INCORPORATION OF IN INTO COPPER SELENIDE - FORMATION OF COPPER INDIUM SELENIDE FOLLOWED BY LASER INTERFEROMETRY

Copper selenide has been formed by electroless deposition from a selenic acid bath (pH = 1.0) containing copper sulfate and indium sulfate. Indium was incorporated into the film by a galvanostatic cathodic polarization. These steps have been followed by multiple beam laser interferometry and x-ray microanalysis. The formation of copper indium selenide is controlled by the composition of the bath and the anode used in the experiment. Laser interferometry of the individual redox couples contained in the bath such as Cu2+/Cu, In3+/In, and SeO3(2-)/Se have been examined in detail using the cells. Cu/In2(SO4)3/Cu, Cu/H2SeO3/Cu, and Cu/CuSO4/Cu and Cu/In2(SO4)3, H2SeO3, and CuSO4/Cu to probe the mechanism of the formation of copper indium selenide. The effect of replacing the Cu anode by Ti results in the incorporation of In into copper selenide as In3+ reduction starts under these conditions.