19.2% efficiency n-type laser-grooved silicon solar cells

N-type silicon wafers have been found to have higher bulk lifetimes compared to those of boron-doped p-type silicon wafers with the same resistivity, and proved to have no light-induced degradation associated with the boron-oxygen complex. In this paper, the laser-grooved buried contact (BC) technology was used to fabricate interdigitated backside contact (IBC) solar cells on the phosphorus-doped silicon wafers. Three obstacles that hindered the performance of n-type interdigitated backside buried contact (IBBC) solar cells - parasitic shunt resistance, metallization issues, and optimization of the diffused regions - are discussed. 19.2% efficiency has been achieved on the n-type IBBC solar cell, and all BC solar cells made on the phosphorus-doped n-type silicon wafers, regardless of the crystalline growth techniques, show no light-induced degradation.