About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2027 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Photomechanical and Electromechanical Effects in Structural and Functional Materials
|
| Presentation Title |
Examining defect-controlled mechanisms of plasticity and fracture in CdTe |
| Author(s) |
Jonathan Cappola, Joshua Carbajal, Kun Luo, Qi An, Lin Li |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Jonathan Cappola |
| Abstract Scope |
CdTe is a leading photovoltaic material; however, improving its mechanical stability, particularly in polycrystalline thin-film devices, remains a significant challenge. Here, two key factors influencing the mechanical reliability of CdTe—photoplastic hardening and grain boundary (GB) solute segregation resulting from post-deposition processing—are investigated using atomistic and ab initio modeling techniques. The results indicate that photoplastic hardening originates from photo-excitation-induced changes in the energetics of kink-pair nucleation and migration, leading to substantial modifications in the mobility of different dislocation species. In addition, solute-segregated GBs are found to be mechanically stronger than their pristine counterparts due to the elimination of dangling bonds and associated antibonding interactions, which enhances overall grain boundary cohesion. Together, these findings provide new insight into the relationship between the electronic structure of defects and mechanical behavior in CdTe and suggest strategies for improving the mechanical reliability of next-generation CdTe solar cells without compromising their device performance. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Mechanical Properties, Modeling and Simulation, Electronic Materials |