A new CdTe/ZnO columnar composite film for Eta-solar cells

First results of CdTe deposition on ZnO films consisting of free standing single crystalline columns of several micrometers height and ∼100–View the MathML source diameter are presented. The ZnO films have been obtained by electrochemical deposition on conductive glass. Morphology, structural and optical properties of the nanostructured columnar CdTe/ZnO composite films have been studied. The cadmium telluride (View the MathML source thick) deposited by vapor-phase epitaxy under dynamical vacuum is lining the ZnO columns as a continuous smooth thin film with conformal coverage. The polycrystalline CdTe layer is a mixture of cubic and hexagonal phases and is semiconductor with a direct band gap optical transition of View the MathML source. The nanocomposite CdTe/ZnO film shows strong light trapping effect and has considerable potential for use in photoelectric thin film devices.