Sb2Se3 versus Sb2S3 solar cell: A numerical simulation

Abstract Antimony selenide (Sb2Se3) and antimony sulfide (Sb2S3) are sustainable sources of renewable energy. Solar cells based on these materials have got worldwide attention and interest because of their excellent power conversion efficiency and low cost. For the buffer layer, zinc sulfide (ZnS) is a potential material for replacing cadmium sulfide (CdS) as it is non-toxic and has a wider bandgap. We numerically analyzed the Sb2Se3 and Sb2S3 solar cells and compared their performances using solar cell capacitance simulator (SCAPS-1D) software. The effect of absorber layer thickness, radiative recombination coefficient, valence band effective density of states, conduction band effective density of states, back contact metal’s work function, and shallow acceptor density on device performance is simulated. A detailed study about the I-V, C-V characteristics, and energy band structure is also analyzed. Maximum efficiency of 24.76 % and 14.81 % was achieved for Sb2Se3 and Sb2S3 based solar cells at 1016 cm−3 and 1018 cm−3 valence band effective density of states, respectively. It is also noticed that a work function of more than 4.8 eV for back electrode is best suited for Sb2S3 and Sb2Se3 solar cells. Ways to further improve the device performance are also suggested.