Carrier collection characteristics of microcrystalline silicon–germanium p–i–n junction solar cells

Crystallization behavior of microcrystalline silicon germanium

“…These low mobility Ge atoms cannot move to the preferred atom sites, and dangling bonds and/or amorphous networks are generated around the Ge atoms out of the microcrystalline sites. [9,10] The other reason is the preferential etching of Si atoms by hydrogen. The atomic hydrogen generated in the hydrogen plasma etches the energetically less stable bonds, resulting in a microcrystalline phase.…”

“…This material also has a higher absorption coefficient than μc-Si:H thin films at low energy wavelengths due to the presence of Ge atoms in the films. On the other hand, defects are generated rapidly in μc-SiGe:H as the Ge content is increased [9,10]. Therefore, the Ge content needs to be optimized.…”

Effect of Ge atoms on crystal structure and optoelectronic properties of hydrogenated Si–Ge films

“…[10][11][12][13] It has been reported that the electronic conductivity in the dark and under illumination depends strongly on the structural composition of µc-Si 1−x Ge x :H films. 6,10,14,15 However, the crystallization of the µc-SiGe:H films was considered complex because Si and Ge atoms have different incorporation efficiency in the crystalline matrix during the film growth. 10,14 So far the effects of crystallinity on the optoelectronic properties of the µc-Si 1−x Ge x :H films have not been carefully studied.…”

Study of electronic characteristics of heterojunction with intrinsic thin-layer devices and defect density profile of nanocrystalline silicon germanium devices

“…with efficiencies exceeding 10% in single junction cells, and exceeding 15% in multiple junction cells [1][2][3][4][5]. However, there has been little progress in increasing the efficiencies of nanocrystalline (Si,Ge) alloys [6][7][8][9][10], which can potentially achieve high quantum efficiencies in the infrared range out to 0.68 eV, i.e. the bandgap of crystalline Ge.…”

“…temperature. An additional advantage of HIT cells is their improved performance yield across the months of the year [10], as shown in Figure 2.1b. One other interesting benefit of HIT is that their symmetry lends the capability to fabricate bifacial modules, which achieve higher efficiency by taking advantage of light reflected from behind and entering the back of the wafer.…”