• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2019

In this study, porous Mo-5 wt% Cu with unidirectionally aligned pores is prepared by freeze drying of camphene slurry with $MoO_3-CuO$ powders. Unidirectional freezing of camphene slurry with dispersion stability is conducted at $-25^{\circ}C$, and pores in the frozen specimens are generated by sublimation of the camphene crystals. The green bodies are hydrogen-reduced at $750^{\circ}C$ and sintered at $1000^{\circ}C$ for 1 h. X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that $MoO_3-CuO$ composite powders are completely converted to a Mo-and-Cu phase without any reaction phases by hydrogen reduction. The sintered bodies with the Mo-Cu phase show large and aligned parallel pores to the camphene growth direction as well as small pores in the internal walls of large pores. The pore size and porosity decrease with increasing composite powder content from 5 to 10 vol%. The change of pore characteristics is explained by the degree of powder rearrangement in slurry and the accumulation behavior of powders in the interdendritic spaces of solidified camphene.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.3 no.3
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• pp.85-90
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• 2015

Two-step processes for preparing $Cu(In,Ga)Se_2$ absorber layers consist of precursor layer formation and subsequent annealing in a Se-containing atmosphere. Among the various deposition methods for precursor layer, the nonvacuum (wet) processes have been spotlighted as alternatives to vacuum-based methods due to their potential to realize low-cost, scalable PV devices. However, due to its porous nature, the precursor layer deposited on Mo substrate by nonvacuum methods often suffers from thick $MoSe_2$ formation during selenization under a high Se vapor pressure. On the contrary, selenization under a low Se pressure to avoid $MoSe_2$ formation typically leads to low crystal quality of absorber films. Although TiN has been reported as a diffusion barrier against Se, the additional sputtering to deposit TiN layer may induce the complexity of fabrication process and nullify the advantages of nonvacuum deposition of absorber film. In this work, Mo oxide layers via thermal oxidation of Mo substrate have been explored as an alternative diffusion barrier. The morphology and phase evolution was examined as a function of oxidation temperature. The resulting Mo/Mo oxides double layers were employed as a back contact electrode for $CuInSe_2$ solar cells and were found to effectively suppress the formation of $MoSe_2$ layer.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.45-49
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• 2020

Molybdenum (Mo) thin films are widely used as back contact in copper indium diselenide (CISe) solar cells. However, despite this, there are only few published studies on the properties of Mo and characteristics of CISe solar cells formed on such Mo substrates. In this studies, we investigated the properties of sputter deposited Mo bilayer, and fabricated non-vacuum CISe solar cells using bilayer Mo substrates. The changes in surface morphology and electrical resistivity were traced by varying the gas pressure during deposition of the bottom Mo layer. In porous surface structure, it was confirmed that the electrical resistivity of Mo bilayer was increased as the amount of oxygen bonded to the Mo atoms increased. The resulting solar cell characteristics vary as the bottom Mo layer deposition pressure, and the maximum solar cell efficiency was achieved when the bottom layer was deposited at 7 mTorr with a thickness of 100 nm and the top layer deposited at 3 mTorr with a thickness of 400 nm.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2006.06a
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• pp.222-224
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• 2006

A non-vacuum process for $Cu(In,Ga)Se_2$ (CIGS) thin film solar cells from nanoparticle precursors was described in this work CIGS nanoparticle precursors was prepared by a low temperature colloidal route by reacting the starting materials $(CuI,\;InI_3,\;GaI_3\;and\;Na_2Se)$ in organic solvents, by which fine CIGS nanoparticles of about 20nm in diameter were obtained. The nanoparticle precursors were mixed with organic binder material for the rheology of the mixture to be adjusted for the doctor blade method. After depositing the mixture of CIGS with binder on Mo/glass substrate, the samples were preheated on the hot plate in air to evaporate remaining solvents ud to burn the organic binder material. Subsequently, the resultant (porous) CIGS/Mo/glass simple was selenized in a two-zone Rapid Thermal Process (RTP) furnace in order to get a solar ceil applicable dense CIGS absorber layer. Complete solar cell structure was obtained by depositing. The other layers including CdS buffer layer, ZnO window layer and Al electrodes by conventional methods. The resultant solar cell showed a conversion efficiency of 0.5%.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.161-171
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• 1997

Anodic regeneration of PCB enchant and cathodic deposition of copper using electrochemical method has been studied. Cu(I)/Cu(II) concentration ratio as a function of Cu(I) oxidation at the anode was measured from the potential difference between platinum and Ag/AgCl/4M KCl electrodes. Chlorine gas evolution was minimized by maintaining Cu(I) concentration above a specific concentration and using non-porous graphite electrode. Dendritic copper deposition was observed at the cathode and the optimum conditions for Cu deposition was identified as the current density of $360mA/cm^2$, and copper concentration of 12 g/l. Titanium was the most effective cathode material which showed a higher current efficiency and copper recovery. The current efficiency decreased with increasing temperature, but the highest power efficiency was achieved at $50^{\circ}C$.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.39-48
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• 2022

A Se-containing Cu/SnSe₂/ZnSe precursor was employed to introduce S to the precursor to form Cu₂ZnSn(S,Se)₄ (CZTSSe) film. The morphology of CZTSSe films strongly varied with two different pre-annealing environments: S and N₂. The CZTSSe film with S pre-annealing showed a dense morphology with a smooth surface, while that with N₂ pre-annealing showed a porous film with a plate-shaped grains on the surface. CuS and Cu₂Sn(S,Se)₃ phases formed during the S pre-annealing stage, while SnSe and Cu₂SnSe₃ phases formed during the N₂ pre-annealing stage. The SnSe phase formed during N₂ pre-annealing generated SnS₂ phase that had plate shape and severely aggravated the morphology of CZTSSe film. The power conversion efficiency of the CZTSSe solar cell with S pre-annealing was low (1.9%) due to existence of Zn(S.Se) layer between CZTSSe and Mo substrate. The results indicated that S pre-annealing of the precursor was a promising method to achieve a good morphology for large area application.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.25 no.12
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• pp.708-712
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• 2015

This study reports the effects of $H_2S$ gas concentration on the properties of $Cu_2ZnSnS_4(CZTS)$ thin films. Specifically, sulfurization process with low $H_2S$ concentrations of 0.05% and 0.1%, along with 5% $H_2S$ gas, was studied. CZTS films were directly synthesized on Mo/Si substrates by chemical bath deposition method using copper sulfate, zinc sulfate heptahydrate, tin chloride dihydrate, and sodium thiosulfate pentahydrate. Smooth CZTS films were grown on substrates at optimized chemical bath deposition condition. The CZTS films sulfurized at low $H_2S$ concentrations of 0.05 % and 0.1% showed very rough and porous film morphology, whereas the film sulfurized at 5% $H_2S$ yielded a very smooth and dense film morphology. The CZTS films were fully crystallized in kesterite crystal form when they were sulfurized at $500^{\circ}C$ for 1 h. The kesterite CZTS film showed a reasonably good room-temperature photoluminescence spectrum that peaked in a range of 1.4 eV to 1.5 eV, consistent with the optimal bandgap for CZTS solar cell applications.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.219-224
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• 2020

Al₂O₃ powders with particle sizes of 0.35 ㎛, 0.5 ㎛, 1.5 ㎛, and 2.5 ㎛ are deposited onto glass and Cu substrates using the aerosol deposition (AD) process. The deposition characteristics of Al₂O₃ films using those four types of Al₂O₃ powders are investigated to determine the influence of the particle size on the films. To observe detailed micro-structures of the films, the cross-section and surface morphology are observed. Then, the crystalline size and internal strain are calculated from X-ray diffraction peaks in order to confirm the hammering effect as well as the micro-strain during the AD deposition. From the above results, deposition mechanisms related to the particle size are studied. The results of this study indicate the optimal particle size and formation mechanisms for dense Al₂O₃ film with a smooth surface roughness as well as for a porous Al₂O₃ film with a rough surface roughness.