Comparative performance of CdS/CdTe thin film solar cells fabricated with electrochemically deposited CdTe from 2-electrode and 3-electrode set-ups

Highlights: • A comparison of 2-electrode and 3-electrode set-ups for semiconductor growth. • Both electrode systems produce semiconductors with similar device qualities. • Resulting solar cells produced show similar conversion efficiencies. • 2-electrode system reduces cost and eliminates possible impurity source. - Abstract: A comparative study of the performance of glass/FTO/CdS/CdTe/Au thin film solar cells was carried out for solar cells fabricated with CdTe electrochemically grown using 2-electrode and 3-electrode set-ups. Structural, optical and morphological characterization of the CdTe films prior to solar cell fabrication show that both electrode set-ups produce CdTe with similar X-ray diffraction patterns, optical absorption properties and surface morphologies. Current density-voltage characterization of resulting solar cells also shows that CdTe from both electrode systems produced solar cells with comparable conversion efficiencies. The open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density and fill factor of cells from both systems were in the ranges of (410–630) mV, (15.2–33.0) mAcm⁻² and (0.32–0.49), respectively. These results indicate that the 2-electrode set-up can go a long way in reducing production cost by eliminating the reference electrode, which is also a potential impurity source, as well as ensuring a simplified deposition system.