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Synergistic reflective back contact and absorber engineering for high-efficiency ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 solar cells

Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 (CIGS) solar cells offer a promising route to reducing material consumption while maintaining the advantages of high-efficiency thin-film photovoltaics.However, reducing the absorber thickness leads to incomplete light absorption and limits device performance. Here, we develop a reflective back contact (RBC) architecture to enhance light trapping in a 600 nm-thick CIGS absorber. Device performance was further improved by tailoring the CIGS deposition process and applying a 15 min RbF post-deposition treatment, leading to enhanced optoelectronic properties. The resulting devices reach a power conversion efficiency of 15.8%, which, to the best of our knowledge, represents the highest reported efficiency for a CIGS solar cell with an absorber thickness of approximately 600 nm. These results demonstrate a pathway to high-efficiency ultrathin CIGS solar cells through the combination of optical engineering, alkali treatment, and absorber growth control.
DOI: 10.1088/2515-7655/aebfc7
Authors: Javid Hajhemati, Loukiana Kozlov, Yixuan Fu, Thomas Tom, Damien Coutancier, Emilee Fortier, Jackson Lontchi, Vincent Dufoulon, Amelle Rebai, Peggy Marie, Nathanaelle Schneider, Stefania Cacovich, Stéphane Collin, Negar Naghavi
Institutions: Institut Photovoltaïque d’Île-de-France, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, École Polytechnique, Chimie ParisTech - PSL, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, Centre de Nanosciences et de Nanotechnologies
Language: English
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,900
OpenAlex ID: W7225631301
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