Maykel Courel

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Verified

Maykel verified their affiliation via an institutional email.

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• PhD in Physics and Mathematics Sciences
• Professor at University of Guadalajara

Cu2ZnSn(SSe)4 (CZTSSe) semiconductor is quite promising to solar cell applications, recently achieving a new record efficiency of 14.9%. Despite theoretical works have shown that efficiencies higher than 20% are possible in this technology, there are some critical points that should be carefully solved by the scientific community. In this review, i...

The perovskite solar cell has been the subject of intense breakdown lately because of its exceptional efficiency. Nevertheless, they confront a significant challenge due to the absorber layer's (perovskite) sensitivity to oxygen and water, which can cause rapid material degradation and adversely affect the solar cell's performance. The commonly use...

Solar cells based on Sb 2 (S 1− x ,Se x ) 3 ternary compounds have shown the highest reported efficiency value compared to their Sb 2 Se 3 and Sb 2 S 3 counterparts in antimony chalcogenide technology. However, the reported record efficiencies for these new emergent solar cells are still well below the theoretical values according to their bandgap...

In this paper, we studied the alcohol-sensing properties of CoMn2O4 nanoparticles for the first time. The CoMn2O4 nanoparticles were prepared via a simple microwave-assisted colloidal method using cobalt nitrate, manganese nitrate, dioctyl sulfosuccinate sodium salt, and ethylene glycol as a solvent. Various techniques were used to characterize the...

Existe un creciente interés por parte de diversos actores de la sociedad por impulsar el desarrollo de energía eléctrica a través de fuentes renovables, como las plantas solares, debido a la necesidad de mitigar los efectos negativos del uso de combustibles fósiles en el medio ambiente y combatir el cambio climático. Esta preocupación ha llevado a...

In this study, the structural, electrical, and optical characteristics of the Stannite Cu2CoGeS4 (CCGS) are investigated using first-principle calculations. Band gap energy is determined using both the mBJ + U and HSE potentials. Both methods yield to similar results (1.73 eV and 1.78 eV for the first and second, respectively and 1.78 eV for the fi...

The electronic and optical properties of Cu2NiGeS4 (CNGS) are examined using the first-principle DFT calculations. A unique mBJ + U potential method is used for the band gap energy calculation of CNGS. With a remarkably high absorption coefficient (104 cm −1), CNGS has become a promising candidate for photovoltaic applications. SCAPS-1D tool is use...

In this work, we present a theoretical study on the use of Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 quantum wells in Cu2ZnSnS4 solar cells to enhance device efficiency. The role of different well thickness, number, and S/(S + Se) composition values is evaluated. The physical mechanisms governing the optoelectronic parameters are analyzed. The behavior of solar cells based o...

A numerical simulation is a valuable tool since it allows the optimization of both times and the cost of experimental processes for time optimization and the cost of experimental processes. In addition, it will enable the interpretation of developed measurements in complex structures, the design and optimization of solar cells, and the prediction o...

The use of interlayers is a valuable strategy for improving the performance of perovskite solar cells. Usually, such interlayers are thin films of a single material. We consider it interesting to evaluate interlayers formed by two or more materials, to take advantage of their possible cooperative or complementary effect. In the present work, the in...

Dear Colleagues, Using nanostructures in solar cells has become an attractive route for achieving efficiencies higher than the experimental values reported for devices without nanostructures. An important advantage of nanomaterials is that their electrical and optical properties can be tailored as a function of nanostructure size, shape, compositi...

The acetone contained in human breath is of great interest for the health sector as it is a marker that allows to diagnose and control diabetes in a non-invasive way. However, its concentration is extremely low. Therefore, high-performance acetone sensors are still a challenge. With this in mind, MgCo2O4 nanoparticles were synthesized using a micro...

There is a plethora of thin-film photovoltaic materials like CIGS, CIGSSe, CZTS, CZTSSe, etc. that are currently under research and are suitable for commercial use. In this study, a Cu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> CdSnS <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmln...

Sb2(Se1‐xSx)3 compounds have been regarded as an excellent absorber in thin film solar cells processing. At present, the best efficiency reported in these chalcogenides of antimony corresponds to FTO/CdS/Sb2(Se1‐xSx)3/spiro‐OMeTAD/Au structure with 10.5 %. In this work, a comparative study on the Sb2(Se1‐xSx)3 solar cell performance with different...

Photovoltaic cells, based on quantum dots implementation in the intrinsic region, are one of the most widely studied concepts nowadays to obtain a high solar conversion efficiency. The challenge in this third generation of solar cells is to find a good combination of materials that allows obtaining higher efficiency with low cost. In this study, we...

SnS semiconductor is currently a potential material for solar cell application. However, this technology has not been able to overcome the efficiency barrier of 5%, being necessary a complete understanding of the limiting factors. In this work, the analysis of the impact of recombination mechanisms namely radiative and non-radiative due to defects...

In this work, a detailed study of the effect of thermal treatment (hot plate) on a Mo/CZTS/CdS/i-ZnO/ITO solar cell was carried out, which promotes the diffusion of the Cd contained in the window layer of CdS towards the absorber layer of CZTS. The thermal treatment of the Mo/CZTS/CdS/i-ZnO/ITO solar cell was carried out at temperatures ranging fro...

In this paper, first principle calculations of Cu2NiGeS4 (CNGS) are carried out to explore the structural, electronic and optical properties of kesterite compound. Both mBJ+U and HSE potentials are used to calculate the band gap energy. The first approach gives a value of 1.78 eV and the second one a value of 1.76 eV. Our numerical simulation shows...

In this work, a review focused on the recent development of antimony sulfide selenide (Sb2(S,Se)3) solar cells is presented. In particular, experimental and theoretical results are discussed to understand the current limiting factors of this technology, as well as possible routes for device promotion. The Sb2(S,Se)3 compound is introduced as an att...

Antimony sulfide selenide (Sb2(S1-xSex)3) material has emerged as a potential candidate for solar cell fabrication. However, up-to-date, efficiencies of about 7% have been widely reported for solar cells based on this absorber material under a p–n junction. Further experimental and theoretical attempts are required to find the main limitations of t...

Zirconia bulk is one of the most studied materials around the world due to different properties such as a high melting temperature, biocompatibility, and high thermal expansion, among many others. However, there is little experimental research about Zirconia nanowires and until now there are few theoretical papers on the subject. In this work, DFT c...

In this work, thin films of the ternary material Sb2S3-xSex with promising optical and electrical properties were developed for its application as absorber material in photovoltaic devices. It was found that 400 °C is the lowest recrystallization temperature at which phase-pure polycrystalline films of Sb2S3-xSex can be obtained. Films were recryst...

Following the chronological stages of calculations imposed by the WIEN2K code, we have performed a series of density functional theory calculations, from which we were able to study the effect of strain on the kesterite structures for two quaternary semiconductor compounds Cu2ZnGeS4 and Cu2ZnGeSe4. Remarkable changes were found in the electronic an...

Kesterite materials Cu2ZnSn(SxSe1−x)4, Cu2ZnSnS4 and Cu2ZnSnSe4 have received considerable attention as absorber layers for photovoltaic cell applications. But they exhibit efficiencies lower than 12%. In this work, different possible loss mechanisms that affect the solar cell performance are analysed. Numerical investigation is made on the influen...

Tin sulfide (SnS) semiconductor has recently attracted a great deal of attention from the scientific community regarding its application in solar cells. However, SnS solar cell efficiencies are still limited to less than 5%. The incorporation of nanostructures into solar cells has been demonstrated to be a potential route to improve device performa...

This work presents current advances and perspectives on SnSe thin film solar cell technology. Nowadays, SnSe solar cells have not been able to achieve efficiency values higher than 7%. In this sense, it is necessary to study the potentiality of SnSe compound in solar cells that could help to understand further routes to promote this technology. It...

In this work, the use of Cd1-xZnxS ternary compound as an alternative ETL layer to CdS in solar cells with FTO/CdS/Sb2(Se1-xSx)3/spiro-OMeTAD/Au structure is evaluated for the first time. Numerical calculations on Sb2(Se1-xSx)3 solar cells with CdS and Cd1-xZnxS as ETL layers are performed for comparison. Experimental data reported for CdS/Sb2(Se1-...

Kesterite materials, such as copper–zinc–tin–sulfide (CZTS) solar cell, have received considerable attention for low-cost and high-efficiency solar cells. However, the material suffers from poor quality of thin film during deposition, which, in turn, creates multiple grain boundaries along the layer. Consequently, a higher density of defects is ran...

Antimony Sulfide (Sb 2 Se 3 ) Solar Cells are considered a promising emerging photovoltaic devices technology. However, the best reported experimental efficiency (9.2%) is well below the theoretical limit of 30%. In this research is demonstrated, by numerical simulation, that using different buffer or electron transport layers (ETL) and device stru...

Solar cells that are based on the implementation of quantum dots in the intrinsic region, so-called intermediate band solar cells (IBSCs), are among the most widely used concepts nowadays for achieving high solar conversion efficiency. The principal characteristics of such solar cells relate to their ability to absorb low energy photons to excite e...

A novel process of cadmium telluride (CdTe) synthesis and deposition applied in solar cells technology is presented in this research. Solar cells proposed; were manufactured using chemical deposition techniques, at low temperatures and without vacuum which let us reduce production costs. A configuration of Glass/SnO2:F/CdS/CdTe/Ag was chosen in ord...

The acquisition of new materials for the manufacturing of high efficiency and low-cost photovoltaic devices has currently become a challenge. Thin films of CuInGaSe and CdTe have been widely used in solar cell of second generation, achieving efficiencies about 20 %; however, the low abundance of In and Te as well as the toxicity of Cd is the primar...

New generation of solar cells based on the implementation of quantum dots in the intrinsic region has attracted much attention due to the fact to that it takes advantage of photons with energies lower than the band gap for achieving high solar conversion efficiency. However, there is still a need for optimizing many parameters related to the solar...

In this work, a theoretical study on the impact of loss mechanisms on Sb2(SSe)3 solar cells with a 10% certified world record efficiency is presented. In particular, it is found that CdS/Sb2(SSe)3 interface recombination is the main loss mechanism, giving rise to a Voc deficit of almost 50% and a reduction in the efficiency of 45% compared to resul...

Spinel-type ZnMn2O4 nanoparticles with sizes between 40 and 90 nm were synthesized successfully via an ultrasound-assisted colloidal method using dodecylamine as a surfactant agent. The formation of spinel ZnMn2O4 was identified from structural and morphological characterizations using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, electron microscopy, ene...

The electron energy spectrum of a core/shell spherical quantum dot made of zincblende GaN/InN compounds is investigated taking into account the presence of an off-center donor atom and the influence of band nonparabolicity. The interaction of both the charge carrier and the Coulombic core with longitudinal optical phonons is included through Frö hl...

In this work, we evaluate the role of the ternary compound, Cd1–x Zn x S, as an electron-transport layer (ETL) in the n-i-p structure of antimony selenide (Sb2Se3) solar cells. The incorporation of Zn reduces the amount of Cd and contributes to improving the power-conversion efficiency of the solar cell. On the other hand, the n-i-p structure makes...

ZnO is a promising electron transport material with high electron mobility compared to TiO 2 and SnO 2. However, its high basicity and the presence of hydroxyl groups at the ZnO surface induces thermochemical decomposition of hybrid perovskites though proton transfer reactions. In perovskite solar cells (PSCs), these deprotonation reactions produce...

In this work, a path to overcome the highest current efficiency on SnS thin-film solar cells by the Se incorporation is presented. We carried out a theoretical study of the effect of different Se/(S + Se) compositional ratios (CRs) (from 0.0 to 1.0) on the solar cell performance. In this sense, an improvement on power conversion efficiency (PCE) by...

The fundamental understanding and tailoring of material properties play a fundamental role on the performance of tin (II) sulfide (SnS)-based photovoltaic devices. In this regard, this work reports on the deposition of single-phase, p-type SnS thin films synthesized by close spaced vapor transport (CSVT) and the impact of employing argon (Ar) and b...

Results on alternative processing ofCdSxSe1−xnanoparticles, starting from thesequential growth of CdS/CdSe bilayers by a chemical bath deposition technique on soda limesubstrate and their subsequent annealing are reported. Different salts, such as cadmium chlorideand cadmium nitrate, were used as cadmium precursors to deposit different CdS and CdSe...

In this work, we investigate the influence of the internal electric field induced by the polarization inside the active region of the p-i-n photodiode on the characteristics of InN/InxGa1-xN quantum dots intermediate band solar cell. Considering the conduction and valence band offsets, the electron and hole energy levels have been determined by sol...

In this work, an experimental and theoretical study on CH 3 NH 3 PbI 3 perovskite solar cells was performed. A theoretical validation of experimental results in perovskite solar cells with efficiencies of 13.32% is presented. An optimization study which involves the spiro-OMeTAD and perovskite thickness' influence on electrical output parameters (V...

Currently, different types of materials are being used for solar cell applications, these vary according to the device’s requirements. In recent years, the main purposes in Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs) study are, to obtain a longer useful lifetime and high conversion efficiencies, compared to existing devices in solar cell market. Consequentl...

Kesterite semiconductors, derived from the mineral Cu-2(Zn,Fe)SnS4, adopt superstructures of the zincblende archetype. This family of semiconductors is chemically flexible with the possibility to tune the physical properties over a large range by modifying the chemical composition, while preserving the same structural backbone. In the simplest case...

In this work, a theoretical study on the application of nanostructures to Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) solar cells under the radiative limit is presented. In particular, the addition of Cu2ZnSn(SSe)4 (CZTSSe) quantum wells to CZTS host material to increase photon absorption with energies lower than the CZTS bandgap, while keeping the advantage of using a wider...

TiO2 thin films doped with low percentages (3, 7, and 10 at.%) of Er³⁺ have been synthesized by sol gel spin coating technique. The influence of erbium concentration on the physical properties was analyzed using different characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, TEM analysis, EDS-SEM, AFM, UV–Visible transmittance...

In the present work we have deposited ternary SnS-Se thin films by thermal treatment of SnS in S/Se atmosphere. The effect of annealing conditions on the formation of ternary phase was studied and the optimum condition was identified. The structural, morphological and optoelectronic studies were analyzed by techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD...

In the present work, we simulate the J-V characteristic of a solar cell combination to evaluate the efficiency in an optical splitter system. Two different transparent conductive oxides (TCO) were used as splitters (ITO and SnO 2 :F). The spectral response of the TCOs was modeled according to Drude’s theory, using different concentration values. Th...

The Sb2(S1-x , Sex)3 compound has received considerable attention in photovoltaic applications due to its physical properties and for containing abundant non-toxic elements. However, solar cells based on this material present low efficiencies. In this work, we review some of the physical properties reported for the semiconductors Sb2S3, Sb2Se3 and...

The compound Sb2(S1-xSex)3 has recently attracted a great deal of attention from the scientific community for solar cell applications. However, Sb2(S1-xSex)3 inorganic solar cell efficiencies are still limited to values lower than 7%, further studies contributing to a better understanding of the limiting factors behind this technology being necessa...

The doping of Cu2ZnSnSe4 semiconductor with Ge element has demonstrated improvements to kesterite solar cell efficiency. However, the impact of different Cu concentrations on Cu2ZnSnGeSe4/CdS solar cell performance has been poorly studied. In this work, Cu2ZnSnGeSe4 thin films with different Cu contents were synthesized by selenization of sequentia...

CZTSe, CZTGSe and CZTGSSe powders were synthesized by the ball-milling technique, using elemental Cu, Zn, Sn, Ge, S and Se as the materials source. Kesterite synthesis route employs a one-step approach consisting of a direct precursor crystallization step. Morphological, structural and compositional ratios analyses are presented for different Ge-do...

Kesterite semiconductors such as Cu2ZnSnS4, Cu2ZnSnSe4 and Cu2ZnSn(SSe)4 have received a great deal of attention from scientific community for solar cell applications since they present p-type conductivity, direct band-gap transitions, a relatively high absorption coefficient and a band-gap that can be tailored in the range of 1.0—1.5 eV as a funct...

This book chapter summarizes different approaches for modeling thin film solar cells. Particular attention will be given to kesterite solar cells as recently have emerged as promising candidates for replacing CdTe and CIGS technology. So far, only few theoretical works have been proposed to understand high Voc deficit. However, most of these, consi...

In this paper we are reporting an in-depth study into the material properties of cadmium incorporated kesterite material Cu2(CdxZn1-x)SnS4 (CZCTS). Though it was reported in the past that CZCTS can be a candidate solar cell material, little is known about the material characteristics of this compound. In this work, the impact of Cd content on struc...

In this research, we report the synthesis of Cu2Zn(SnGe)Se4 compound by sequential thermal evaporation technique as well as the influence of the germanium content on the electrical, optical, structural, morphological and chemical properties of this material. The order of the metallic stacks deposited on the coated molybdenum glass substrates was Cu/...

In this work, the processing of Cu2ZnGeS4 (CZGS) thin films by a thermal evaporation technique starting from CuS, GeS and ZnS precursors, and post-deposition thermal processing, is discussed. Batches of films with GeS layers of varying thicknesses are deposited in order to study the role of Ge concentration on the structural, morphological, optical...

Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin films processed by spray pyrolysis technique have attracted a great deal of attention from scientific community for solar cell applications. It is well known that Cu-poor and Zn- rich conditions are required for a good solar cell performance regardless of the method used for CZTS thin film deposition. However, few reports are...

CdS buffer layer plays an important role in thin film solar cells; as a result, a deep understanding of its physical properties and impact on solar cell performance is highly required. In this work, we report results on growth conditions of CdS thin films deposited by chemical bath method to be used as insulators in MIS structure instead of the tra...

Ytterbium (Yb) doped TiO2 thin films have been synthesized by sol-gel spin-coating technique. Films with different Yb concentrations such as 0.5, 1, 2, 4 wt% were deposited and the impact of the dopant concentration on their physicochemical properties was evaluated. The films were characterized by X-Ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy...

In this paper results on Cu2ZnSnSe4 and Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 powders, prepared by ball-milling process using elemental Cu, Zn, Sn, Se and S as the materials source and different milling times are presented. In addition, preliminary results on targets processed with different pressing pressures and submitted later to one post-thermal annealing are also pr...

This work reports the results obtained from applying a non-linear optimization method to the I-V characteristic of a GaAlP/GaAlAs/Ge solar cell. Modifications done to the Hooke–Jeeves method are reported. Later, this method was combined with a semi-analytical approach. This provides the starting conditions for the modified Hooke-Jeeves method. Our...

In this work, we report the processing of Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 (CZTSSe) thin films by doctor blade technique, a vacuum-free and low-cost method. For this purpose, nanoparticles of the precursor materials ZnS, SnS and CuS were synthesized by wet chemical reaction. A paste of these three binary compounds mixed in appropriate proportions were coated on glas...

Cu(In, Ga)Se2 (CIGS) and Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) semiconductors are direct band gap materials; when these types of material are used in solar cells, they provide efficiencies of 22.1% and 12.6%, respectively. Most traditional fabrication methods involve expensive vacuum processes including co-evaporation and sputtering techniques, where films and doping a...

One important issue concerning kesterite solar cell technology is CdS/kesterite interface. As a result, routes to promote kesterite solar cell efficiency should be mainly focused on improving CdS/kesterite interface quality. In this work, results on a comparative study of Cu2Zn(SnGe)Se4 solar cells processed with different CdS buffer layers deposit...

Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin films deposited by spray pyrolysis technique are quite attractive for solar cell applications. However, low efficiency values have been achieved up to date. Among the different optoelectronic parameters, relatively low open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current density values are the common feature in sprayed-CZTS solar ce...

In this work, a new aqueous colloidal dispersion of CdTe was prepared and stabilized using NH4OH. Results shows, two different sizes of CdTe (20 nm and 60 nm widths) presented in solution. From this dispersion, CdTe thin films around 500 nm thicknesses were deposited by spray pyrolysis technique. Experimental conditions, dispersion composition, rhe...

This paper presents for the first time a theoretical study of the impact of kesterite/buffer interface recombination and kesterite minority carrier lifetime on both CZTS and CZTSe solar cells. It demonstrates that only an 11% efficiency can be reached in CZTS solar cells by improving absorber crystalline quality, pointing out the need for an improv...

Tin monosulfide (SnS) is a promising Cd-free candidate as absorber layer in Thin Film Solar Cell technology. In this work SnS thin films were synthesized by chemical spray pyrolysis (CSP) technique using a 0.2 M equimolar precursor solution of tin chloride and thiourea at substrate temperatures of 350, 370 and 390 °C and pressure for 0.5 and 1.0 kg...

In this work, the results about the properties of CdTe:Bi thin films grown by the Closed Space Vapor Transport (CSVT) method are presented. Two procedures were developed for the CdTe:Bi films deposition: (a) using powders with different Bi concentrations at a constant pressure in the CSVT chamber and (b) varying the total final Ar pressure in the C...

New types of thin film solar cells made from earth-abundant, non-toxic materials and with adequate physical properties such as band-gap energy, large absorption coefficient and p-type conductivity are needed in order to replace the current technology based on CuInGaSe2 and CdTe absorber materials, which contain scarce and toxic elements. One promis...

The most commonly used commercial conducting glass is the coated SnO2:F glass substrate. However, it usually presents poor morphological properties and therefore is not adequate for solar cell applications. In this work, we report results about the morphological properties improvement of commercial conductive glass by the deposition of a SnO2 buffe...

The research in thin film solar cells has been dominated by light absorber materials based on CdTe and Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) in the last decades. However, both materials are hindered by potential environmental hazard and scarcity issues associated to the constituent elements. Recent research trends are moving towards finding alternatives based on ear...

In this work, a device model for Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) solar cell with certified world record efficiency is presented. A study of the most important loss mechanisms and its effect on solar cell performance was carried out. The trap-assisted tunneling and CdS/CZTS interface recombination are introduced as the most important loss mechanisms. Detailed comp...

In this work, a study of trap and recombination center properties in polycrystalline Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films is carried out in order to understand the poor performance in Cu2ZnSnS4 thin film solar cells. Thermally stimulated current has been studied in Cu2ZnSnS4 deposited by pneumatic spray pyrolysis method using various heating rates, in order to gai...