Title :
Efficiency enhancement of amorphous silicon p-i-n solar cells by LP-CVD ZnO
Author :
Meier, J. ; Kroll, U. ; Dubail, S. ; Golay, S. ; Fay, S. ; Dubail, J. ; Shah, A.
Author_Institution :
Inst. de Microtechnique, Neuchatel, Switzerland
Abstract :
Amorphous silicon p-i-n solar cells were deposited on “in house” developed LP-CVD zinc oxide and compared with commercially available SnO2 (Asahi type U2) substrates. While for both front TCO materials comparably high values of the open circuit voltage (860-900 mV) and of the fill factor (72-74%) were obtained, a remarkable enhancement of the short-circuit current density could be observed for LP-CVD ZnO substrates. Optical characterizations confirm for LP-CVD ZnO a more efficient light-trapping effect, as compared to SnO2. By applying this low-cost LP-CVD ZnO, a stabilized a-Si:H p-i-n solar cell efficiency of 9% has been achieved
Keywords :
CVD coatings; II-VI semiconductors; amorphous semiconductors; chemical vapour deposition; current density; electric current measurement; elemental semiconductors; hydrogen; semiconductor device measurement; semiconductor device testing; semiconductor doping; semiconductor thin films; short-circuit currents; silicon; solar cells; voltage measurement; zinc compounds; 860 to 900 mV; 9 percent; LP-CVD ZnO; Si:H; ZnO; a-Si:H p-i-n solar cell; amorphous silicon p-i-n solar cells; efficiency enhancement; fill factor; front TCO materials; light-trapping effect; open circuit voltage; optical characterizations; short-circuit current density; substrates; Amorphous silicon; Costs; Crystallization; Fabrication; Manufacturing; PIN photodiodes; Photovoltaic cells; Production; Substrates; 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.2000.915991
