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Page 6 of 16 Dong et al. Energy Mater. 2026, 6, 600026

Figure 1. (A) Schematic diagram illustrating the deposition of Nd-incorporated CdS thin films, (B) XRD patterns of W Nd-CdS and W/O
Nd-CdS samples, (C) Transmittance spectra, (D-F) XPS spectra of Cd 3d, S 2p, and Nd 3d, (G and H) Surface SEM images of W Nd-CdS
and W/O Nd-CdS samples, (I) TAS spectra of W Nd-CdS and W/O Nd-CdS samples.

influences the crystallographic growth and preferred orientation of the subsequent Sb Se absorber layer.
3
2
Figure 2A-C illustrates the evolution of the Sb Se absorber layer for the two sample sets: (a) under the W/O
3
2
Nd condition, the Sb Se nucleates with an essentially random orientation; (b-c) under the W Nd condition,
2
3
Nd diffuses into Sb Se during film growth, inducing a pronounced preferential [hk1] orientation. Figure 2D
3
2
shows the XRD patterns of Sb Se thin films grown under both conditions. The results indicate that the
3
2
Sb Se films grown under both conditions exhibit the same crystal structure, belonging to the orthorhombic
2
3
system. A magnified view of the XRD patterns is provided in Supplementary Figure 7. The texture
coefficients of the films were calculated from the XRD patterns, and the results are presented as a bar chart in
Figure 2E. Since Sb Se has a typical (Sb Se ) ribbon-like structure, the carrier transport is most efficient
6 n
4
3
2
when the ribbon structure is perpendicular to the substrate, and least efficient when they are parallel . The
[35]
data show that Sb Se films grown under the Nd treatment condition (W Nd) have higher texture coefficients
3
2
on the (211), (221), and (301) planes compared to films grown without Nd (W/O Nd). This phenomenon
indicates that the [hk1] orientation is favored during growth, which facilitates improved carrier transport
(JCPDS card No. 15-0861). Figure 2F presents the Raman spectra of Sb Se films with and without NdCl 3
3
2
treatment. Two prominent peaks, located at approximately 188 and 208 cm , are observed. These peaks are
-1
typically attributed to the Sb-Se-Sb bending vibrations in the Sb Se films [36,37] . The strengthened Raman
2
3
features after Nd treatment suggest improved structural order and reduced defect-related disorder in the