Cu-doping effects on nanostructural, electrical and optical properties of CuxPd1−xS/p-Si heterojunction

The PdS/p-Si heterojunction was fabricated by preparation of PdS thin films on the p-type Si (10 0) substrates using versatile SILAR method. The alteration of nanostructural, morphological, optical and I – V characterization of Cu x Pd 1− x S/p-Si ( x = 0–0.1) heterojunction was examined at the different Cu-doping level to inspect the doping effects on the properties of heterojunction. The X-ray diffraction investigated that the crystallinity of prepared thin films enhanced as a function of Cu concentration. The morphological analysis presented that the PdS thin films was smooth, homogeneous and closed packed spherical grains. Electron dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis confirmed the stoichiometric composition of PdS thin films. The diffuse reflectance spectroscopy in the prepared PbS/p-Si heterojunction was reduced and the band edge showed the blue shift in the visible range. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra revealed that the PbS/p-Si heterojunction recombination rate is decreased with Cu-doping. The effects of Cu-doping level on the electrical parameters of heterojunction such as ideality factor ( n ), saturation current ( I S ), barrier height ( Φ b ) and series resistance ( R s ) were computed by the execution of current–voltage ( I – V ) properties. Electrical properties indicated that behavior of the PdS/p-Si heterojunction were precisely controlled by doping level.