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Metal‐assisted chemical etching of CIGS thin films for grain size analysis
Author(s) -
Xue Chaowei,
Loi HuuHa,
Duong Anh,
Parker Magdalena
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
physica status solidi (rrl) – rapid research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.786
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1862-6270
pISSN - 1862-6254
DOI - 10.1002/pssr.201600240
Subject(s) - copper indium gallium selenide solar cells , electron backscatter diffraction , materials science , isotropic etching , grain size , etching (microfabrication) , crystallite , grain boundary , scanning electron microscope , thin film , metallurgy , optoelectronics , composite material , microstructure , nanotechnology , layer (electronics)
Grain size of the CIGS absorber is an important monitoring factor in the CIGS solar cell manufacturing. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis is commonly used to perform CIGS grain size analysis in the scanning electron microscope (SEM). Although direct quantification on SEM image using the average grain intercept (AGI) method is faster and simpler than EBSD, it is hardly applicable on CIGS thin films. The challenge is that, not like polycrystalline silicon, to define grain boundaries by selective chemical etching is not easily realizable for the multi‐component CIGS alloy. In this Letter, we present direct quantification of CIGS thin film grain size using the AGI method by developing metal‐assisted wet chemical etching process to define CIGS grain boundaries. The calculated value is similar to EBSD result.The CIGS thin film surface morphology before and after the wet chemical etching. Grain boundaries are well defined after the processing.