• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.12 no.12
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• pp.235-243
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• 2021

As environmental problems accompanied by industrialization have emerged worldwide, solar and wind energy have entered the stage of commercialization, especially in Korea. In addition, research on improving aesthetics using solar cells is being actively conducted. Examples include developing a transmissive solar cell and developing a solar cell with flexibility and color. Therefore, in line with the upward trend of solar cell development and solar cell-based public facility installation, we will present guidelines for designing public facilities using solar cells to improve aesthetics. First of all, components were derived to increase the suitability of solar cell application through literature surveys on solar cells and case studies on public facilities using solar cells. Next, through prior research on public facility guidelines, we established evaluation principles and drafted design guidelines. Based on this, a Delphi survey was conducted on a group of experts to verify its validity. Design guidelines for solar cells application measures to improve the final public design aesthetics were derived. The goal is to improve the public facilities using solar cells, through Accessibility and cognition, Usability, Shape and aesthetics, Sustainability and energy efficiency, Continuity with the urban landscape. And it is expected that this data will be used to improve the aesthetics of public design using solar cells in the future.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.08a
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• pp.376-376
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• 2011

I-III-VI2 chalcopyrite compounds, particularly copper, indium, gallium selenide(Cu(InxGa1-x)Se2, CIGS), are effective light-absorbing materials in thin-film solar application. They are direct band-gap semiconductors with correspondingly high optical absorption coefficients. Also they are stable under long-term excitation. CIS (CIGS) solar cell reached conversion efficiencies as high as 19.5%. Several methods to prepare CIS (CIGS) absorber films have been reported, such as co-evaporation, sputtering, selenization, and electrodeposition. Until now, co-evaporation is the most successful technique for the preparation of CIS (CIGS) in terms of solar efficiency, but it seems difficult to scale up. CIS solar cells have been hindered by high costs associated with a fabrication process. Therefore, inorganic colloidal ink suitable for a scalable coating process could be a key step in the development of low-cost solar cells. Here, we will present the preparation of CIS photo absorption layer by a solution process using novel metal precursors. Chalcopyrite copper indium diselenide (CuInSe2) nanocrystals ranging from 5 to 20nm in diameter were synthesized by arrested precipitation in solution. For the fabrication of CIS photo absorption layer, the CuInSe2 colloidal ink was prepared by dispersing in organic solvent and used to drop-casting on molybdenum substrate. We have characterized the nanoparticless and CIS layer by XRD, SEM, TEM, and ICP.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2006.06a
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• pp.152-153
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• 2006

The new approach to buffer layer design for CIGS solar cells that permitted to reduce the buffer absorption losses in the short wavelength range and to overcome the disadvantages inherent to Cd-free CIGS solar cells was proposed. A chemical bath deposition method has been used to produce a high duality buffer layer that comprises thin film of CdS and Zn-based film. The double layer was grown on either ITO or CIGS substrates and its morphological, structural and optical properties were characterized. The Zn-based film was described as the ternary compound $ZnS_x(OH)_y$. The composition of the $ZnS_x(OH)_y$ layer was not uniform throughout its thickness. $ZnS_x(OH)_y$/CdS/substrate region was a highly intermixed region with gradually changing composition. The short wavelength cut-off of double layer was shifted to shorter wavelength (400nm) compared to that (520 nm) for the standard CdS by optimization of the double buffer design. The results show the way to improve the light energy collection efficiency of the nearly cadmium-free CIGS-based solar cells.

• 한국태양에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2012.03a
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• pp.146-148
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• 2012

In our study, we have focused on optimizing good quality of ZnS buffer layer by chemical bath deposition (CBD) from a bath containing $ZnSO_4$, Thiourea and Ammonia in aqueous solution onto CIGS solar cells. The influence of deposition parameter such as pH, deposition temperature, stirring speed played a very important role on transmission, homogeneity, crystalline of ZnS buffer layer. The transmission spectrum showed a good transmission characteristic above 80% invisible spectral region. CIGS thin flim solar cell with ZnS buffer layer has been realized with the efficiency of 14.2%.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.59-62
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• 2014

Minority carrier diffusion length is one of the most important parameters of solar cells, especially for short circuit current density (Jsc). In this report, we proposed the calculating method of the minority carrier diffusion length ($L_n$) in CIGS solar cells through biased quantum efficiency (QE). To verify this method's reliability, we chose two CIGS samples which have different grain size and calculated $L_n$ for each sample. First of all, we calculated out that $L_n$ was 56nm and 97nm for small and large grain sized-cell through this method, respectively. Second, we found out the large grain sized-cell has about 7 times lower defect density than the small grain sized-cell using drive level capacitance profiling (DLCP) method. Consequently, we confirmed that $L_n$ was mainly affected by the micro-structure and defect density of CIGS layer, and could explain the cause of Jsc difference between two samples having same band gap.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2010.06a
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• pp.99.1-99.1
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• 2010

Many efforts on the surface sulfurization of $Cu(InGa)Se_2$ (CIGS)thin films have been reported as techniques to improve CIGS solar cell performance. We have investigated the sulfurization technique using the sulfur vapor. The co-evaporated $Cu(In,Ga)Se_2$ tin film was used for sulfurization. A thin $Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)_2$ layer was grown on the surface of the CIGS thin film after high-temperature annealing in sulfur vapor. The structural and compositional properties of the thin films were studied by XRD, EDS and AES analysis. The obtained results revealed that the surface modification technique is promising method to S incorporated into CIGS absorber.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2009.06a
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• pp.442-443
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• 2009

We prepared and characterized particle based CIGS thin film using a thermal evaporator. CIGS powder were obtained at $240^{\circ}C$ for 6 hours from the reaction of $CuCl_2$, $InCl_3$, $GaCl_3$, Se powder in solvent. The CIGS thin film deposited on a sodalime glass. The CIGS thin film were identified to have a typical chalcopyrite tetragonal structure by using UV/Vis-spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction(XRD), Auger Electron Spectroscopy(AES), Scanning Electron Microscopy(SEM).

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2011.11a
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• pp.58.1-58.1
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• 2011

CIS(CuInSe2)계 화합물 태양전지는 높은 광흡수계수와 열적 안정성으로 고효율 태양전지 제조가 가능하여 태양전지용 광흡수층으로 매우 이상적이다. 미국 NREL에서는 이러한 CIGS 태양전지를 Co-evaporation 방법으로 제조 20%이상의 에너지 변환 효율을 달성하였다고 보고하였다. CIGS 태양전지의 경우 기존의 유리 기판 대신 유연한 철강 기판을 사용해 태양 전지를 flexible하게 제조 할 수 있다는 장점이 있다. 이러한 flexible 태양전지의 경우 기존의 rigid 태양전지의 적용분야 뿐만 아니라 BIPV, 선박, 장난감, 군용, 자동차등 더욱 더 많은 분야에 활용이 가능하다. 본 연구에서는 기존의 rigid한 기판인 soda lime glass와 flexible 기판인 stainless steel 기판으로 소자를 제조하여 효율을 비교 분석 및 stainless steel 기판의 표면 처리 방법에 따라서 표면 조도의 특성을 분석하여 stainless steel 기판별 효율 특성도 비교 분석 하였다. 후면전극으로는 약 $1{\mu}m$의 Mo를 DC Sputtering 방법을 이용하여 증착하였고, CIGS 광흡수층은 약 $2.5{\mu}m$의 두께로 미국의 NREL과 같은 3 stage 방식을 이용하여 광흡수층을 Co-Evaporation 방법으로 제조하였고, 버퍼층인CdS는 약 50nm의 두께로 CBD 방법으로 제조 하였으며, 창층인 ZnO는 약 500nm 두께로 RF Sputtering 방법으로 제조 하였고, 마지막으로 약 $1{\mu}m$ 두께의 Al 전면전극은 Thermal Evaporation 방법으로 제조 하였다. 소자의 물리적, 전기적 특성을 분석하기위해 FE-SEM, AFM, Solar Cell Simulator 분석을 실시하였다.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.88-94
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• 2014

The structural, optical and electrical properties of sputter-deposited CIGS films were directly influenced by the sputtering process parameters such as substrate temperature, working pressure, RF power and distance between target and substrate. CIGS thin films deposited by using a quaternary target revealed to be Se deficient due to Se low vapor pressure. This Se deficiency affected the overall stoichiometry of the films, causing the films to be Cu-rich. Current tends to pass through the Cu-Se channels which act as the shunting path increasing the film conductivity. The crystal structure of CIGS thin films depends on the substrate orientation due to the influence of surface morphology, grain size and stress of Mo substrate. The excess of Cu was removed from the CIGS films by KCN treatment, achieving a suitable Cu concentration (referred as Cu-poor) for the fabrication of solar cell. Due to high Cu concentrations on the CIGS film surface induced by Cu-Se phases after CIGS film deposition, KCN treatment proved to be necessary for the fabrication of high efficiency solar cells. Also during KCN treatment, dislocation density and lattice parameter decreased as excess Cu was removed, resulting in increase of bandgap and the decrease of conductivity of CIGS films. It was revealed that Cu-Se secondary phase could be removed by KCN wet etching of CIGS films, allowing the fabrication of high efficiency absorber layer.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.131-135
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• 2020

Silver nanowire (AgNW) networks have been adopted as a front electrode in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) thin film solar cells due to their low cost and compatibility with the solution process. When an AgNW network is applied to a CIGS thin film solar cell, reflection loss can increase because the CdS layer, with a relatively high refractive index (n ~ 2.5 at 550 nm), is exposed to air. To resolve the issue, we apply solution-processed ZnO nanorods to the AgNW network as an anti-reflective coating. To obtain high performance of the optical and electrical properties of the ZnO nanorod and AgNW network composite, we optimize the process parameters - the spin coating of AgNWs and the concentration of zinc nitrate and hexamethylene tetramine (HMT - to fabricate ZnO nanorods. We verify that 10 mM of zinc nitrate and HMT show the lowest reflectance and 10% cell efficiency increase when applied to CIGS thin film solar cells.