Effect of substrate temperature on the growth of CZTS thin films by RF magnetron sputtering

Cu₂ZnSnS₄ thin films have been deposited using a single target sputtering technique. Molybdenum coated soda lime glass has been used as substrates. The effects of substrate temperature variation are the main motive of this work. Growth temperature ranging from 300°C to 450°C was used as different substrate temperature whereas all other sputtering parameters remained same. A comparative study of electrical, optical and structural properties of these films was carried out by means of Hall, XRD, AFM and UV-Vis spectrometry. From the Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), it was witnessed that until the substrate temperature was raised to 370°C the grain size of the films were increasing. But at 400°C and 450°C substrate temperature the grain size started decreasing. For all the films, X-Ray Diffraction measurement (XRD) showed the peaks of (2 2 0) and (1 1 2) planes of CZTS which are characteristics of stannite structure. To check the conductivity type of the films, Hall Effect Measurement System was used and it ensued p-type.