Sodium salt containing CIG targets, methods of making and methods of use thereof

1. A method of making a sputtering target comprising:

combining a copper, indium and gallium containing material and a sodium compound containing material to form a combined sputtering material comprising the copper, indium, gallium and sodium compound; and

providing the combined sputtering material onto a target support to form a copper, indium, gallium and sodium compound containing target,

wherein the combined sputtering material comprises at least one wire core surrounded by a wire shell comprising a copper indium gallium alloy which contains no sodium or less sodium than the wire core, and the step of providing comprises cored twin arc wire spray (TWAS) depositing the combined sputtering material onto the target support.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the wire core comprises a copper indium gallium alloy comprising the sodium compound;

the target comprises an alloy of copper, indium and gallium which includes the sodium compound;

the sodium compound comprises a sodium halogen, transition metal or chalcogen salt which is present as inclusion regions in the alloy of copper, indium and gallium; and

the sputtering target comprises between 0.1 and 5 weight percent of the sodium compound and 95 to 99.9 weight percent of the alloy of copper, indium and gallium.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the sodium compound comprises one or more of sodium fluoride, sodium chloride, sodium molybdate, sodium selenide, sodium hydroxide, sodium oxide, sodium sulfate, sodium selenate, sodium sulfide, sodium sulfite, sodium tungstate, sodium titanate, sodium metavanadate, or sodium orthovanadate.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the as-formed target excludes non-trace amounts of selenium prior to being used in a sputtering apparatus.

5. A method of making a photovoltaic device, comprising:

moving a web substrate though a plurality of sputtering chambers;

forming a compound semiconductor layer comprising copper, indium, gallium, selenium and sodium by reactive sputtering at least one first target comprising copper, indium, gallium and a sodium compound in an atmosphere comprising selenium in a first chamber of the plurality of chambers;

forming a first electrode below the first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer;

forming an n-type window semiconductor layer over the first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer; and

forming a transparent electrode over the n-type window semiconductor layer;

wherein the compound semiconductor layer comprises a sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer; and

wherein the step of forming the compound semiconductor layer comprises:

depositing the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer over the first electrode by sputtering the at least one first target comprising copper, indium, gallium and the sodium containing compound comprising a sodium-transition metal salt; and

depositing a second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer over the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer by sputtering at least one second target comprising copper, indium, gallium and either no sodium or a lower amount of sodium than the at least one first target, wherein the second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer contains no sodium or a lower sodium content that the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer.

6. A method of making a photovoltaic device, comprising:

moving a web substrate though a plurality of sputtering chambers;

forming a compound semiconductor layer comprising copper, indium, gallium, selenium and sodium by reactive sputtering at least one first target comprising copper, indium, gallium and a sodium compound in an atmosphere comprising selenium in a first chamber of the plurality of chambers;

forming a first electrode below the first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer,

forming an n-type window semiconductor layer over the first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer; and

forming a transparent electrode over the n-type window semiconductor layer;

wherein the compound semiconductor layer comprises a sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer; and

wherein the step of forming the compound semiconductor layer comprises:

depositing a second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer over the first electrode by sputtering at least one second target comprising copper, indium, gallium and either no sodium or a lower amount of sodium than the at least one first target; and

depositing the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer over the second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer by sputtering the at least one first target comprising copper, indium, gallium and the sodium containing compound comprising a sodium-halogen or chalcogen salt, wherein the second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer contains no sodium or a lower sodium content that the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein:

the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer is deposited at a lower temperature than the second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer; and

the sodium doped first p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer contains a lower copper to indium and gallium ratio than the second p-type copper indium gallium selenide absorber layer.