3D impurity profiles of doped/intrinsic amorphous-silicon layers composing textured silicon heterojunction solar cells detected by atom probe tomography

Abstract

Laser-assisted atom probe tomography was used to identify the impurity distribution in Si heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells composed of thin doped/intrinsic amorphous Si layers on the textured surface of a crystalline Si wafer. A site-specific lift-out technique involving a focused ion beam enabled the selection of a ∼2 × 2 μm2 area on an arbitrary pyramidal surface. The distributions of B, P and C in the amorphous Si layers introduced by p-type (trimethyl-borane or diborane) or n-type (phosphine) dopant gases were investigated. Standard guidelines for the assessment of the H content in amorphous Si of SHJ solar cells were provided.

Crystallite distribution analysis based on hydrogen content in thin-film nanocrystalline silicon solar cells by atom probe tomography

“…[38][39][40] Very recently, the H atoms at an a-Si:H/c-Si junction have been quantitively analyzed by APT. 41) Thus, APT fulfills the requirements for both 3D spatial analysis and H detection. In this work, an intrinsic (undoped) nc-Si:H layer is examined by APT.…”

Deuterium Distribution in Fe/V Multi-Layered Films

“…The beauty of APT lies in the ability of detecting all elements with equal sensitivity at once, as it is based on the time-of-flight principle. Fine-scale 3D mapping of hydrogen in real space [9,10] is highly motivated by, e.g., studies of hydrogen embrittlement in metallic materials [11][12][13] and the impact of hydrogen in semiconductors [14][15][16]. APT is also used for developing hydrogen storage materials and their potential applications in catalytic reactions such as CO 2 methanation [17].…”