Structural characterisation of sprayed TiO2 films for extremely thin absorber layer solar cells

We have examined in detail the structural features of TiO2 films fabricated by spray pyrolysis. The spray solution was produced from the dissolution of Ti powder in a hydrogen peroxide and ammonium hydroxide solution. The resulting peroxo-polytitanic acid solution was diluted in water and sprayed onto heated substrates through an air-atomizing nozzle. Each sample was characterised principally by X-ray powder diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The effect of spray solution composition and rate has been studied and a brief comparison to films produced by an alternative route ('doctor blade') provided. The films were shown to consist of almost single phase anatase and to be porous. It has been demonstrated that the growth process was uniform although the degree of preferred orientation could be controlled through the concentration of the spray solution. The lattice parameters are both shown to increase slightly with concentration and volume of solution deposited. Semi-quantitative microstructural analyses showed that the crystallites formed are consistently larger than those formed by the doctor blade process although they contain significantly more microstrain. Further, it is demonstrated that thin window layers of copper indium disulfide, also formed by spray pyrolysis, have a conformal relationship with the TiO2.