Investigation of local electronic transport and surface potential distribution of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin-films

Local current mapping and surface potential distributions on polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) films are investigated by conductive atomic force microscopy and Kelvin probe force microscopy. The two kinds of samples fabricated by co-evaporation had extremely different conversion efficiencies of 10% and 0.2% for stoichiometric and Cu- and Se-deficient compositions, respectively. We examined the microscopic reasons for the differences in the local electrical properties. Current mapping and current–voltage behaviors were measured at intragrain regions (IGs) and grain boundaries (GBs). Electronic transport between a Pt scanning probe and the CIGS layer is explained by the Schottky conduction mechanism. The surface potential distribution shows an intriguing relation with topological variation, inferring that a local built-in potential is possibly formed on positively charged GBs. The surface potential is about 100 mV, which shows energy band bending near GBs in the films. Exciton separation near GBs is explained by the bending of the conduction and valence bands, which is sensitive to compositional and structural inhomogeneities.

► We deposited CIGS films with stoichiometric and Cu and Se-defective composition.
► We study local electrical properties of the films using scanning probe microscopy.
► The role of the defects in charge transport is carefully addressed.
► Positive surface potential near grain boundary is key parameter.