Synthesis, characterization, and electrochemical performance of Cu3SbS3 using different sources of sulfur

Cu₃SbS₃ (CAS) was synthesized by hydrothermal reaction using different precursors of sulphur, like Na₂S, thiourea (TU), thioacetatic acid (TAA), thioacetamide (TAM), and l-cystine. Also, it was prepared by direct solid-state reaction from elementary Cu, Sb, and S. Crystal structure and morphology for the prepared phases of Cu₃SbS₃ were studied via X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM). In addition, the optical study reveals that the maximum optical absorbance of the Cu₃SbS₃ sample prepared from l-cystine occurs at 660 nm. The band gap energies were calculated for the prepared samples from different sulphur sources. The real resistance of the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) of CAS prepared from l-cystine is ~ 51 . The Cu₃SbS₃ energy band gaps have a range of 1.62–2.2 eV and an absorption coefficient (α) of more than 10⁴ cm⁻¹. The current research focuses and compares on the conductivity and power efficiency of CAS depending on the used S-source. So, l-cystine sample has the lowest resistance value and the highest conversion efficiency per unit area, 4.1 % in comparison with the other S-sources.