Biography
Prof. Dr. Indrajit Mukhopadhyay
Prof. Dr. Indrajit Mukhopadhyay
Pandit Deendayal Energy University, India
Title: The electrodeposition of semiconductor materials from ionic liquid bath
Abstract: 

Thin film semiconductors have attracted lot of attention in the recent past for application in various devices.  In the arena of solar energy conversion and photo-detection, thin film semiconductors have many advantages.  Although many commercial processing relies on vapor-solid condensation process for the development of thin-film semiconductors, many solution based processes like spray pyrolysis, chemical bath deposition and electro-deposition have also made tremendous progress.  Electrodeposition is a simple, versatile, easily custom designable, commercially viable and scalable technique that can tune the stoichiometry as well as the purity of the deposited films.  Many researchers have already showed the possibility of electrodepositing high quality semiconductor film from both aqueous and non-aqueous electrochemical baths.  The main disadvantage of using water medium is the availability of limited electrochemical window as well as the risk of contamination of surface of the electrodeposited films.  In the case of non-aqueous solvent, elevated temperature is required for facilitating an acceptable growth rate.  Also both the protic and aprotic media, sometimes are not eco-friendly and hazardous.

Hence, we tried to use room temperature ionic liquids, which are known as green solvents, for the electrodeposition of semiconductor thin films on various working substrates.  IL offers large potential window as well as very low vapor pressure, making them environmentally benign.  In the first part of the presentation, we will discuss the electrodeposition of Si from pure and water contaminated BMImTf2N on HOPG and poly crystalline Au substrate. A systematic approach will be followed to unravel the mechanism of nucleation and growth of elemental Si on the respective substrates. The second part of the talk will be focused on the possibility of electrodeposition of CdTe, a compound semiconductor on FTO glass at an elevated temperature.  The second part will mainly cover the nucleation and growth process from current-time transients and the correlation between the nature of the IL and the morphology of the electrodeposited films.

Biography: 

Dr. Indrajit Mukhopadhyay has been working as a Professor in the Dept. of Solar Energy, Pandit Deendayal Energy University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India, since 2011.  Dr. Mukhopadhyay received his Ph.D. from IIT, Mumbai, India. He worked for six years in various prestigious Institutes/Universities like Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel, Shinshu University, Japan and University of Karlsruhe, Germany as post doc. fellow.  He joined CSMCRI, Bhavnagar (CSIR, India) as a principle scientist in 2003. He received the prestigious CSIR rural technology award 2008 and Vikram Sarabhai Award 2006 as a key team member for his excellent contribution in the field of chemical sciences while working at CSMCRI (CSIR), Bhavnagar. He received VIRA Distinguished Scientist in Solar Energy 2019 (Venus International Science Foundation, Chennai, India).  He has been awarded JSPS fellowship in 1999 and worked as visiting scientist at Nagoya Institute of Technology during 2009.  He has published 125+ papers in international journal and has five US patents and one Indian patent in his credit.  The contribution of Prof. Mukhopadhyay can be found in detail: https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?user=FUmlpokAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao.  His contribution can also be found at: www.indrajitm.in. He can be reached at Indrajit.m@sse.pdpu.ac.in