Patil, Rhishikesh Mahadev, Nagapure, Dipak Ramdas, Hema Chandra, Galli, Subbaiah, Y. P. Venkata, Gupta, Mukul, and Rao, R. Prasada
Herein, preparation of Ag2ZnSnSe4(AZTSe) thin films using physical vapor deposition followed by selenization in a quartz tube with rapid thermal process (RTP) is reported. The precursor stacks, [Sn/Se/ZnSe/Se/Ag/Se] × 4, are deposited onto the glass substrate at 100 °C using the combination of thermal and e‐beam evaporation methods. The post selenization of precursors is conducted at different temperatures (300–425 °C). The X‐ray diffraction and Raman spectra of the precursor films selenized at 400 °C reveal the formation of single‐phase AZTSe, exhibiting a kesterite structure with a preferred orientation along the (112) plane. These films show larger grains of ≈230 nm with the homogeneous distribution of Ag, Zn, Sn, and Se across the film thickness. The precursor films selenized at temperatures ≤400 °C show the fundamental absorption edge of AZTSe (Eg= 1.36–1.44 eV) as well as an additional adsorption edge (Eadd= 1.31–1.32 eV) corresponding to ZnSn+ SnZndefect complex. The Hall effect measurement indicates n‐type conductivity irrespective of selenization temperature. For films selenized at 400 °C, the carrier concentration is decreased to 2.83 × 1011cm−3and results in a high mobility of 73.9 cm2(V s)−1, which is attributed to the reduction of SnZndefects. A systematic study is conducted to prepare Ag2ZnSnSe4(AZTSe) thin films using the two‐step process and precisely manifests the impact of selenization temperature on the growth mechanism for obtaining single phase, and the role of the antisite defect complex (ZnSn+ SnZn) on the optical and electrical properties of AZTSe thin films is discussed in detail.