CHALSOL - Chalcogenide solar cells of CZTS -Copper Zinc Tin Sulfide

The most common material for solar cells today is crystalline silicon which has an outstanding efficiency of 25 % (potentially up to 30 %). Silicon photovoltaic cells, however, are complicated and expensive to manufacture. With the new chalcogenide material, CZTS, consisting of environment friendly materials, solar cells can be produced cheaply using electrochemical methods. Their efficiency, while today at around 10 %, is expected to be as high as 20 %. The project will strengthen our understanding of the material in order to optimize the composition and micro structure of the CZTS and increase the efficiency of chalcogen solar cells. This work will focus on thin film cells in order to benefit from our extended knowledge of similar materials from research in fuel cells and other materials.