Photoluminescence of CuInS2 thin films and solar cells modified by postdeposition treatments

The photoluminescence of CuInS2 thin films and solar cells is investigated as a function of postdeposition treatments for different temperatures and excitation intensities. Annealing in hydrogen atmosphere causes an increase of PL intensity at 1.445 eV by more than a factor of 100, while subsequent annealing in oxygen or air ambient passivates this transition, which is ascribed to a donor-acceptor pair recombination between a sulphur vacancy and a copper vacancy. A defect mechanism is suggested that assumes the passivation of sulphur vacancies by oxygen in grain surfaces which can be activated by hydrogen annealing.