Novel SnS Absorber Film Based on Grooves and Au-Nanoparticles for Photovoltaic Applications

In this paper, a new absorber film based on SnS thin-layer with gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) and back grooves texture is investigated. Numerical models based on FDTD method are developed to assess the optical performance of SnS absorber layer. A comparative study between the use of MNPs and back-grooves in SnS thin-film is carried out by estimating the key optical parameters associated with both structures. Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO)-based metaheuristic approach is implemented to boost up the optical performance of SnS thin-film over a broadband spectral range. It is found that the SnS absorber layer with optimized spatial distribution of gold NPs offers the best total absorbance efficiency of 75% as compared to that of SnS thin-films with and without grooves texture (62% and 68%, respectively). This is mainly attributed to plasmonic and the enhanced light scattering effects promoted by the optimized MNPs. Therefore, this interesting optical behavior can open new perspectives for the design of alternative photovoltaic devices based on SnS thin-film.