Abstract:
Pure sulfide kesterite (Cu2ZnSnS4 or CZTS) is a promising absorber material for next-generation photovoltaic (PV) technologies, especially for tandem and indoor applications. These quaternary chalcogenides offer tunable optoelectronic properties, an earth-abundant elemental composition, low cost, and high chemical stability [1]. However, the intrinsic bandgap of CZTS (≈1.5 eV) is suboptimal for tandem and indoor PV applications, which require a wider bandgap in the range of 1.65-1.9 eV. Alloying strategies based on cation substitution provide a flexible approach for engineering the structural, morphological, and optoelectronic properties. In particular, combining Ag alloying with alkaline metal incorporation enables effective tuning of these properties, offering a promising route for bandgap widening and absorber optimization.
Description:
Authors acknowledge the M-ERA.NET Lightcell project “Quasi-1D materials for advanced thin-film photovoltaics” (contract No. 19/15.03.2024), the UEFISCDI PN-IV-PCB-RO-MD Empower project “Engineering Sustainable Antimony Chalcogenide Alloys for Customized Power Thin Film Photovoltaics” (contract No. 28PCBROMD/22.09.2025), and the COST Action Research and International Networking project “Emerging Inorganic Chalcogenides for Photovoltaics (RENEW-PV),” CA21148, supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology).
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