• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2015.08a
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• pp.257.1-257.1
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• 2015

Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) 박막 태양 전지에서 buffer layer는 CIGS 흡수층과 TCO 사이의 밴드갭 차이에 대한 문제점과 lattice mismatch를 해결하기 위해 필수적이다. 흔히 buffer layer 물질로는 CdS가 가장 많이 사용되고 있으나 Cd의 독성에 관한 문제가 야기되고 있다. 따라서 ZnS(O, OH) buffer layer가 친환경 물질로 기존의 CdS 버퍼 층의 대체 물질로 각광 받고 있으며, 단파장 범위에서 높은 투과율로 인해 wide band gap의 Chalcopyrite 태양 전지에 응용되는 buffer layer로 많은 연구가 이루어지고 있다. 또한 buffer layer를 최적화 하여 carrier lifetime과 양자 효율이 증가시킬 수 있는 특성을 가지고 있다. 이 연구에서는 Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) 박막에 화학습식공정 (CBD) 방법을 이용하여 최적화된 ZnS(O, OH)의 증착 조건을 찾고, 고품질의 buffer layer를 제조하기 위한 실험에 초점을 맞췄다. 또한, buffer layer의 막질을 개선하고 균일한 막을 제조하기 위해 processing parameters인 시약의 농도, 제조 시간 및 온도 등의 다양한 변화를 통해 실험을 진행하였다. 그 후 최적화된 ZnS(O, OH) buffer layer의 특성 분석을 위해 X-ray diffraction(XRD), photoluminescence (PL), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and GD-OES을 이용하였고, 이를 통해 제조된 CIGS 박막 태양전지는 light induced current-voltage (LIV) and external quantum efficiency (EQE)를 통해 특성 분석을 실시 하였다. 결과적으로, 제조된 ZnS(O, OH) buffer layer의 $ZnSO4{\cdot}7H2O$의 농도는 0.16 M, Thiourea는 0.5 M, NH4OH는 7.5 M, 그리고 반응 온도는 77.5 oC의 조건 하에 CIGS 기판 위에 균일하고 균열이 없는 ZnS(O, OH) 박막을 제조하였으며 이때 제조된 태양전지의 소자 특성은 Voc = 0.478 V, Jsc = 35.79 mA/cm2, FF = 47.77%, ${\eta}=8,18 %$이다.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.1205-1211
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• 2013

The structural and optical properties of the ZnO, Al-doped ZnO, Ga-doped ZnO, and In-doped ZnO nanorods were investigated using field-emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, photoluminescence (PL) and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. All the nanorods grew with good alignment on the ZnO seed layers and the ZnO nanorod dimensions could be controlled by the addition of the various dopants. For instance, the diameter of the nanorods decreased with increasing atomic number of the dopants. The ratio between the near-band-edge emission (NBE) and the deep-level emission (DLE) intensities ($I_{NBE}/I_{DLE}$) obtained by PL gradually decreased because the DLE intensity from the nanorods gradually increased with increase in the atomic number of the dopants. We found that the dopants affected the structural and optical properties of the ZnO nanorods including their dimensions, lattice constants, residual stresses, bond lengths, PL properties, transmittance values, optical band gaps, and Urbach energies.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2012.02a
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• pp.334-334
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• 2012

Transparent oxide semiconductors have recently attracted much attention as channel layer materials due to advantageous electrical and optical characteristics such as high mobility, high stability, and good transparency. In addition, transparent oxide semiconductor can be fabricated at low temperature with a low production cost and it permits highly uniform devices such as large area displays. A variety of thin film transistors (TFTs) have been studied including ZnO, InZnO, and InGaZnO as the channel layer. Recently, there are many studies for substitution of Ga in InGaZnO TFTs due to their problem, such as stability of devices. In this work, new quaternary compound materials, tantalum-indium-tin oxide (TaInSnO) thin films were fabricated by using co-sputtering and used for the active channel layer in thin film transistors (TFTs). We deposited TaInSnO films in a mixed gas (O2+Ar) atmosphere by co-sputtering from Ta and ITO targets, respectively. The electric characteristics of TaInSnO TFTs and thin films were investigated according to the RF power applied to the $Ta_2O_5$ target. The addition of Ta elements could suppress the formation of oxygen vacancies because of the stronger oxidation tendency of Ta relative to that of In or Sn. Therefore the free carrier density decreased with increasing RF power of $Ta_2O_5$ in TaInSnO thin film. The optimized characteristics of TaInSnO TFT showed an on/off current ratio of $1.4{\times}108$, a threshold voltage of 2.91 V, a field-effect mobility of 2.37 cm2/Vs, and a subthreshold swing of 0.48 V/dec.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.304-308
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• 2013

For the application to the window layer of $Cu(In,Ga)Se_2$(CIGS) solar cell, zinc oxide(ZnO) thin film was deposited at various temperatures by in-line pulsed DC sputtering. From the structural, optical, and electrical investigation and analysis, it was possible to obtain the lower thickness, the lower resistivity, and the higher transmittance at a higher process temperature. The energy band gap of ZnO was calculated using the transmittance data and was analyzed in terms of the dependency on temperature. From the X-ray diffraction(XRD) results, it was possible to conclude that a dominant peak was found about $34.2{\sim}34.6^{\circ}$(111) and crystallinity was obtained at a temperature above $150^{\circ}C$.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2008.06a
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• pp.97-98
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• 2008

n-ZnO/p-Si heterostructure is a good candidate for ZnO-based heterojunction light emitting diodes(LED) because of its competitive price and lower driving voltage. However, the conventional LED shows much lower extraction efficiency, because it has small top contact and large backside contact. In this structure, the injected current from the top contact enters the active region underneath the top contact. Thus, the emitted light is hindered by the opaque top contact. This problem can be solved by using a current-blocking layer(CBL) that prevents the current injection into the active region below the top contact.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2004.11a
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• pp.535-538
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• 2004

Zinc Oxide (ZnO) films have attracted considerable attention for transparent conducting films, because of their high conductivity, good optical transmittance from UV to near IR as well as a low-cost fabrication. To increase the conductivity of ZnO, doping of group III elements (Al, Ga, In and B) has been carried out. Transparent conducting films have been applied for optoelectric devices, the development of the transparent conducting thin films on flexible light-weight substrates are required. In this research, the transparent conducting ZnO thin films doped with Aluminum (Al) on polymer substrates were deposited by the RF magnetron suputtering method, and the structural, optical and electrical properties were investigated.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.114-120
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• 2012

In this research, we prepared Ga doped zinc oxide(ZnO:Ga, GZO) targets each difference sintering temperature $700^{\circ}C$, $800^{\circ}C$, and doping rate 1 wt.%, 2 wt.%, 3 wt.%. The characteristics of thin film on glass substrates which deposited by facing target sputtering in pure Ar atmosphere are reported. Ga doped zinc oxide film is attracted material through low resistivity, high transmittance, etc. When prepared target powder's structure was investigated by scanning electron microscope, densification and coarsening by driving force was observed. For each ZnO:Ga films with a $Ga_2O_3$ content of 3 wt.% at input power of 45W, the lowest resistivity of $9.967{\times}10^{-4}{\Omega}{\cdot}cm$ ($700^{\circ}C$) and $9.846{\times}10^{-4}{\Omega}{\cdot}cm$ ($800^{\circ}C$) was obtained. the carrier concentration and mobility were $4.09{\times}10^{20}cm^{-3}$($700^{\circ}C$), $4.12{\times}10^{20}cm^{-3}$($800^{\circ}C$) and $15.31cm^2/V{\cdot}s(700^{\circ}C)$, $12.51cm^2/V{\cdot}s(800^{\circ}C)$, respectively. And except 1 wt.% Ga doped ZnO thin film, average transmittance of these samples in the range 350-800 nm was over 80%.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2010.08a
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• pp.298-299
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• 2010

Cu(In, Ga)Se2 (CIGS) 박막 태양전지는 Soda lime glass/Mo/CIGS/CdS/ZnO/ITO/Al 의 구조를 가지고 있다. CIGS 화합물은 direct bandgap 구조를 하고 있으며, 광흡수율이 다른 어떤 물질들 보다 뛰어나 박막으로도 충분히 태양광을 흡수할 수 있다. 또한 Ga의 도핑 농도에 따른 밴드갭 조절도 가능하다. 이러한 성질들로 인해 현재 박막태양전지로서 20.1%의 최고효율을 가지고 있다.[1] CIGS 박막 태양전지에서 p-CIGS layer와 스퍼터링으로 증착되는 n-ZnO layer사이의 buffer 층으로 chemical bath deposition (CBD)-CdS 박막을 주로 사용한다. CBD-CdS 박막은 n-ZnO 스퍼터로 증착 시킬 때, CIGS 층의 손상을 최소화하고, 이 두 층 사이에서의 격자상수와 밴드갭의 차이를 줄여주어 CIGS 박막태양전지의 효율을 증가 시키는 역할을 한다. 하지만, Cd (카드뮴)의 심각한 독성과 낮은 밴드갭(2.4eV)으로 인해 CIGS 층에서의 광흡수율을 줄여, CdS를 대체할 새로운 buffer 층의 필요성이 대두되었다.[2] 그 대안으로 ZnS, Zn(O, S, OH), (Zn, Mg)O, In2S3 같은 물질이 연구되고 있다. 현재 CBD-ZnS를 buffer 층으로 사용한 CIGS 박막태양전지의 효율은 최고 18.6%로 CBD-CdS의 최고효율보다는 약 1.5% 낮지만, ZnS가 높은 밴드갭(3.7~3.8eV)과 Cd-free 물질이라는 점에서 CdS를 대체할 물질로 각광받고 있다. 본 연구에서는 기존의 CdS 박막을 제조하는 방법과 같은 방법인 CBD를 이용하여 ZnS 박막을 제조하였다. ZnS 박막을 제조하기 위해서는 Zinc sulfate, Thiourea, 암모니아가 사용된다. 암모니아의 mol 농도에 따른 CBD-ZnS/CIGS 박막태양전지의 효율 변화를 관찰하기 위해 암모니아의 mol 농도는 1 mol, 2 mol, 3 mol, 4 mol, 5 mol, 6 mol, 그 이상의 과량을 사용하여 실험하였다. 실험 결과, 암모니아농도 5 mol에서 효율 13.82%를 확인할 수 있었다. 최고효율을 보인 조건인 암모니아 농도가 5 mol 일 때, Voc는 0.602V, Jsc는 33.109mA/cm2, FF는 69.4%를 나타내었다.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.02a
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• pp.102-102
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• 2011

ZnO는 우수한 전기적, 광학적 특성으로 LED, solar cell 등과 같은 광전자소자의 응용을 목적으로 많은 연구가 진행되고 있다. 최근에는 ZnO 동종접합을 만들고자 많은 연구가 진행되고 있으나 p형 ZnO의 낮은 용해성과 높은 불순물에 따른 제조의 어려움으로 현재까지는 n형 ZnO만이 전도성 기판 위에 성장되어 응용되고 있다. 전도성 기판으로서 Si의 경우 낮은 가격, 공정의 용이함 등으로 GaN, SiC 등의 기판에 비하여 많은 응용이 가능하다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 전기화학증착법을 이용하여 p-n 접합을 형성하기 위하여 p형 Si 기판 위에 n형 ZnO 나노구조를 성장하고 그 특성을 분석하였다. 전기화학증착법은 낮은 온도 및 간단한 공정과정으로 빠른 성장 속도를 가지고 나노구조를 효과적으로 성장할 수 있는 방식이다. Seed 층 및 열처리에 따른 n형 ZnO 나노구조의 성장 특성 분석을 위하여 radio frequency (RF) magnetron 스퍼터를 사용하여 ZnO 및 Al doped ZnO (AZO) seed 층을 p형 Si 기판 위에 증착 후 다양한 온도로 열처리를 수행하였다. 질산아연(zinc nitrate)과 HMT가 희석된 용액에 KCl 촉매를 일정량 첨가한 후 다양한 공정 온도, 공정시간 및 질산아연의 몰농도를 변화시켜 n형 ZnO 나노구조를 성장하였다. 성장된 나노구조의 특성은 field emission scanning microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), photoluminescence (PL) 등의 장비를 사용하여 구조적, 광학적 특성을 분석하였다.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2003.11a
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• pp.120-120
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• 2003

The metallic oxide nanomaterials including ZnO, Ga$_2$O$_3$, TiO$_2$, and SnO$_2$ have been synthesized by a number of methods including laser ablation, arc discharge, thermal annealing procedure, catalytic growth processes, and vapor transport. We have been interested in preparing the nanomaterials of Ga$_2$O$_3$, which is a wide band gap semiconductor (E$_{g}$ =4.9 eV) and used as insulating oxide layer for all gallium-based semiconductor. Ga$_2$O$_3$ is stable at high temperature and a transparent oxide, which has potential application in optoelectronic devices. The Ga$_2$O$_3$ nanoparticles and nanobelts were produced using GaN single crystals, which were grown by flux method inside SUS$^{TM}$ cell using a Na flux and exhibit plate-like morphologies with 4 ~ 5 mm in size. In these experiments, the conventional electric furnace was used. GaN single crystals were pulverized in form of powder for the growth of Ga$_2$O$_3$ nanomaterials. The structure, morphology and composition of the products were studied mainly by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM).).