Annual Review of Materials Science · 1982 · 270 citations · 1 references
Natural SciencesMaterials EngineeringMaterials ScienceElectronic MaterialsSemiconductor MaterialsThin FilmsSemiconductor Device MaterialsSemiconductor Thin FilmsSolar Cell MaterialsSolar CellsThin-film DepositionThin-film MaterialsDeposition TechniquesFilm DepositionPyrolysisSpray PyrolysisThin-film Solar CellsTransparent Conducting FilmsTransparent Conductive FilmsTransparent Conductive Oxides
Spray pyrolysis is a process in which a thin film is deposited by spraying a solution on a heated surface, where the constituents react to form a chemical compound. The chemical reactants are selected such that the products other than the desired compound are volatile at the temperature of deposition. The process is particularly useful for the deposition of oxides and has long been a production method for applying a transparent electrical conductor of SnOx to glass (1). There have been many studies in this area since the pioneering paper by Chamberlin & Skarman (2) on CdS films for solar cells (3, 4) in 1966, among them a review of transparent conductors (5) and a bibliography Pamplin(6) presented at a conference on spray pyrolysis. We discuss here the method and its control; the properties of the films that have been deposited (particularly in relation to the conditions); some specific films, particularly CdS; and device application.
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