4-Amino-1,2,4-triazole: Playing a key role in the chemical deposition of Cu-In-Ga metal layers for photovoltaic applications

Liquid film processing of Cu(In, Ga)Se-2 absorber layers has the potential to lower the cell production costs significantly namely because of the absence of vacuum steps and high material utilization. In this work an ink system based on metal carboxylates in a mixture of a nitrogen-containing base and an alcohol is investigated. After the coating step on a suitable substrate followed by the drying of the alcohol, the metal ions are reduced to the respective metals with a simple heat treatment. However, depending on the conditions, the resulting metal layers are either highly porous or dewetting above 160 degrees C due to the high surface tension of the intermediate liquid indium. Adding 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole to the ink leads to a homogeneous metal layer, which is crucial for the formation of dense chalcopyrite layers. We propose a stabilization mechanism based on a temporary polymeric complex of Cu2+ and the additive 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole which is decomposing completely at selenization conditions. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.