Thin and transparent films of doped cadmium sulfide (CdS) were obtained on commercial glass substrates by Chemical Bath Deposition (CBD) technique. The films were doped with low concentration of Sn, and annealed in air at 300 °C for 45 min. The morphological characterization of the films with different amounts of dopant was made using SEM and EDAX analysis. Optical properties of the films were evaluated by measuring transmittance using the UV-vis spectrophotometer. A comparison of the results revealed that lower concentration of Sn doping improves transmittance of CdS films and makes them suitable for application as window layer of CdTe/CIGS solar cells.
Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) ink was synthesized from metal chloride precursors, sulfur, and oleylamine (OLA), as a ligand by a simple and low-cost hot-injection method. Thin films of CZTS were then prepared by spin coating, followed by thermal annealing. The effects of the fabrication parameters, such as ink concentration, spinning rate, and thermal treatment temperatures on the morphology and structural, optical, and electrical properties of the films were investigated. As expected, very thin films, for which the level of transmittance and band-gap values increase, can be obtained either by reducing the concentration of the inks or by increasing the rate of spinning. Moreover, the thermal treatment affects the phase formation and crystallinity of the film, as well as the electrical conductivity, which decreases at a higher temperature.
This study describes the chemical speciation of Pb, Zn, Cu, Cr, As, and Sn in soil of former tin mining catchment. Total five sites were selected for sampling and subsequent subsamples were collected from each site in order to create a composite sample for analysis. Samples were analysed by the sequential extraction procedure using optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). Small amounts of Cu, Cr, and As retrieved from the exchangeable phase, the ready available for biogeochemical cycles in the ecosystem. Low quantities of Cu and As could be taken up by plants in these kind of acidic soils. Zn not detected in the bioavailable forms while Pb is only present in negligible amounts in very few samples. The absence of mobile forms of Pb eliminates the toxic risk both in the trophic chain and its migration downwards the soil profile. The results also indicate that most of the metals have high abundance in residual fraction indicating lithogenic origin and low bioavailability of the metals in the studied soil. The average potential mobility for the metals giving the following order: Sn > Cu > Zn > Pb > Cr > As.