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Copper, antimony and sulfur in elemental form were applied for one-pot solid-state mechanochemical synthesis of skinnerite (Cu3SbS3) in a laboratory mill and an industrial mill. This synthesis was completed after 30 min of milling in the laboratory mill and 120 min in the industrial mill, as corroborated by X-ray diffraction. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of pure monoclinic skinnerite prepared in the laboratory mill and around 76% monoclinic skinnerite, with the secondary phases famatinite (Cu3SbS4; 15%), and tetrahedrite (Cu11.4Sb4S13; 8%), synthesized in the industrial mill. The nanocrystals were agglomerated into micrometer-sized grains in both cases. Both samples were nanocrystalline, as was confirmed with HRTEM. The optical band gap of the Cu3SbS3 prepared in the laboratory mill was determined to be 1.7 eV with UV–Vis spectroscopy. Photocurrent responses verified with I–V measurements under dark and light illumination and Cu3SbS3 nanocrystals showed ~45% enhancement of the photoresponsive current at a forward voltage of 0.6 V. The optical and optoelectrical properties of the skinnerite (Cu3SbS3) prepared via laboratory milling are interesting for photovoltaic applications.

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) is currently known to be one of the reliable cost-effective materials for manufacturing solar cells. In this work, different materials such as magnesium fluoride (MgF 2 ), aluminum trioxide (Al 2 O 3 ), tin oxide (SnO 2 ), and magnesium oxide (MgO) were applied as a single antireflection coating (ARC) layer and characterized their optoelectrical properties of the resulting CdTe solar cells. A personal computer one-dimensional (PC1D) simulation study was carried out to instigate the overall performance when varying the thickness of the absorber and window layers. Simulation results confirmed that Al 2 O 3 single ARC layer with thickness of 83 nm achieved the best efficiency of 17.81% as compared with the other ARC materials. The Al 2 O 3 single ARC layer resulted in a short-circuit current of 2.89 A and open-circuit voltage of 0.740 V.

Sol–gel methods were used to fabricate Al/p-Si/Cu2NiSnS4/Al quaternary functional solar detectors. Diffraction, spectroscopy and microscopy were used for the structural characterization of the photodetectors. The bandgap energy was found to be 1.20 eV. The photodiodes exhibited high absorption characteristics in the visible region, with low reflectance. The photosensitivity, photoresponse, linear dynamic range, barrier height and ideality factor of the photodiodes were characterized. I–V and I–t characteristics of the detectors revealed that they are responsive to light. Detectors also show rectifying behaviour. The electrical properties of the detectors were assessed using C–V, G–V, Cadj–V and Gadj–V plots. Electrical properties were found to be a function of AC signal properties. Such properties are attributed to the existence of interface states. The density of interface states (Dit) calculations of the detectors was performed where reduced density of interface state characteristics for increased frequency was seen.

In this work, calcium fluoride (CaF2) has been employed as an anti-reflection coating (ARC) for gallium arsenide (GaAs) based heterojunction solar cell. A numerical analysis was carried out to optimize performance parameters such as doping concentration, thickness of absorber and window layer, and carrier lifetime. ZnO and GaAs have been employed as window and absorber layer, respectively. Performance of CaF2 ARC has been investigated at optimum conditions. Personal computer one-dimensional simulator has been used for numerical analysis. Different Materials like magnesium oxide, magnesium fluoride (MgF2), titanium nitrate, aluminum trioxide and silicon dioxide, have been considered to make a comparative analysis. Best power conversion efficiency of 27.4% has been achieved with 32.0 mA short circuit current, 0.9899 V of open circuit voltage, and 86.49% of fill factor at optimum thicknesses of ARC, absorber, and window layers. Results revealed that MgF2 and CaF2 show almost same results as ARC layer but when it comes to stability CaF2 is more appropriate material as ARC layer for ZnO/GaAS solar cell. The results prove that optimization of thickness of materials, doping concentration, and carrier lifetime of absorber and window layer would make the crucial factor to fabricate the cost efficient and highly efficient GaAs solar cell based on CaF2 ARC layer.

In this work, a nanocomposite consisting of ternary chalcogenide CuInS2 and TiO2 was prepared and its optical and optoelectrical properties were investigated. The CuInS2/TiO2 nanocomposite was produced via one-step mechanochemical synthesis and characterized from the crystal structure, microstructural, morphology, surface, optical, and optoelectrical properties viewpoints. X-ray diffraction confirmed the presence of both components, CuInS2 and TiO2, in the nanocomposite and revealed a partial transformation of anatase to rutile. The presence of both components in the samples was also proven by Raman spectroscopy. HRTEM confirmed the nanocrystalline character of the samples as crystallites ranging from around 10 nm and up to a few tens of nanometers were found. The presence of the agglomerated nanoparticles into larger grains was proven by SEM. The measured optical properties of CuInS2, TiO2, and CuInS2/TiO2 nanocomposites demonstrate optical bandgaps of ~1.62 eV for CuInS2 and 3.26 eV for TiO2. The measurement of the optoelectrical properties showed that the presence of TiO2 in the CuInS2/TiO2 nanocomposite increased its conductivity and modified the photosensitivity depending on the ratio of the components. This study has demonstrated the possibility of preparing a CuInS2/TiO2 nanocomposite material with promising applications in optoelectronics in the visible region in an eco-friendly manner.

In this work, a simple low-cost technique is presented to fabricate reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-based near infrared photodetectors using vitamin C (ascorbic acid) as a reduction agent. Different levels of reduction can be obtained by varying the number of reduction cycles. The current-voltage characteristics of the fabricated rGO show excellent sensitivity towards the illumination of a continuous-wave laser. It is shown that the electrical conductivity of the devices is tailored based on the reduction level, resulting in highly enhanced conductivity. The large enhancement factors are measured for the values of photoresponsivity of the rGO at a higher reduction level.

Ternary wittichenite Cu3BiS3 nanocrystals were prepared mechanochemically using a planetary ball mill from elemental copper, bismuth and sulfur in a stoichiometric ratio in only 5 min. The orthorhombic wittichenite Cu3BiS3 was nanocrystalline with an approximate crystallite size of 38 nm ± 9 nm, as confirmed by Rietveld refinement. The nanocrystalline character of orthorhombic Cu3BiS3 was also proven by transmission electron microscopy. The measured Raman spectrum confirmed the formation of pure wittichenite Cu3BiS3. The morphology characterization demonstrated the homogeneity of the sample. The value of the specific surface area for pure mechanochemically prepared Cu3BiS3 after 5 min was 2.7 m2g−1. The optical properties were investigated using UV–Vis absorption and micro-photoluminescence spectroscopy. From the absorption UV–Vis spectrum, the value of the bandgap energy was determined to be 1.52 eV, which creates an assumption for the use of wittichenite Cu3BiS3 in photovoltaic applications. The optoelectrical properties of the prepared Cu3BiS3 nanocrystals were verified by current–voltage measurements in the dark and under white light illumination. The photocurrent increased by 26% compared to the current in the dark at a voltage of 1 V. The achieved results confirmed a very fast and efficient way of synthesizing a ternary wittichenite Cu3BiS3, which can be used for applications in solar cells.

Silver nanowire transparent conductive films (AgNW TCFs), as the novel transparent electrode materials replacing ITO, are anticipated to be applied in numerous optoelectronic devices, and slot-die coating is currently acknowledged as the most suitable method for the mass production of large-sized AgNW TCFs. In this study, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), as film-forming aids, and AgNWs, as conductive materials, were utilized to prepare a specialized AgNW ink, and a slot-die coating is employed to print and prepare AgNW TCFs. The optoelectrical properties of AgNW TCFs are optimized by adjusting the compositions of AgNW ink and the process parameters of slot-die coating. The suitable compositions of AgNW ink and the optimal parameters of slot-die coating are a CMC type of V, a PVA volume of 1 mL, a AgNW volume of 1.5 mL, a volume ratio of 30 and 45 nm AgNWs (2:1), and a coating height of 400 μm. The resultant AgNW TCFs achieve excellent comprehensive optoelectronic performance, with a sheet resistance of less than 50 Ω/sq, a visible light transmittance exceeding 92%, and a haze below 1.8%. This research provides a valuable approach to producing AgNW TCFs on a large scale via the slot-die coating.

Transparent conductive films (TCFs) were fabricated through bar-coating with a water-in-toluene emulsion containing Ag nanoparticles (AgNPs). Morphological changes in the self-assembled TCF networks under different emulsion formulations and coating conditions and the corresponding optoelectrical properties were investigated. In preparing various emulsions, the concentration of AgNPs and the water weight fraction were important factors for determining the size of the water droplets, which plays a decisive role in controlling the optoelectrical properties of the TCFs affected by open cells and conductive lines. An increased concentration of AgNPs and decreased water weight fraction resulted in a decreased droplet size, thus altering the optoelectrical properties. The coating conditions, such as coating thickness and drying temperature, changed the degree of water droplet coalescence due to different emulsion drying rates, which also affected the final self-assembled network structure and optoelectrical properties of the TCFs. Systematically controlling various material and process conditions, we explored a coating strategy to enhance the optoelectrical properties of TCFs, resulting in an achieved transmittance of 86 ± 0.2%, a haze of 4 ± 0.2%, and a sheet resistance of 35 ± 2.8 Ω/□. TCFs with such optimal properties can be applied to touch screen fields.