scholarly journals Characterization of Electron-Induced Defects in Cu (In, Ga) Se2 Thin-Film Solar Cells using Electroluminescence

2013 ◽  
Vol 1538 ◽  
pp. 27-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shirou Kawakita ◽  
Mitsuru Imaizumi ◽  
Shogo Ishizuka ◽  
Hajime Shibata ◽  
Shigeru Niki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Electron Irradiation ◽  
Radiation Effects ◽  
Thin Film Solar Cells ◽  
Electron Radiation ◽  
Small Grains ◽  
Cigs Solar Cells ◽  
Induced Defects

ABSTRACTCIGS solar cells were irradiated with 250 keV electrons, which can create only Cu-related defects in the cell, to reveal the radiation defect. The EL image of CIGS solar cells before electron irradiation at 120 K described small grains, thought to be those of the CIGS. After 250 keV electron irradiation of the CIGS cell, the cell was uniformly illuminated compared to before the electron irradiation and the observed grains were unclear. In addition, the EL intensity rose with increasing electron fluence, meaning the change in EL efficiency may be attributable to the decreased likelihood of non-irradiative recombination in intrinsic defects due to electron-induced defects. Since the light soaking effect for CIGS solar cells is reported the same phenomena, the 250 keV electron radiation effects for CIGS solar cells might be equivalent to the effect.

Preparation of CIGSS Thin-Film Solar Cells by Rapid Thermal Processing

2006 ◽  
Vol 129 (3) ◽  
pp. 323-326
Author(s):  
Sachin S. Kulkarni ◽  
Jyoti S. Shirolikar ◽  
Neelkanth G. Dhere
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Thermal Processing ◽  
Rapid Thermal Processing ◽  
Electrical Characterization ◽  
Soda Lime ◽  
Thin Film Solar Cells ◽  
Soda Lime Glass ◽  
X Ray

Rapid thermal processing (RTP) provides a way to rapidly heat substrates to an elevated temperature to perform relatively short duration processes, typically less than 2–3min long. RTP can be utilized to minimize the process cycle time without compromising process uniformity, thus eliminating a bottleneck in CuIn1−xGaxSe2−ySy (CIGSS) module fabrication. Some approaches have been able to realize solar cells with conversion efficiencies close or equal to those for conventionally processed solar cells with similar device structures. A RTP reactor for preparation of CIGSS thin films on 10cm×10cm substrates has been designed, assembled, and tested at the Florida Solar Energy Center’s PV Materials Lab. This paper describes the synthesis and characterization of CIGSS thin-film solar cells by the RTP technique. Materials characterization of these films was done by scanning electron microscopy, x-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, Auger electron spectroscopy, electron probe microanalysis, and electrical characterization was done by current–voltage measurements on soda lime glass substrates by the RTP technique. Encouraging results were obtained during the first few experimental sets, demonstrating that reasonable solar cell efficiencies (up to 9%) can be achieved with relatively shorter cycle times, lower thermal budgets, and without using toxic gases.

scholarly journals Electrical characterization of CIGS thin-film solar cells by two- and four-wire probe technique

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (11) ◽  
pp. 2050102
Author(s):  
Amirhosein Mosavi ◽  
Beszedes Bertalan ◽  
Felde Imre ◽  
Laszlo Nadai ◽  
Nima E. Gorji
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Current Density ◽  
Ideality Factor ◽  
Electrical Characterization ◽  
Load Resistance ◽  
Internal Resistance ◽  
Thin Film Solar Cells ◽  
Wire Probe

A precise characterization of thin-film solar cells is of huge importance for obtaining high open-circuit voltage and low recombination rates from the interfaces or within the bulk of the main materials. Among many electrical characterization techniques, the two- and four-wire probe using the Cascade instrument is of interest since the resistance of the wires and the electrical contacts can be excluded by the additional two wires in four-wire probe configuration. In this paper, both two- and four-point probes configuration are employed to characterize the CIGS chalcogenide thin-film solar cells. The two-wire probe has been used to measure the current–voltage characteristics of the cell which results in a huge internal resistance. Therefore, the four-wire connection is also used to eliminate the load resistance to enhance the characterization’s accuracy. The load resistance in the two-wire probe diminishes the photogenerated current density at smaller voltage ranges. In contrast, the proposed four-wire probe collects more current at higher voltages due to enhanced carrier collection efficiency from contact electrodes. The current conduction mechanism is also identified at every voltage region represented by the value of the ideality factor of that voltage region. It is observed that a longer time given to the charge collection results in increased current density at a higher voltage. According to the results and device characteristics, a novel double-diode model is suggested to extract the saturation current density, shunt and series resistances and ideality factor of the cells. These cells are shown to be efficient in terms of low recombination at the interfaces and with lower series resistance as the quality of the materials is in its most possible conductive form. The measured internal resistance and saturation current density and ideality factor of the two measurement configurations are measured and compared.

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