Electrical and Optical Properties of Boron Doped Zinc Oxide Thin-film Deposited by Metal-organic Chemical Vapour Deposition for Photovoltaic Application

Duke Ateyh Oeba *

Department of Physics, College of Science, Engineering and Technology, University of South Africa, Private Bag X6, Florida-1710, South Africa.

Cliff Orori Mosiori

Department of Mathematics and Physics, Technical University of Mombasa, P.O. Box- 90420 -80100, GPO Mombasa, Kenya.

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.


Abstract

Globally, there is a high demand for clean, sustainable and renewable energy for domestic and industrial use. Conventional photovoltaic cell technology relies heavily on crystalline silicon wafers which render silicon-based solar cells expensive due to the initial cost of production and required complex deposition methods. Due to these challenges, great research interest is now directed towards thin-film solar cells. In this work, the metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (CVD) method was chosen in the preparation of boron-doped zinc oxide (ZnO: B) thin film onto a glass slide substrate. The prepared ZnO: B thin films were characterized and optimized as a window layer for solar light trapping. The transmittance of the ZnO: B films varied between 70% and 81% for boron concentration ranging from 0.0 M to 0.06 M.  With the increase in boron concentration, bandgap and resistivity of the ZnO: B varied from 2.96 to 3.72 eV and 120 Ω-cm to 58 Ω-cm, respectively. Based on the results obtained, we believe that ZnO: B is suitable as a window layer for solar light trapping in the fabrication of a photovoltaic cell.

Keywords: Metal-organic chemical vapour deposition, ZnO, B, optical properties, electrical properties, photovoltaic cell


How to Cite

Oeba, Duke Ateyh, and Cliff Orori Mosiori. 2022. “Electrical and Optical Properties of Boron Doped Zinc Oxide Thin-Film Deposited by Metal-Organic Chemical Vapour Deposition for Photovoltaic Application”. Physical Science International Journal 26 (7):48-55. https://doi.org/10.9734/psij/2022/v26i7756.