Title :
Characterization of the SnO2/p and ZnO/p contact resistance and junction properties in a-Si p-i-n solar cells and modules
Author :
Hegedus, Steven S. ; Kaplan, Ruhi ; Ganguly, Kenneth ; Wood, George S.
Author_Institution :
Inst. of Energy Conversion, Delaware Univ., Newark, DE, USA
Abstract :
A new method has been developed to characterize the TCO/p contact in a-Si p-i-n superstrate solar cells and modules. The method is applied to a series of devices fabricated at BP Solar on commercial SnO2 and ZnO-coated SnO2 having different p-layer recipes and pre-deposition treatments. Values of the contact resistance (Rc ) of 1±0.5 Ω-cm2 were found for a wide range of TCO and p-layer processing including ZnO. Temperature dependence of Rc gave barrier height of 40-55 meV. Analysis of devices with a thin ZnO layer on SnO2 and with different pre-deposition treatments indicates lower Voc and FF observed with ZnO is not due to the contact but to changes in the p/i junction recombination. The solar cell performance is very sensitive to the ZnO surface treatment but Rc is not. No evidence was found for a blocking or high resistance ZnO/p contact
Keywords :
amorphous semiconductors; contact resistance; elemental semiconductors; silicon; solar cells; surface treatment; tin compounds; zinc compounds; Si; SnO2; SnO2/p contact resistance; TCO/p contact; ZnO; ZnO surface treatment; ZnO/p contact resistance; a-Si p-i-n solar cells; barrier height; characterization; junction properties; modules; p-i-n superstrate solar cells; p-layer processing; p-layer recipes; pre-deposition treatments; recombination; solar cell performance; temperature dependence; Contact resistance; Electrical resistance measurement; Equations; Glass; P-i-n diodes; PIN photodiodes; Plasma temperature; Protection; Strips; Zinc oxide;
Conference_Titel :
Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, 2000. Conference Record of the Twenty-Eighth IEEE
Conference_Location :
Anchorage, AK
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-5772-8
DOI :
10.1109/PVSC.2000.915977
