Thermal neutrons effect on improvement of electrical properties at CIGS thin film derived by sol-gel dip coating technique

• Published in: Optical materials 2022-12, Vol.134, p.113110, Article 113110
• Main Authors: Matur, Utku Canci, Baydogan, Nilgun
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: CIGS; Neutrons; Sol-gel; Tangential beam tube; TRIGA Mark-II
• ISSN: 0925-3467; 1873-1252
• DOI: 10.1016/j.optmat.2022.113110

The thermal neutron effect on the copper indium gallium (di)selenide thin film synthesized by the sol-gel dip-coating technique has explained the novel use of this film under extreme conditions (such as neutron irradiation fields). The thin film samples were treated by using the reactor neutrons to obtain the optimum neutron treatment for the determination of the variations in the structural characteristics. The gamma filter system has provided the evaluation of the high thermal neutron flux effect on the thin film samples by using the tangential beam tube of ITU TRIGA Mark–II reactor. The influence of the neutron effect on the electrical and optical features was explained by the rise of selenium amount in the thin film. The neutron-treated thin film samples (at 50 at. % Se) had a significant effect on the lowest electrical resistivity depending on the increase of the film density. The equivalent gamma dose of the neutron-treated thin film was determined as a 0.024 Gy dose level for neutron irradiation. The neutron treatment was significant to evaluate the decrease in the sheet resistivity of the thin film at this dose level. The neutron dose has led to a slight decrease in the optical band gap as the result of the thermal and epithermal neutrons' effects on the thin film. •CIGS chalcopyrite structure was derived as p-type absorber layer.•Effect of thermal & epithermal neutrons was examined at sol-gel derived CIGS film.•Neutron dose has affected electrical properties.•Energy band gap decreased slightly by neutron dose at 0.024 Gy.