Modeling the effects of 1 MeV electron radiation in gallium-arsenide solar cells using SILVACO® virtual wafer fabrication software

The ALTAS device simulator from Silvaco International has the potential for predicting the effects of electron radiation in solar cells by modeling material defects. A GaAs solar cell was simulated in ATLAS and compared to an actual cell with radiation defects identified using deep level transient spectroscopy techniques (DLTS). The solar cells were compared for various fluence levels of 1 MeV electron radiation and showed an average of less than three percent difference between experimental and simulated cell output characteristics. These results demonstrate that ATLAS software can be a viable tool for predicting solar cell degradation due to electron radiation.