PhD in Photovoltaics (M/F)

The Institut des Matériaux Jean Rouxel (IMN, UMR6502, http://www.cnrs-imn.fr) is a joint CNRS– University of Nantes research unit, composed of more than 200 staff, including about 120 permanent staff and 80 doctoral and post-doctoral students, bringing together physicists and chemists conducting research activities in the field of functional materials. The person recruited will evolve within the MIOPS team (Innovative Materials for Optics, Photovoltaics and Storage) and will be in direct interaction with the partners of the project, namely an international consortium. All the common facilities available at IMN will be available for the success of the project, in particular microscopies, optoelectronic and vibrational spectroscopies characterization tools.

The recruited person will work within IMN’s MIOPS team as part of a Horizon Europe (SITA) project to manufacture and investigate photovoltaic devices for tandem applications. IMN’s tasks in this context are focused on the manufacture of solar cells based on thin film stacks, the main one being Cu(In,Ga)S2 (CIGS).
The recruited student will be in charge of synthesizing the thin films of CIGS by vacuum co-evaporation technique on substrates provided by one of the project partners. He/she will also be in charge of the completion of the entire stack (CIGS / buffer layer / transparent oxide conductor / grids) that constitutes the solar cell. All routine material analyses (XED, SEM, vibrational spectroscopies) will be carried out within the IMN as well as part of the optoelectronic analyses of the devices (IV, EQE, I(V, T)). The person recruited will also be in charge of technical exchanges with the various partners of the project.
The person recruited must hold a Master (or equivalent) from education ensuring deep knowledge in materials science and optoelectronic components (especially in photovoltaic devices). She will have to show strong aptitude for experimental sciences (synthesis and analysis), organizational skills, and to communicate easily in English. Knowledge in the field of CIGS thin film photovoltaic devices will be an undeniable asset.