In this work, (Cu1-xAgx)2ZnSnSe4 (CAZTSe) alloys with various silver content (x= 0.0, 0.1and 0.2) have been prepared by reacting their high purity elements (Cu, Ag, Zn, Sn and Se) in an evacuated quartz tube under pressure of 10 -3Torr. The composition of the prepared alloys was determined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) analysis, the results were close to the theoretical values. CAZTSe thin films with a thickness of 800 nm were deposited by thermal evaporation technique on glass substrates at room temperature (RT) with a deposition rate of 0.53nm/sec. Similarly, CdS thin films were deposited with a thickness of 100 nm on the same substrates at RT with a deposition rate of 0.3nm/sec from ready-made CdS alloy powder. All prepared thin films were annealed at temperatures of 373K and 473K under vacuum (10-3Torr) for 1h. X-ray analysis showed that all CAZTSe alloys and their thin films were polycrystalline and have the tetragonal structure with preferential orientation in the (112) direction, while all thin CdS films were polycrystalline and have the hexagonal structure with preferential orientation in the (002) direction. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technique was used to study the surface morphology of all prepared CAZTSe films, while the atomic force microscopy (AFM) technique was used to study the surface topography of all prepared CAZTSe and CdS films. SEM results revealed that CAZTSe films had uniform surface features with irregular sized grains, while AFM results showed that the surface roughness and the average grain size of CAZTSe and CdS thin films increased with increasing Ag content for CAZTSe thin films and annealing temperature for CAZTSe and CdS thin films. The absorbance and transmittance spectra for CAZTSe and CdS thin films were recorded in the wavelength ranges of (400-1100) nm and (350- 1100) nm, respectively. Optical measurements showed that all CAZTSe and CdS thin films have a direct energy gap (Eg) that decreased with increasing silver content for CAZTSe thin films and annealing temperature (Ta) for both types of prepared thin films, so it decreased from 1.73 eV to1.5 eV when x content increased from 0.0 to 0.2 and decreased from 1.5 eV to1.46 eV and from 2.47 eV to 2.38 eV when Ta increased from RT to 473K for CAZTSe thin films with x content equal to 0.2 and CdS thin films, respectively. Optical constants such as extinction coefficient, refractive index and dielectric constant were calculated for all prepared thin films. The measurements of the electrical properties for prepared films showed that the D.C electrical conductivity (σd.c) increased with increasing Ag content for CAZTSe thin films and annealing temperature for both types of thin films. So the electrical conductivity changed from 1.1276*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 to 28.9266*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 when x changed from 0.0 to 0.2 and changed from 28.9266*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 to 57.4599*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 and from 4.0476*10-4 (Ω.cm)-1 to 9.4227*10-4 (Ω.cm)-1 when Ta changed from RT to 473K for CAZTSe thin films with Ag content equal to 0.2 and CdS thin films, respectively. The prepared thin films have two activation energies (Ea1 & Ea2) in the temperature ranges of (318-488)K and (313-443)K for CAZTSe and CdS films, respectively. The results of Hall effect for CAZTSe thin films showed that all films were of acceptor type and the concentration of holes in them decreased with increasing silver content and annealing temperature, while CdS thin films were of donor type and the concentration of electrons in them increased with increasing annealing temperature. In this research, solar cells were fabricated from CdS/CAZTSe/Si structurThe C-V measurements revealed that all prepared heterojunctions were of the abrupt type and the junction capacitance and carrier concentration reduced while the width of depletion region and the built-in potential increased with increasing the silver content and annealing temperature. The current-voltage characteristics under dark condition of CAZTSe heterojunctions showed that both the ideality factor and saturation current decreased with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. While,The current-voltage characteristics under dark condition of CAZTSe heterojunctions showed that both the ideality factor and saturation current decreased with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. While, the current-voltage measurements under illumination showed that the performance of heterojunction solar cell improved with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. The result indicated that the prepared solar cell with 0.2 Ag content and 473K annealing temperature exhibited the highest efficiency (η = 2.827%) compared to other prepared solar cells
RMK Al-Zaidi, MM Ahmed
In this work, The effect of annealing treatment at different temperatures (373, 423 and 473) K and chemical treatment with talwen at different immersion time (40, 60 and 80) min on structural and optical properties of the bulk heterojunction (BHJ) blend copper phthalocyanine tetrasulfonic acid tetrasodium salt/poly dioxyethylenethienylene doped with polystyrenesulphonic acid (CuPcTs/PEDOT:PSS) thin films were investigated. The films were fabricated using spin coating technique. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements displayed only one peak at 2θ =4.5o corresponding to (001) direction which has dhkl larger than for standard CuPcTs. The dhkl increase then decrease with increasing annealing temperature and
the time of chemical treatment w
This study was aimed to study the effect of adding transglutaminase (TGase) on the mechanical and reservation properties of the edible films manufactured from soybean meal protein isolate (SPI) and whey protein isolate(WPI). The results showed an improvement in the properties with increase in the WPI ratios. Thickness of the SPI films amounted 0.097 mm decreased to 0.096 mm for the WPI: SPI films at a ratio of 2:1, when TGase was added decreased to 0.075 mm. While the tensile strength increased from 7.64 MPa for SPI films to eight MPa for the WPI: SPI films at a ratio of 2:1, when TGase was added increased to 11.04 MPa. Also, the elongation of the WPI: SPI films at a ratio of 2:1 presence of the TGase decreased to 40.6% compared wit
... Show MoreObjective Advantageous properties of silicone elastomer made it one of the favorable materials in maxillofacial prosthesis construction, but these properties may change after months of usage or after pigments addition. This study aimed to define the optimum concentration for a mixture of two types of intrinsic pigments that added to VST-50 maxillofacial silicone material and study their effects on mechanical properties before and after artificial aging. Methods After the pilot study was conducted, 0.1% by weight of rayon flocking and 0. 2% by weight of burnt sienna intrinsic pigment concentration was selected because of improvement in tested mechanical properties of VST-50 maxillofacial silicone. A total of one hundred and eighty samples we
... Show MoreBackground: The present study aimed to assess the distribution, prevalence, severity of malocclusion in Baghdad governorate in relation to gender and residency Materials and Methods: A multi-stage stratified sampling technique was used in this investigation to make the sample a representative of target population. The sample consisted of 2700 (1349 males and 1351 females) intermediate school students aged 13 years representing 3% of the total target population. A questionnaire was used to determine the perception of occlusion and orthodontic treatment demand of the students and the assessment procedures for occlusal features by direct intraoral measurement using veriner and an instrument to measure the rotated and displaced teeth. Results a
... Show MoreIn this work, a new development of predictive voltage-tracking control algorithm for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFCs) model, using a neural network technique based on-line auto-tuning intelligent algorithm was proposed. The aim of proposed robust feedback nonlinear neural predictive voltage controller is to find precisely and quickly the optimal hydrogen partial pressure action to control the stack terminal voltage of the (PEMFC) model for N-step ahead prediction. The Chaotic Particle Swarm Optimization (CPSO) implemented as a stable and robust on-line auto-tune algorithm to find the optimal weights for the proposed predictive neural network controller to improve system performance in terms of fast-tracking de
... Show MoreThis work deals with preparation of Sulfated Zirconia catalyst (SZ) for isomerization of n-hexane model and refinery light naphtha, as well as enhanced the role of promoters to get the target with the mild condition, stability, and to prevent formation of coke precursors on strong acidic sites of the catalyst. The prepared SZ catalysts were characterization by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer –Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis, Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) Analyzer. The results illustrate that the maximum conversion and selectivity for n-hexane isomerization with Ni-WSZ and operating temperature of 150 °C
... Show MoreSome metal ions (Mn+2, Co+2, Ni+2, Cu+2, Zn+2, Cd+2 and Hg+2) complexes of quinaldic acid (QuinH) and α-picoline (α-Pic) have been synthesized and characterized on the basis of their , FTIR, (U.V-Vis) spectroscopy, conductivity measurements, magnetic susceptibility and atomic absorption. From the results obtained the following general formula has suggested for the prepared complexes [M(Quin)2( α-Pic)2].XH2O where M+2 = (Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Hg), X = 2, X = zero for (Co+2 and Hg+2) complexes, (Quin-) = quinaldate ion, (α-Pic) = α-picoline. The results showed that the deprotonated ligand (QuinH) by using (KOH) coordinated to metal ions as bidentate ligand through the oxygen atom of the carboxylate group (-COO-) and the nitrogen ato
... Show MoreWith the aim of developing potential antimicrobials, a series of novel Ciprofloxacin methylene isatin derivatives incorporating different aromatic aldehydes were synthesized and characterized by FTIR, 1H NMR, Mass spectroscopy and bases of elemental analysis. In addition, the in vitro antibacterial and antifungal properties were tested against some human pathogenic microorganisms by employing the disc diffusion technique. A majority of compounds were showing activity against several of the microorganisms. The relationship between the functional group variation and the biological activity of the evaluated compounds is discussed. From comparisons of the compounds, 3c was determined to be the most active compound.
The free Schiff base ligand (HL1) is prepared by being mixed with the co-ligand 1, 10-phenanthroline (L2). The product then is reacted with metal ions: (Cr+3, Fe+3, Co+2, Ni+2, Cu+2 and Cd+2) to get new metal ion complexes. The ligand is prepared and its metal ion complexes are characterized by physic-chemical spectroscopic techniques such as: FT-IR, UV-Vis, spectra, mass spectrometer, molar conductivity, magnetic moment, metal content, chloride content and microanalysis (C.H.N) techniques. The results show the formation of the free Schiff base ligand (HL1). The fragments of the prepared free Schiff base ligand are identified by the mass spectrometer technique. All the analysis of ligand and its metal complexes are in good agreement with th
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