Abstract: CdSe semiconductor thin-film electrodes have been prepared by means of electrodeposition. They are capable of achieving 5.9% solar energy conversion efficiency in PEC performance after being annealed at 450 ℃ in air. Surface photovoltage (SPV) has been used to study their photoelectrochemical properties. SPV spectra of the CdSe thin-films with and without annealing show that surface recombination of minority carriers is significantly reduced after annealing.
The minority carriers diffusion length L_P has been determined by extrapolating the plots ofreciprocal surface photovoltage as a function of the absorption length to zero ΔV~(-1)_(ph). It is found that L_p=0.42 μm.