Electrophoretic Deposition of CuIn1-xGaxSe2 Thin Films Using Solvothermal Synthesized Nanoparticles for Solar Cell Application

CuIn1-xGaxSe2 (GIGS) thin films are successfully prepared by convenient electrophoretic deposition, using colloidal nanoparticles. This is the first report which focuses on the electrophoretic deposition (EPD) of presynthesized GIGS nanopartides directly from their colloid for solar cell application. In this research, GIGS nanopartides are first synthesized via solvothermal process and then dispersed in a media containing a mixture of ethanol as the solvent and triethylenetetramine as the additive to be used for the film deposition via the electrophoretic method. By simple adjustment of the electrophoretic parameters, including applied voltage, pH, deposition time, and composition of nanopartides, GIGS thin films with controlled thickness and optoelectronic properties can be fabricated. The highest photovoltaic efficiency of 5.57% is obtained in the CuIn0.75Ga0.25Se2 sample. It is believed that this fabrication approach may open up a new gate to reduce the production cost of a highly demanding GIGS absorber layer used in thin film solar cells.