Tailoring of textured transparent conductive SnO2:F thin films

• The large-scale, textured SnO2:F film was prepared by APCVD on an industrial line.
• The textured surface morphology and haze value were optimized significantly.
• The film showed excellent light trapping structure for solar cell applications.

In order to optimize the light trapping, textured SnO2:F (FTO) films have been successfully deposited and optimized on glass in large scale using atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) method on an industrial production line. The microstructures, optical and electrical properties of the films were investigated as a function of the total flow rate and fluorine doping concentration. The as-deposited FTO polycrystalline films possessed the tetragonal rutile structure of SnO2. Enhanced light trapping has been achieved with the increased surface roughness of the films by manipulating the total flow rate of monobutyltin trichloride (MBTC) and trifluoro acetic acid (TFA), while the corresponding high transmittance and conductivity remained stable. The optimized film with haze value of 10.9%, a figure of merit at the level of ∼10−3 and sheet resistance of ∼11 Ω sq−1, showed good potential to improve the efficiency of silicon thin film solar cells.