Light-induced recovery of a-Si solar cells

Fujikake, S.; Ota, Hiroki; Ohsawa, M.; Hama, Takao; Ichikawa, Yo; Sakai, Heisuke

doi:10.1016/0927-0248(94)90072-8

Cited by 16 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…It is well established that annealing SWE defects can be achieved, not only at elevated temperatures over extended time periods in the dark (e.g. 150 o C for 4 hours), but also at room temperature [4,[11][12][13]. Furthermore, it is known that SWE is limited at higher temperatures [8], but this effect cannot be utilized at standard operating temperatures of PV because conventional modules cannot consistently achieve temperatures greater than 50 o C in ambient conditions in non-concentrated applications [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of hybrid photovoltaic thermal device operating conditions on intrinsic layer thickness optimization of hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells

Pathak

Girotra²,

Harrison

et al. 2012

Solar Energy

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Historically, the design of hybrid solar photovoltaic thermal (PVT) systems has focused on cooling crystalline silicon (c-Si)-based photovoltaic (PV) devices to avoid temperature-related losses. This approach neglects the associated performance losses in the thermal system and leads to a decrease in the overall exergy of the system. Consequently, this paper explores the use of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) as an absorber material for PVT in an effort to maintain higher and more favourable operating temperatures for the thermal system. Amorphous silicon not only has a smaller temperature coefficient than c-Si, but also can display improved PV performance over extended periods of higher temperatures by annealing out defect states from the Staebler-Wronski effect. In order to determine the potential improvements in a-Si:H PV performance associated with increased thicknesses of the i-layers made possible by higher operating temperatures, a-Si:H PV cells were tested under 1 sun illumination (AM1.5) at temperatures of 25 o C (STC), 50 o C (representative PV operating conditions), and 90 o C (representative PVT operating conditions). PV cells with an i-layer thicknesses of 420, 630 and 840 nm were evaluated at each temperature. Results show that operating a-Si:H-based PV at 90 o C, with thicker i-layers than the cells currently used in commercial production, provided a greater power output compared to the thinner cells operating at either PV or PVT operating temperatures. These results indicate that incorporating a-Si:H as the absorber material in a PVT system can improve the thermal performance, while simultaneously improving the electrical performance of a-Si:H-based PV.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of hybrid photovoltaic thermal device operating conditions on intrinsic layer thickness optimization of hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells

Pathak

Girotra²,

Harrison

et al. 2012

Solar Energy

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“…Regeneration of Carlson's samples occurred most likely not due to extremely high light intensity, but rather due to the associated heat. Light may play some role in regeneration as an earlier study of Fujikake et al [3] suggests, but it seems that thermal energy is most responsible for the effective recovery of efficiency. Based on the above experiences this investigation concentrates on the role of heat with a possible auxiliary role of light in the annealing process of modules.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Recovery of Light Induced Degradation in Amorphous Silicon Solar Cells and Modules

Luczak

Lund

Jennings

et al. 2006

2006 IEEE 4th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conference

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This study concentrates on finding a possible method of annealing amorphous silicon solar modules degraded by prolonged exposure to light. The aim of annealing is the recovery of initial efficiency. This should be done on the module's work site or through simple indoor maintenance. Ideally the annealing temperature should be as low as possible and the annealing time as short as possible. The annealing process of laboratory cells and commercially available triple junction solar modules was performed at temperatures 70 ºC -110 ºC. The degree of efficiency recovery as a function of temperature and time of exposure to heating was investigated. The influence of factors affecting the rate of degradation and recovery such as short-circuiting, work under load or exposure to light, were also taken into account.

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“…A possible solution is to thinner the a-Si:H active layer up to a maximum thickness of 300 nm 18 – 20 . Another limitation of a-Si:H is the photo-induced performance degradation—also known as the Staebler–Wronski effect (SWE) 21 —that heals with thermal annealing 22 – 26 . Once the absorption at the active layer is optimized, if the solar cell design increases the absorption at the auxiliary layers of the cell, the temperature increases and helps to mitigate the SWE defects 26 , 27 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resonant nano-dimer metasurface for ultra-thin a-Si:H solar cells

Elshorbagy

Sánchez

Cuadrado

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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Low-cost hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells (a-Si:H) can perform better and be more competitive by including nanostructures. An optimized nano-dimer structure embedded in close contact with the back electrode of an aSi:H ultra-thin solar cells can enhance the deliverable short-circuit current up to 27.5 %. This enhancement is the result of an increase in the absorption at the active layer, that is the product of an efficient scattering from the nanostructure. From our calculations, the nano-dimer structure must be made out of a high-index of refraction material, like GaP. The evaluation of the scattering and absorption cross section of the structure supports the calculated enhancement in short-circuit current, that is always accompanied by a decrease in the total reflectance of the cell, which is reduced by about 50 %.

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Light-induced recovery of a-Si solar cells

Cited by 16 publications

References 6 publications

The effect of hybrid photovoltaic thermal device operating conditions on intrinsic layer thickness optimization of hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells

The effect of hybrid photovoltaic thermal device operating conditions on intrinsic layer thickness optimization of hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells

Recovery of Light Induced Degradation in Amorphous Silicon Solar Cells and Modules

Resonant nano-dimer metasurface for ultra-thin a-Si:H solar cells

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