Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-29T07:43:58.415Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Advanced, Thin, Polycrystalline Silicon-Film™ Solar Cells on Low-Cost Substrates

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

Robert B. Hall ,
Allen M. Barnett ,
Jeff E. Cotter ,
David H. Ford ,
Alan E. Ingram  and
James A. Rand
Robert B. Hall
Affiliation:
AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE 19716
Allen M. Barnett
Affiliation:
AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE 19716
Jeff E. Cotter
Affiliation:
AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE 19716
David H. Ford
Affiliation:
AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE 19716
Alan E. Ingram
Affiliation:
AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE 19716
James A. Rand
Affiliation:
AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE 19716
Get access

Abstract

Thin, polycrystalline silicon solar cells have the potential for the realization of a 15%, lowcost photovoltaic product. As a photovoltaic material, polycrystalline material is abundant, benign, and electrically stable. The thin-film polycrystalline silicon solar cell design achieves high efficiency by incorporating techniques to enhance optical absorption, ensure electrical confinement, and minimize bulk recombination currents. AstroPower's approach to a thin-film polycrystalline silicon solar cell technology is based on the Silicon-Film™ process, a continuous sheet manufacturing process for the growth of thin films of polycrystalline silicon on low-cost substrates. A new barrier layer and substrate have been developed for advanced solar cell designs. External gettering with phosphorus has been employed to effect significant improvements leading to effective minority carrier diffusion lengths greater than 250 micrometers in the active silicon layer. Light trapping has been observed in 60-micrometer thick films of silicon grown on the new barrier-coated substrate. An efficiency of 12.2% in a 0.659 cm2 solar cell has been achieved with the advanced structure.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 426: Symposium J – Thin Films for Photovoltaic and Related Device , 1996 , 117
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1996

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Green, M.A., Emery, K., Bucher, K, King, D.L., Progress in Photovoltaics, 2 (1), 51 (1995).Google Scholar
2. Workshop Series:Role of Impurities and Defects in Silicon, NREL/SP-413–8250, (1995).Google Scholar
3. Shi, Z., Wenham, S.R., Progress in Photovoltaics, 2 (2), 153 (1994).Google Scholar
4. Narayanan, S., Wohlgemuth, J., Progress in Photovoltaics, 2 (2), 121 (1994).Google Scholar
5. Mitchell, K.W., King, R.R., Lester, T.L., McGraw, M., First World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion, (1994), pp. 1266–1269.Google Scholar
6. Rand, J.A., Hall, R.B., Barnett, A.M., Proc. 12th IEEE PVSC, (1990), pp. 263–268.Google Scholar
7. Weiner, J.H., Arch, J.K., Brendel, R., Langguth, G., Konuma, M., Bauser, E., Proc. 12th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, (1994), pp. 1823–1826.Google Scholar
8. Takami, A., Srimoto, S., Morikawa, H., Hamamoto, S., Ishihara, T., Kumabe, H., Murotani, T., Proc. 12th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, (1994), pp. 59–62.Google Scholar
9. Sproul, A.B., Shi, Z., Zhao, J., Wang, A., Tang, Y.H., Yun, F., Young, T., Huang, Y.. Edmiston, S.. Wenham, S.R., Green, M.A., 1st World Conference on PVEnergy Conversion, (1994), pp. 1410–1412.Google Scholar
10. Zhao, J., Wang, A., Green, M.A., Proc. 13th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conf, (1995), pp. 1566–1569.Google Scholar
11. Blakers, A. W., Weber, K. J., Stuckings, M. F., Armand, S, Matlakowski, G., Stocks, M. J. and Cuevas, A., Proc.13th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, (1995), pp. 33–36.Google Scholar
12. Ford, D. H., Barnett, A. M., Checchi, J. C., Collins, S. R., Hall, R.B., Kendall, C. L., Lampo, S. M., Rand, J. A. and Trabant, A. M., 1st World Conf on PVEnergy Conversion, (December, 1994) -pp. 1559–1562.Google Scholar
13. Rand, J.A., Cotter, J.E., Thomas, C.J., Ingram, A.E., Bai, Y.B., Ruffins, T.R., Barnett, A.M., First World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion, (1994), pp. 1262–1265.Google Scholar
14. Ciszek, T.F., J.Appl.Phys., 47, 440 (1976).Google Scholar
15. Barnett, A. M., Hall, R. B. and Rand, J. A., MRS Bulletin XVIII, No. 10, 33 (1993).Google Scholar
16. Cotter, J.E., 13th PV Program Review Meeting, Publ. AlP (May, 1995), pp 497–502.Google Scholar
17. Rand, J.A, Basore, P.A., Proc. of the 22nd IEEE Photovoltaic Specialist Conf., (1991), pp. 192–197.Google Scholar
18. Cotter, J. E., Barnett, A. M., Ford, D. H., Goetz, M. A., Hall, R. B., Ingram, A. E., Rand, J. A. and Thomas, C. J., Proc. 13th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, (1995), pp 1732–1735.Google Scholar