Sublimation process and physical properties of vapor grown γ-In2Se3 platelet crystals

•γ-In2Se3 crystals were prepared using the closed tube sublimation process.•Voids were formed on the surfaces of crystals grown for duration of 72 h.•Well defined platelets were obtained for a period of 120 h.•Platelets exhibited a photoluminescence emission peak at 2.01 eV.•Photocurrent linearly increased with applied voltage.

Indium selenide (γ-In2Se3) crystals have been grown by the closed tube sublimation process in the absence of seed crystals and chemical transporting agents. The composition, structure and morphology of the samples grown under different vacuum conditions were examined by energy dispersive analysis, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscope. Structural features of the crystals obtained in a vacuum of 10−3 mbar exhibited a few reflections not belonging to γ phase, whereas X-ray diffraction spectra of the crystals deposited under a vacuum of 10−6 mbar revealed evidence of sharp peaks with high intensities of γ-In2Se3 crystalline phase. When growth runs were performed for 72 h, voids were observed on the surface whereas for a duration of 120 h, platelet crystals were obtained. Optical properties of these samples were investigated using the FT-IR and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The average transmittance of the platelets in the visible and near infrared region of solar spectrum was found to be ∼81% and an optical band gap of ∼2.05 eV was computed from the transmission spectrum. Photoluminescence spectra of the grown In2Se3 crystals recorded at room temperature using an excitation laser of wavelength 355 nm showed a peak in the near band edge emission (NBE) corresponding to an energy of 2.01 eV. Under an illumination power of 12 mW/cm2, the photocurrent increased linearly with applied voltage and the dark current was found to be ~2.5×10−9 A for 10 V. These results suggest that the as-grown γ-In2Se3 platelets crystallized from vapor deposition, possess superior optoelectronic properties than the other phases for solar cell applications.