Design and simulation of a new kesterite solar cell structure with and without a perovskite back surface field layer to exceed 32% efficiency

Abstract Copper zinc tin sulfide-selenide (CZTSSe) is a promising thin-film material for photovoltaic solar cells due to its abundance, environmentally friendly constituents, direct bandgap, and high optical absorption in visible light. In this study, we used the SCAPS-1D software to investigate the heterojunction CZTSSe/CdS-based solar cell with and without a perovskite back surface field (BSF) layer added between the absorber layer and the Mo back contact. First, a simple structure CZTSSe/CdS-based solar cell without a BSF layer was considered and replicated. Then, by adding p-MAPbI 3 as the BSF layer, a new kesterite solar cell structure has been proposed. Different layer parameters, such as the thickness, acceptor density, and the back contact’s work function, were used to compare the performance of both devices, with and without the BSF layer. A negative impact on cell performance was observed as a function of the series resistance. The analyses showed that the CZTSSe solar cell with the BSF achieved a higher efficiency of 32.27% compared to the cell without the BSF, which had an efficiency of 23.26%. The outcomes of this contribution may provide useful research directions for the thin-film photovoltaic field, enabling the production of highly efficient and low-cost CZTSSe-based solar cells.