Device Engineering and Optimization of a Novel Zintl‐Phosphide BaCd₂P₂ Absorber‐Based Thin Film Photovoltaic Cell

While different classes of materials can act as suitable candidates for the primary absorber layer in solar cells, most of the research is still focused on the development of perovskite‐based photoactive materials which suffer from long term environmental instability. In this article, BaCd 2 P 2 is utilized as an absorber material for the first time in a thin‐film solar cell having ITO/ZnO/BaCd 2 P 2 /Cu 2 O n‐i‐p architecture. The recombination lifetimes of the charge carriers are determined from the impedance spectroscopy studies. The investigations suggest that the recombination lifetime of the photogenerated charges is highest (14 ms) when the thickness of BaCd 2 P 2 is 0.35 μm. Simulations are performed to optimize the overall efficiency of the proposed solar cell. The effect of variation of absorber parameters, such as thickness, charge carrier mobilities, defect density, and capture cross section of the charge carriers, are examined. Interestingly, the investigation also found that neither electron mobility nor hole mobility significantly affected the overall performance of the solar cell. The investigations suggested that parameters, such as material thickness and defect characteristics, are more pivotal in influencing solar cell efficiency. After optimization of various parameters, the proposed ITO/ZnO/BaCd 2 P 2 /Cu 2 O solar cell yielded a maximum power conversion efficiency of 27.59%.