Abstract
Zinc-doped tin oxide (ZTO) and magnesium-doped tin oxide (MTO) transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films were synthesized using the atomizer spray pyrolysis method and annealed at 450 °C for application as front electrodes in perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The precursor molar ratio was varied from 0.1:0.1 to 0.1:0.5 (Zn/Mg:Sn), resulting in film thicknesses ranging from 210 to 513 nm for ZTO and 243 to 688 nm for MTO after annealing. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed improved crystallinity with increased crystallite size after annealing. Optical studies revealed high transmittance of ~ 76–80% in the visible region. The optical bandgap decreased after annealing, from 3.85 to 3.67 eV for ZTO and from 3.82 to 3.40 eV for MTO. Hall effect measurements confirmed n-type conductivity with enhanced electrical performance at higher molar concentrations. The optimized MTO film exhibited a maximum carrier concentration of 2.78 × 1020 cm−3, mobility of 31.56 cm2/V s, and low resistivity of 1.89 × 10−4 Ω cm. Photovoltaic devices fabricated using annealed ZTO and MTO substrates achieved power conversion efficiencies of 3.45% and 6.38%, respectively. The improved device performance of MTO-based PSCs is attributed to its higher conductivity and optical transparency, demonstrating its potential as an alternative cost-effective TCO material for solar cell applications.
Data availability
The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
Open access funding will be provided by Manipal University Jaipur. The Authors thank Karpagam Academy of Higher Education, Coimbatore for providing the necessary facilities. This work is registered under institutional reference number 26-AIDSE-U3377-0040. The KSU author acknowledges the Ongoing Research Funding Program (ORF-2026-355), King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
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G. Kiruthiga—Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing-Original draft; M Sathish Kumar—Supervision; T. Raguram—Visualization, Writing review and editing; Arun Prasad Murali—Writing, Editing, Data Curation; Chandini Ragumoorthy- Investigation and Validation; Rakesh Kumar—Writing, Review, Funding acquisition; Jayant Giri—Validation, Investigation, Data curation; Faruq Mohammad—Writing, Review and Editing; Ahmed A. Soleiman—Project Administration, Writing review and editing; Islom Kadirov—Resources, Writing review and editing.
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Kiruthiga, G., Kumar, M.S., Raguram, T. et al. Development of Zn1−xSnxO and Mg1−xSnxO transparent conducting oxide thin films for perovskite solar cell applications. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-42690-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-42690-x
