College of Engineering

Triet (Tony) Truong

College of Engineering

Chemical Engineering

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jason B. Baxter

Chemical & Biological Engineering

Electrophoretic Deposition of CZTS Nanocrystals Under Continuous Flow

Copper zinc tin sulfide (CZTS) has gained remarkable traction in renewable energy research for its potential in making affordable, sustainable, and eco-friendly solar cells. To reduce wastage and create a scalable technique of coating nanocrystals (NCs) onto solar cells and other optoelectronic devices, this research explores the electrophoretic deposition (EPD) method. EPD involves the migration of charged particles within an electric field and adsorption onto a surface. This method enables NCs to deposit onto conductive fluorine-doped tin oxide glass substrates in a continuous flow microreactor. Comparing to a batch reactor, deposition under flow is potentially more efficient and enables film thickness tunability. The deposition pattern depends on many factors: the potential difference between the electrodes, the concentration of the NCs, and the volumetric flow rate of the NCs through the microreactor. My research studies how these variables influence the EPD process to improve the reactor design and make a better model to understand the physics and chemistry behind EPD. With improved understanding, EPD could offer a low-cost manufacturing route for solar cells and other nanocrystal-based devices.