Deposition and characterization of spray pyrolysed p-type Cu2SnS3 thin film for potential absorber layer of solar cell

Thin film of ternary Cu2SnS3 (CTS), a potential absorber layer for solar cells was successfully deposited by chemical spray pyrolysis technique. The GIXRD pattern revealed that the film having tetragonal Cu2SnS3 phase with the preferential orientation along (112), (200), (220) and (312) plane and it is further confirmed using Raman spectroscopy by the existence of Raman peak at 320 cm−1. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was used to estimate the surface roughness of 28.8 nm. The absorption coefficient was found to be greater than the order of 105 cm−1 and bandgap of 1.70 eV. Hall effect measurement indicates the p type nature of the film with a hole concentration of 1.03 × 1016cm−3 and a hall mobility of 404 cm2/V. The properties of CTS thin film confirmed suitable to be a potential absorber layer material for photovoltaic applications.