Porous CdSe0.6Te0.4 nanoflowers-nanosphere: facile electrochemical synthesis and excellent for photoelectrochemical cell performance

Abstract

Cadmium seleno-telluride (CdSe0.6Te0.4) ternary thin films were deposited on the stainless steel and indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) glass substrates by potentiostatic mode at different bath concentrations. The effect of the different bath concentration on the physico-chemical properties of the CdSe0.6Te0.4 was investigated in detail. Synthesized three different CdSe0.6Te0.4 thin films were characterized using x-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-Vis spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and contact angle measurements. XRD patterns shown the establishment of the CdSe0.6Te0.4 thin films . FE-SEM micrographs showed the development of the different nanostructures of the CdSe0.6Te0.4 samples with respect to the bath different concentration. Further photoelectrochemical cell performance of the CdSe0.6Te0.4 films was studied by forming the two-electrode cell having an arrangement; CdSe0.6Te0.4/1 M polysulfide electrolyte/counter electrode. These studies show that considerable increase in the power conversion with respect to the bath concentration and maximum efficiency is 0.96% under 30 mW/cm(2) illumination.