Copper indium gallium selenide application

What is copper indium gallium selenide

Copper indium gallium (di)selenide (CIGS) is a I-III-VI2 semiconductor material composed of copper, indium, gallium, and selenium. The material is a solid solution of copper indium selenide (often abbreviated "CIS") and copper gallium selenide. It has a chemical formula of CuIn(1-x)Ga(x)Se2 where the value of x can vary from 0 (pure copper indium selenide) to 1 (pure copper gallium selenide). CIGS is a tetrahedrally bonded semiconductor, with the chalcopyrite crystal structure, and a bandgap varying continuously with x from about 1.0 eV (for copper indium selenide) to about 1.7 eV (for copper gallium selenide).

Copper indium gallium selenide solar cells

Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) based solar cells are receiving worldwide attention for solar power generation. They are efficient thin film solar cells that have achieved 22.8% efficiency comparable to crystalline silicon (c-Si) wafer based solar cells. For a production capacity of 1000 MW y−1 with 15% module efficiency, the CIGS module production cost is expected to be $0.34 W−1. For CIGS cells over glass, a graded bandgap high temperature deposition process has been established, however, this process has not been established for CIGS over flexible polymer substrates which is a low temperature process. For small area devices, the main focus is precise control over CIGS film stoichiometry and efficiency. For industrial production, apart from stoichiometry and efficiency, low-cost, reproducibility, high-throughput and process tolerance are of much importance in commercializing the technology. Due to process complexity, CIGS module production is lagging behind that of cadmium telluride (CdTe) modules. 

Copper indium gallium selenide applications

It is best known as the material for CIGS solar cells a thin-film technology used in the photovoltaic industry. In this role, CIGS has the advantage of being able to be deposited on flexible substrate materials, producing highly flexible, lightweight solar panels. Improvements in efficiency have made CIGS an established technology among alternative cell materials.