Optical bandgap widening and phase transformation of nitrogen doped cupric oxide

• Main Authors: Masudy-Panah, Saeid, Radhakrishnan, K., Kumar, Avishek, Wong, Ten It, Yi, Ren, Dalapati, Goutam Kumar
• Other Authors: School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: Copper; Doping; Photonic bandgap materials; Sputter deposition; Metallic thin films
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/81588; http://hdl.handle.net/10220/39585
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The structural and optical properties of sputter deposited nitrogen (N) doped CuO (CuO(N)) thin films are systematically investigated. It is found that the incorporation of N into CuO causes an enlargement of optical bandgap and reduction in resistivity of the CuO(N) films. Furthermore, a gradual phase transformation from CuO to Cu2O is observed with the increase in N concentration. The effects of annealing temperature on the structural properties of CuO (N) and its dependence on N concentration are also investigated. It is observed that the phase transformation process from CuO to Cu2O significantly depends on the N concentration and the annealing temperature. Heterojunction solar cells of p-type CuO(N) on n-type silicon (Si) substrate, p-CuO(N)/n-Si, are fabricated to investigate the impact of N doping on its photovoltaic properties.