Schottky barriers at the interface between amorphous silicon and electrolytes

A Schottky barrier forms at the interface between amorphous silicon and an electrolyte. The barrier height, φB, can be estimated from the open-circuit photovoltage. It depends on the potential-determining ion in solution and is a linear function of the redox potential. The magnitude of φB ranged from 1.0 to 1.7 eV for various electrolyte compositions.