Influence of Surface Recombination on the Performance of SiNW Solar Cells and the Preparation of a Passivation Film

2013 ◽  
Vol 1512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shinya Kato ◽  
Yuya Watanabe ◽  
Yasuyoshi Kurokawa ◽  
Akira Yamada ◽  
Yoshimi Ohta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Silicon Nanowire ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Device Simulation ◽  
Minority Carrier Lifetime ◽  
Atomic Layer ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Passivation Film ◽  
Recombination Velocity

ABSTRACTAl2O3 was deposited on silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays by atomic layer deposition (ALD) as a passivation layer to reduce surface recombination velocity. As a result, effective minority carrier lifetime was improved from 1.82 to 26.2 μs. From this result, the relative low-surface recombination rate of 2.73 cm/s was obtained from a calculation using one-dimensional device simulation (PC1D). The performance of SiNW solar cells was also simulated by considering the surface recombination velocity on the side of SiNWs using two-dimensional device simulation. It was found that Al2O3 deposited by ALD can improve open-circuit voltage of SiNW solar cells even if the structure has a high-aspect ratio and large surface area. Therefore, improvement in the performance of SiNW solar cells can be expected.

Fabrication of silicon nanowire based solar cells using TiO2/Al2O3 stack thin films

MRS Advances ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (25) ◽  
pp. 1419-1426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasuyoshi Kurokawa ◽  
Ryota Nezasa ◽  
Shinya Kato ◽  
Hisashi Miyazaki ◽  
Isao Takahashi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Surface Passivation ◽  
Silicon Nanowire ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Single Layer ◽  
Minority Carrier Lifetime ◽  
Atomic Layer ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Reflectance ◽  
Surface Recombination Rate

ABSTRACTTo improve conversion efficiency of silicon nanowire (SiNW) solar cells, it is very important to reduce the surface recombination rate on the surface of SiNWs, since SiNWs have a large surface area. We tried to cover SiNWs with aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and titanium oxide (TiO2) by atomic layer deposition (ALD), since Al2O3 grown by ALD provides an excellent level of surface passivation on silicon wafers and TiO2 has a higher refractive index than Al2O3, leading to the reduction of surface reflectance. The effective minority carrier lifetime in SiNW arrays embedded in a TiO2/Al2O3 stack layer of 94 μsec was obtained, which was comparable to an Al2O3 single layer. The surface reflectance of SiNW solar cells was drastically decreased below around 5% in all of the wavelength range using the Al2O3/TiO2/Al2O3 stack layer. Heterojunction SiNW solar cells with the structure of ITO/p-type hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H)/n-type SiNWs embedded in Al2O3 and TiO2 stack layer for passivation/n-type a-Si:H/back electrode was fabricated, and a typical rectifying property and open-circuit voltage of 356 mV were successfully obtained.

scholarly journals Enhanced Performance of Nanotextured Silicon Solar Cells with Excellent Light-Trapping Properties

Photonics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 272
Author(s):  
Bingfei Dou ◽  
Rui Jia ◽  
Zhao Xing ◽  
Xiaojiang Yao ◽  
Dongping Xiao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Light Trapping ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Atomic Layer ◽  
Short Circuit Current ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Electrode Contact ◽  
Recombination Velocity

Light-trapping nanostructures have been widely used for improving solar cells’ performance, but the higher surface recombination and poor electrode contact introduced need to be addressed. In this work, silicon nanostructures were synthesized via silver-catalyzed etching to texturize solar cells. Atomic-layer-deposited Al2O3 passivated the nanotextured cells. A surface recombination velocity of 126 cm/s was obtained, much lower than the 228 cm/s of the SiNX-passivated one. Additionally, the open-circuit voltage (VOC) of the nanotextured cells improved significantly from 582 to 610 mV, as did the short-circuit current (JSC) from 25.5 to 31 mA/cm2. Furthermore, the electrode contact property was enhanced by light-induced plating. A best efficiency of 13.3% for nano-textured cells was obtained, which is higher than the planar cell’s 12%.

scholarly journals Numerical Simulation Analysis of Ag Crystallite Effects on Interface of Front Metal and Silicon in the PERC Solar Cell

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 592
Author(s):  
Myeong Sang Jeong ◽  
Yonghwan Lee ◽  
Ka-Hyun Kim ◽  
Sungjin Choi ◽  
Min Gu Kang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Metal Interface ◽  
Ag Crystallites ◽  
Recombination Velocity

In the fabrication of crystalline silicon solar cells, the contact properties between the front metal electrode and silicon are one of the most important parameters for achieving high-efficiency, as it is an integral element in the formation of solar cell electrodes. This entails an increase in the surface recombination velocity and a drop in the open-circuit voltage of the solar cell; hence, controlling the recombination velocity at the metal-silicon interface becomes a critical factor in the process. In this study, the distribution of Ag crystallites formed on the silicon-metal interface, the surface recombination velocity in the silicon-metal interface and the resulting changes in the performance of the Passivated Emitter and Rear Contact (PERC) solar cells were analyzed by controlling the firing temperature. The Ag crystallite distribution gradually increased corresponding to a firing temperature increase from 850 ∘C to 950 ∘C. The surface recombination velocity at the silicon-metal interface increased from 353 to 599 cm/s and the open-circuit voltage of the PERC solar cell decreased from 659.7 to 647 mV. Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD) simulation was used for detailed analysis on the effect of the surface recombination velocity at the silicon-metal interface on the PERC solar cell performance. Simulations showed that the increase in the distribution of Ag crystallites and surface recombination velocity at the silicon-metal interface played an important role in the decrease of open-circuit voltage of the PERC solar cell at temperatures of 850–900 ∘C, whereas the damage caused by the emitter over fire was determined as the main cause of the voltage drop at 950 ∘C. These results are expected to serve as a steppingstone for further research on improvement in the silicon-metal interface properties of silicon-based solar cells and investigation on high-efficiency solar cells.

scholarly journals Study on Annealing Process of Aluminum Oxide Passivation Layer for PERC Solar Cells

Coatings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1052
Author(s):  
Yu-Chun Huang ◽  
Ricky Wenkuei Chuang
Keyword(s):  
Carrier Lifetime ◽  
Defect Density ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Chemical Vapor ◽  
Minority Carrier Lifetime ◽  
Atomic Layer ◽  
Film Structure ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Annealing Process ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity

In this study, Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) equipment was used to deposit Al2O3 film on a p-type silicon wafer, trimethylaluminum (TMA) and H2O were used as precursor materials, and then the post-annealing process was conducted under atmospheric pressure. The Al2O3 films annealed at different temperatures between 200–500 °C were compared to ascertain the effect of passivation films and to confirm the changes in film structure and thickness before and after annealing through TEM images. Furthermore, the negative fixed charge and interface defect density were analyzed using the C-V measurement method. Photo-induced carrier generation was used to measure the effective minority carrier lifetime, the implied open-circuit voltage, and the effective surface recombination velocity of the film. The carrier lifetime was found to be the longest (2181.7 μs) for Al2O3/Si post-annealed at 400 °C. Finally, with the use of VHF (40.68 MHz) plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) equipment, a silicon nitride (SiNx) film was plated as an anti-reflection layer over the front side of the wafer and as a capping layer on the back to realize a passivated emitter and rear contact (PERC) solar cell with optimal efficiency up to 21.54%.

scholarly journals Simulation of Open Circuit Voltage Decay for Solar Cell Determination of the Base Minority Carrier Lifetime and the Back Surface Recombination Velocity

1997 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 225-238
Author(s):  
B. Affour ◽  
P. Mialhe
Keyword(s):  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Minority Carrier ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Minority Carrier Lifetime ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Back Surface ◽  
Voltage Decay ◽  
Recombination Velocity

The Open Circuit Voltage Decay (OCVD) method for the determination of the base minority carrier lifetime (τ) and the back surface recombination velocity (S) of silicon solar cells has been investigated at constant illumination level. The validity of the method has been discussed through a simulation study by considering the mathematical solution of the continuity equation. Extracted values ofτand S are compared to their input values in order to evaluate the performances of our method and the precision with regard to cell structural parameters, namely the base width and the base doping level. Deviations in lifetime values remain lower than 7% for almost all the cell configurations while recombination velocity deviations are shown to be dependent on cell structure parameters and experimental procedure.

The Effect of Al-BSF on Seff and Rb in Industrialized Mono-Silicon Solar Cells

2012 ◽  
Vol 472-475 ◽  
pp. 1846-1850
Author(s):  
Shan Shan Dai ◽  
Gao Jie Zhang ◽  
Xiang Dong Luo ◽  
Jing Xiao Wang ◽  
Wen Jun Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Spectral Response ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Rear Surface ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Short Circuit Current ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Silicon Solar Cells ◽  
Back Surface

In this work, the effect of aluminum back surface field formed by screen printed various amount of Al paste on the effective rear surface recombination velocity (Seff) and the internal rear reflectance coeffeicient (Rb) of commercial mono-silicon solar cells was investigated. We demonstrated the effect of Seffand Rbon the performance of Al-BSF solar cells by simulating them with PC1D. The simulated results showed that the lower Seffcould get higher open circuit voltage (Voc), at the same time, the larger Rbcould get higher short-circuit current (Isc). Experimentally, we investigated the Seffand Rbthrough depositing Al paste with various amount (3.7, 5, 6, and 8 mg/cm2) for fabricating Al-BSF mono-silicon solar cells. Four group cells were characterized by light I-V, spectral response, hemispherical reflectance and scanning electron microscope (SEM) measurements. It was found that, a minimum Seffof 350 cm/s was gotten from the cells with Al paste of 8 mg/cm2, which was extracted by matching quantum efficiency (QE) from 800 nm to 1200 nm with PC1D, and a maximum Rbof 53.5% was obtained from Al paste of 5 mg/cm2by calculating at 1105 nm with PC1D. When the amount of Al paste was higher than 5mg/cm2, there were less Seffand lower Rb. On the other hand, when Al amount was 3.7mg/cm2, it was too little to form a closed BSF. Based on the SEM graphs and simulations with PC1D, a simple explaination was proposed for the experimental results.

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