Pulsed electrodeposited CZTS thin films: Effect of duty cycle

●CZTS thin films have been synthesized by the pulsed electrodeposition (PED) method.●Effect of duty cycle on the properties of CZTS thin films was studied.●The CZTS thin films are phase pure with nearly stoichiometric composition.

The kesterite Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin films are deposited by a novel pulsed electrodeposition method. The pulse potentials are kept at −1.1 V (SCE) and −0.7 V (SCE). The duty cycle is varied from 33% to 67% by varying pulse durations. The effect of duty cycles on the properties of CZTS thin films is investigated. The films deposited using an optimized duty cycle condition exhibit phase pure CZTS with nearly stoichiometric composition and have a compact morphology with optical band gap energy of 1.5 eV.