The stability of intrinsic and Al-doped single- and bilayer ZnO for thin-film CuInGaSe<inf>2</inf> solar cells, along with Al-doped Zn<inf>1−x</inf>Mg<inf>x</inf>O alloy and Sn-doped In<inf>2</inf>O<inf>3</inf> (ITO) and F-doped SnO<inf>2</inf>, was evaluated by direct exposure to damp heat (DH) at 85°C and 85% relative humidity. The results show that the DH-induced degradation rates followed the order of Al-doped ZnO and Zn<inf>1−x</inf>Mg<inf>x</inf>O ≫ ITO ≫ F:SnO<inf>2</inf>. The degradation rates of Al:ZnO were slower for films of higher thickness, higher substrate temperature in sputterdeposition, and with dry-out intervals. As inferred from the optical micro-imaging showing the initiation and propagation of degrading patterns and regions, the degradation behavior appears similar for all TCOs, despite the obvious difference in the degradation rate. A degradation mechanism is proposed to explain the temporal process involving thermal hydrolysis.
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