Issue 1, 2015

Capabilities and limitations of LA-ICP-MS for depth resolved analysis of CdTe photovoltaic devices

Abstract

The analytical potential of ArF* excimer Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) is investigated for fast qualitative depth profile analysis of multi-layer CdTe photovoltaic (PV) devices. Critical parameters (e.g. laser fluence and laser repetition rate) are evaluated and optimized to reduce the aerosol mixing from consecutive laser shots and to achieve a low penetration rate. As a result, a high depth resolution (10 s of nm) is demonstrated through the analyses of superficial and embedded coatings. For instance, a layer with a thickness of 100 nm at a depth of 3 μm is successfully measured. Moreover, qualitative profiles of major and minor elements obtained by LA-ICP-MS are validated using reference techniques such as Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) or Glow Discharge Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (GD-TOFMS). Additionally, the shape and morphology of the laser-induced craters, after different numbers of laser shots, are investigated using mechanical profilometry and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), respectively.

Graphical abstract: Capabilities and limitations of LA-ICP-MS for depth resolved analysis of CdTe photovoltaic devices

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
16 jun. 2014
Accepted
13 ago. 2014
First published
13 ago. 2014

J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2015,30, 191-197

Author version available

Capabilities and limitations of LA-ICP-MS for depth resolved analysis of CdTe photovoltaic devices

A. Gutiérrez-González, C. González-Gago, J. Pisonero, N. Tibbetts, A. Menéndez, M. Vélez and N. Bordel, J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2015, 30, 191 DOI: 10.1039/C4JA00196F

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