Effects of Processing Temperature on the Thickness of CdS and the Performance of CdTe Solar Cells

CdTe cells have been fabricated on soda lime glass substrates. The effect of the CdS thickness and CdTe deposition temperature on the spectral response (SR) and solar cell parameters has been studied. The CdTe deposition temperature has been found to be a key processing parameter in determining the extent of interdiffusion at the CdTe and CdS interface. When the deposition of CdTe is carried outat high temperatures a significant portion of the CdS films is 'lost' due to interdiffusion which leads to enhancement of the blue reponse of the solar cells. Devices with identical blue response (400-500 nm) have been fabricated even though the starting CdS thicknesses were different; the cells for which the starting CdS thickness was greater exhibited higher open-circuit voltages and fillfactors.