Study of CuSbS2 thin films nanofibers prepared by spin coating technique using ultra pure water as a solvent

Nanofiber thin films of CuSbS2 were successfully grown by spin coating method using ultra-pure water as a solvent. In this work, we study the annealing temperature effect on the structural, morphological and optical properties of the synthesized films. The XRD results indicate the presence of pure CuSbS2 as major phase in chalcostibite structure. Microstructural results revealed that the sample heated at 250 °C showed a high quality with disordered self-assembly nanofibers with an average diameter about 50 nm. It was found that by increasing heating temperature from 150 to 250 °C, the CuSbS2 thin films optical band gap decreased from 1.80 to 1.35 ± 0.15 eV; while the sheet resistance dropped from 680 ± 34 Ω to 516 ± 25Ω. The fact that the energy band gap of this ternary material, synthesized using water as a solvent for the first time, can be adjusted to expect values that absorb the maximum of the solar spectrum, makes this material as a promise candidate as absorber in cheap, flexible and environmentally friendly solar cell applications.