This paper reports on the successful deposition of amorphous carbon nitride thin films (a-CNx) and fabrication of ITO/a-CNx/Al Schottky thin-film solar cells by using the technique of ion beam sputtering. XPS and Raman spectra are used to characterize the deposited thin films. Nitrogen atoms are incorporated into the films in the form of carbon-nitrogen multiple bands. Their optical properties are also investigated using a spectroscopic ellipsometer and UV/VIS/NIR spectrophotometer. The refraction of the carbon nitride thin films deposited lies in the range of 1.7-2.1. The Tauc optical band gap is about 0.6 eV. The photovoltaic values of the device, short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage are 1.561 muA/cm(2) and 250 mV, respectively, when exposed to AM1.5 illumination (100 mW/cm(2), 25 degreesC). (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.