Fabrication of CdTe/NiTe films on Ni foils by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering method

• The effects of Ts on CdTe deposited on Ni by magnetron sputtering is investigated.
• An effective method is studied of making CdTe/NiTe without post-treatment.
• As-prepared CdTe/NiTe raised optical absorption and PEC properties.
• Pre-deposited Te can react with Ni to generate NiTe at Ts = 350 °C.

Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) semiconductor thin films are fabricated on flexible Ni foil substrates using radio-frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering under different substrate temperatures. The crystal structure and properties of the prepared functional thin films were characterized with series analysis technologies. The characterization results revealed that Nickel Telluride (NiTe) phase formatted at the interface of CdTe and Ni substrate when substrate temperature (Ts) is 450 °C. Specially, XRD results demonstrated that CdTe/NiTe films could also be obtained by pre-depositing Te film on Ni and reducing Ts to 350 °C. The investigation on optical and photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of the products illustrated that compact CdTe/NiTe films had improved the absorption in the visible region. Furthermore, PEC measurements indicated that CdTe/NiTe/Ni photoelectrode can have a promising application in photovoltaic devices.