Title :
Porous silicon texturing of polysilicon substrates
Author :
Striemer, C.C. ; Shi, F. ; Fauchet, P.M. ; Duttagupta, S.P.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. & Comput. Eng., Rochester Univ., NY, USA
Abstract :
We have achieved 10.1% efficiency in a bulk porous polysilicon (PPS) solar cell in which the total thickness of the active layer was ~5 μm. However, the removal of material from the active region of a solar cell during the etching process will limit its ultimate electrical efficiency. We have therefore started to investigate thin film PPS coatings that can be formed on the surface of a solar cell without disturbing the underlying junction characteristics. A systematic set of experiments specifically aimed at maximizing light trapping while maintaining the electrical properties of our devices is being conducted to improve our previous results. Substrates used in this investigation have included string ribbon grown polysilicon solar cells and thin film low-pressure chemical vapor deposited (LPCVD) polysilicon. The enhancement of light coupling into LPCVD polysilicon by incorporating a PPS layer has potential application in the development of thin film silicon solar cells on low cost substrates
Keywords :
CVD coatings; chemical vapour deposition; elemental semiconductors; etching; porous semiconductors; semiconductor growth; semiconductor thin films; silicon; solar cells; substrates; surface texture; 10.1 percent; 5 mum; Si; active layer thickness; bulk porous polysilicon solar cell; electrical efficiency limiting; etching; light coupling; light trapping; low cost substrates; polysilicon substrates; porous silicon texturing; string ribbon grown polysilicon solar cells; thin film low-pressure CVD; thin film silicon solar cells; Chemicals; Coatings; Etching; Optical coupling; Photovoltaic cells; Semiconductor thin films; Silicon; Sputtering; Substrates; Transistors;
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.2000.916037
