SBIR Phase I:Low Resistivity Zinc Oxide by Solution Deposition as a Transparent Conducting Oxide for Solar Cells

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project aims to develop a solution-based technique to deposit doped zinc oxide thin film with resistivity that is 1 x 10-4 Ohm-cm or lower. An abundant and low-cost material will be used as the dopant. Structural and optical properties, and effects of post-deposition annealing will be studied to improve the conductivity of doped zinc oxide thin films. With further efforts beyond this project to continuously improve the conductivity, the doped zinc oxide thin film is expected to be used as transparent conductive oxide (TCO) in thin-film solar cells. The broader/commercial impact of this project will be the potential to provide a viable material candidate as a low-cost alternative to the commonly used TCO in thin-film solar cells. Currently, TCOs are generally deposited by vacuum-based sputtering process, which is not as cost-effective as solution-based technique. With the expected fast growth of thin-film solar cells in the coming decades, the availability of low-cost TCO will be critical to reduce the overall cost of thin-film solar cell, thus making it more affordable.