Miracle: Material Independent Rear Passivating Contact Solar cells using optimized texture and novel p+poly-Si hydrogenation

Tool, Kees; Stodolny, M.K.; Anker, John N. van den; Janssen, G.J.M.; Lenes, Martijn; Romijn, I.G.

doi:10.1109/pvsc.2018.8547969

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…The increased recombination can instead be related to a net higher defect density at the SiO x / c -Si interface, ,, which now has a dominant Si(111) crystallographic orientation on a textured Si surface instead of Si(100) orientation on a planar surface. Although it has been reported that the SiO x /Si(111) interface has a higher defect density than a SiO x /Si(100) interface for thermally grown SiO 2 layers, morphological modifications to the pyramidal surface texture such as rounding of the pyramid tips or valleys between pyramids improves poly -Si/SiO x contact passivation. , This is observed despite the fact that there is only a minimal change in the Si(111) surface area fraction. Additionally, by controlling the dopant profiles and by hydrogenation of the contact structure, improved passivation of textured c -Si wafers was reported with J o < 10 fA/cm 2 , but this did not result in high-efficiency cells .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiO_x Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Kale

Nemeth

Guthrey

et al. 2019

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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High-efficiency crystalline silicon (Si) solar cells require textured surfaces for efficient light trapping. However, passivation of a textured surface to reduce carrier recombination is difficult. Here, we relate the electrical properties of cells fabricated on a KOH-etched, random pyramidal-textured Si surface to the nanostructure of the passivated contact and the textured surface morphology. The effects of both microscopic pyramidal morphology and nanoscale surface roughness on passivated contacts consisting of polycrystalline Si (poly-Si) deposited on top of an ultrathin, 1.5−2.2 nm, SiO x layer are investigated. Using atomic force microscopy, we show a pyramid face, which is predominantly a Si(111) plane to be significantly rougher than a polished Si(111) surface. This roughness results in a nonuniform SiO x layer as determined by transmission electron microscopy of a poly-Si/SiO x contact. Our device measurements also show an overall more resistive and hence a thicker SiO x layer over the pyramidal surface as compared to a polished Si(111) surface, which we relate to increased surface roughness. Using electron-beam-induced current measurements of poly-Si/SiO x contacts, we further show that the SiO x layer near the pyramid valleys is preferentially more conducting and hence likely thinner than over pyramid tips, edges, and faces. Hence, both the microscopic pyramidal morphology and nanoscale roughness lead to a nonuniform SiO x layer, thus leading to poor poly-Si/SiO x contact passivation. Finally, we report >21% efficient and ≥80% fill-factor front/back poly-Si/SiO x solar cells on both single-side and double-side textured wafers without the use of transparent conductive oxide layers, and show that the poorer contact passivation on a textured surface is limited to boron-doped poly-Si/SiO x contacts.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiO_x Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Kale

Nemeth

Guthrey

et al. 2019

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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“…Both alloying strategies lead to a trade-off between transparency and conductivity [106], [109]. A second difficulty is the application of the TOPCon structure on a textured surface where, once again, p-type contacts are more problematic than n-type contacts [110], [111]. The best efficiency reached to date in a device with full-area TOPcon passivating contacts at the front and rear is 22.6% [112].…”

Section: High-temperature Passivating Contactsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Status and perspectives of crystalline silicon photovoltaics in research and industry

et al. 2022

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Crystalline silicon (c-Si) photovoltaics has long been considered energy intensive and costly. Over the past decades, spectacular improvements along the manufacturing chain have made c-Si a low-cost source of electricity that cannot be ignored anymore. Over 125 GW of c-Si modules have been installed in 2020, 95% of the overall photovoltaic (PV) market, and over 700 GW have been cumulatively installed. There are some strong indications that c-Si photovoltaics could become the most important world electricity source by 2040-2050. In this Review, we survey the key changes related to materials and industrial processing of silicon PV components. At the wafer level, a strong reduction in poly-silicon cost and the general implementation of diamond-wire sawing has reduced the cost of monocrystalline wafers. In parallel, the concentration of impurities and electronic defects in the various types of wafers has been reduced, allowing for high efficiency in industrial devices. Improved cleanliness in production lines, increased tool automation, improved production technology and cell architectures all helped increase the efficiency of mainstream modules. Efficiency gains at the cell level were accompanied by an increase in wafer size and by the introduction of advanced assembly techniques. These improvements have allowed a reduction of cell-to-module efficiency losses and will accelerate the yearly efficiency gain of mainstream modules. To conclude, we discuss what it will take for other PV technologies to compete with silicon on the mass market. SummaryCrystalline silicon is today's main photovoltaic technology, enabling to produce electricity with minimal carbon emissions and at an unprecedented low cost. This review discusses the recent evolution of this technology, the present status of research and industry, and the near future perspectives.

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Miracle: Material Independent Rear Passivating Contact Solar cells using optimized texture and novel p+poly-Si hydrogenation

Cited by 2 publications

References 5 publications

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiO_x Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiO_x Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Status and perspectives of crystalline silicon photovoltaics in research and industry

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Miracle: Material Independent Rear Passivating Contact Solar cells using optimized texture and novel p+poly-Si hydrogenation

Cited by 2 publications

References 5 publications

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiOx Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiOx Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Status and perspectives of crystalline silicon photovoltaics in research and industry

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiO_x Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells

Effect of Crystallographic Orientation and Nanoscale Surface Morphology on Poly-Si/SiO_x Contacts for Silicon Solar Cells