Growth and properties of CdS/CdTe heterojunctions on soda lime glass substrates

Polycrystalline thin films of CdTe grown on glass/SnO2/CdS substrates are studied using X‐ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and time resolved photoluminescence decay techniques. CdS films were deposited by chemical solution. CdTe films were grown by close‐spaced sublimation at substrate temperatures between 475–625 °C. CdTe thin films deposited at temperatures higher than 525 °C show preferential orientation in the 〈111〉 direction. The Grain size of the films increases with substrate temperature and the films are faceted for all the temperatures. The PL decay constant increases with substrate temperature up to 575 °C for as‐deposited films on soda‐lime substrates. Films on borosilicate substrates show an increase up to the highest temperature used (625 °C). There is systematic increase in the PL decay constant after CdCl2 heat treatment, and the range of values is 1–1.5 nsec for soda‐lime samples and 1–2 nsec for borosilicate samples.