Numerical Simulation and Experiment of a High-Efficiency Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact (TOPCon) Solar Cell Using a Crystalline Nanostructured Silicon-Based Layer

We report on the tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) using a crystalline nanostructured silicon-based layer via an experimental and numerical simulation study. The minority carrier lifetime and implied open-circuit voltage reveals an ameliorated passivation property, which gives the motivation to run a simulation. The passivating contact of an ultra-thin silicon oxide (1.2 nm) capped with a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) grown 30 nm thick nanocrystalline silicon oxide (nc-SiOx), provides outstanding passivation properties with low recombination current density (Jo) (~1.1 fA/cm2) at a 950 °C annealing temperature. The existence of a thin silicon oxide layer (SiO2) at the rear surface with superior quality (low pinhole density, Dph < 1 × 10−8 and low interface trap density, Dit ≈ 1 × 108 cm−2 eV−1), reduces the recombination of the carriers. The start of a small number of transports by pinholes improves the fill factor (FF) up to 83%, reduces the series resistance (Rs) up to 0.5 Ω cm2, and also improves the power conversion efficiency (PEC) by up to 27.4%. The TOPCon with a modified nc-SiOx exhibits a dominant open circuit voltage (Voc) of 761 mV with a supreme FF of 83%. Our simulation provides an excellent match with the experimental results and supports excellent passivation properties. Overall, our study proposed an ameliorated knowledge about tunnel oxide, doping in the nc-SiOx layer, and additionally about the surface recombination velocity (SRV) impact on TOPCon solar cells.

Temperature resistance coefficient of doped with rare earth elements nanostructured silicon films

The regularities of changes in the concentration of an electrically active dopant in a nanostructured silicon film by changing the electrical resistivity depending on the doping conditions were investigated. The dependences of the changes in the obtained structures doped with rare-earth elements, such as La, Eu, Sm, Dy, Gd (lanthanides), on nanostructured silicon films are determined. The regularities of the obtained films changes and the temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) change depending on the formation conditions are established. The regularities of the TCR are shown depending on the selected conditions for doping or non-doping of nanostructured silicon films with various impurities. It is shown that the main conditions under which the effect and change in the temperature coefficient of resistors resistance on thin films using rare-earth elements, such as oxygen, boron and phosphorus in the bulk of the film, is considered to be the temperature effect after deposition.

The Study of Optical and Electrical Properties of Nanostructured Silicon Carbide Thin Films Grown by Pulsed-Laser Deposition

In this paper, nanostructured silicon carbide (SiC) thin films are deposited onto glass substrate using pulsed laser deposition technique. Electrical and optical characterizations such as conductivity, resistivity, transmission, Seeback effect, absorption, absorption coefficient, energy band gap, and extinction coefficient as a function of photon energy, and the effect of thin films thickness on transmission are carried out to characterize the prepared samples. Results showed that the prepared SiC thin film is an n-type semiconductor with an indirect bandgap of ~3 eV, 448 nm cutoff wavelength, 3.4395 × 104 cm−1 absorption coefficient and 0.154 extinction coefficient. The surface morphology of the SiC thin films is studied using scanning electron microscope at a substrate temperature of 400 °C and it is found that the grain size of the prepared SiC thin film is about 30 nm. As such, the nano thin films optical and structural characteristics enable the films to be used as gases sensors in many optoelectronic devices such as the environment and ultraviolet photodiode.

Electrochemical Sensing on a Nanostructured Silicon Mass Spectrometry Surface

Mass Spectrometry (MS) is a widely used analytical tool that provides quantitive information (molecule weight and intensity) of the analyte. Nanostructured silicon-based surface-assisted desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) provides matrix-free and high sensitivity advantages. However, the mass spectrometer is a large and expensive tool limiting the onsite screening or point-of-care testing applications. Electrochemical sensing, on the other hand, is a simple and less-expensive detection method that can be used as portable onsite screening purposes. If the nanostructure silicon (nSi) surface can be used for electrochemical sensing, it opens the possibility of using nSi surface for both electrochemical sensing and Mass Spectrometry (MS) detection. Therefore, in this paper, we demonstrate the feasibility of using nSi surface for electrochemical sensing. Effects of the major nSi surface process parameters, including metal-assisted etching time and electroless Au decoration/deposition time to the electrochemical was evaluated.