SnS by Ionized Jet Deposition for photovoltaic applications

Tin sulfide is an excellent candidate for the mass production of solar cells as it is composed of abundant and not toxic elements. We have prepared SnS polycrystalline films by a novel technique. This technology allows to transfer atoms from a target of SnS to the substrate due to the generation of plasma from the target, giving enough energy to have a good crystallization of the material also at low temperature. Ionized Jet deposition (IJD) is an improved Pulsed Electron Deposition technique in which a pulsed high power electron beam penetrates into the target resulting in a rapid evaporation of the material, and its transformation in plasma state. The non-equilibrium extraction (ablation) facilitates stoichiometric composition of the plasma. This is particularly advantageous in the case of complex, multicomponent materials.