results obtained show that the physical and chemical properties of these films are significantly influenced by the deposition time and post-deposition annealing. This influence manifests more in the as-deposited materials than in the annealed ones. XRD results show that the crystallite sizes of the different films are in the range 9.4–65.8 and 16.4–66.0 nm in the as-deposited and annealed forms respectively. Optical measurements show that the absorption coefficients are in the range 2.7 × 104–6.7 × 104 and 4.3 × 104–7.2 × 104 cm−1 respectively for as-deposited and annealed films. The refractive index is in the range 2.40–2.60 for as-deposited films and come to the value of 2.37 after annealing. The extinction coefficient varies in the range 0.1–0.3 in as-deposited films and becomes 0.1 in annealed films. The estimated energy bandgap of the films is in the range 2.48–2.50 eV for as-deposited films and becomes 2.42 eV for all annealed films. EDX results show that all the films are S-rich in chemical composition with fairly uniform Cd/S ratio after annealing. The results show that annealing improves the qualities of the films and deposition time can be used to control the film thickness.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank F. Fauzi, A. N. Abdul-Manaf, M. L. Madugu, I. O. Olusola and A. Ojo for valuable discussions. The principal author wishes to thank the Tertiary Education Trust Fund TETFUND, Nigeria and the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nigeria for financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Electronic Materials and Sensors Group, Materials and Engineering Research Institute, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, S1 1WB, UK

    O. K. Echendu & I. M. Dharmadasa

  2. Thin Film Research Group, Department of Physics, Federal University of Technology, P. M. B. 1526, Owerri, Nigeria

    O. K. Echendu, U. S. Mbamara, K. B. Okeoma, C. Iroegbu, C. A. Madu & I. C. Ndukwe

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  1. O. K. Echendu
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  2. U. S. Mbamara
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Correspondence to O. K. Echendu.

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Echendu, O.K., Mbamara, U.S., Okeoma, K.B. et al. Effects of deposition time and post-deposition annealing on the physical and chemical properties of electrodeposited CdS thin films for solar cell application. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 27, 10180–10191 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-016-5095-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-016-5095-z

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