High‐Speed Spatial Atomic‐Layer Deposition of Aluminum Oxide Layers for Solar Cell Passivation

Poodt, Paul; Lankhorst, Am Adriaan; Roozeboom, F.; Spee, Karel; Maas, D. Diederik; Vermeer, A. Ad

doi:10.1002/adma.201000766

Cited by 309 publications

(239 citation statements)

References 12 publications

(19 reference statements)

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“…2. The separate reaction zone inlets are incorporated in a round reactor head, surrounded and separated by gas-bearing planes [ Fig.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1 Whereas for conventional ALD the precursors are dosed one by one, separated in time by a purge or pump step, in spatial ALD the precursors are dosed simultaneously and continuously, but separated in space. The main advantages of spatial ALD are the high deposition rate that can be achieved (nm/s for alumina, 2 as compared to $nm/min for conventional ALD), the possibility to conduct atmospheric pressure deposition, and the absence of parasitic deposition in the reaction chamber. One of the first industrial applications exploited today for spatial ALD is surface passivation of crystalline silicon solar cells, [3][4][5] and new applications, such as encapsulation, diffusion barriers, and roll-to-roll processing, are emerging.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

On the kinetics of spatial atomic layer deposition

Poodt¹,

Lieshout²,

Illiberi³

et al. 2012

Journal of Vacuum Science &Amp; Technology A: Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films

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Spatial atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a promising technology for high deposition rate and high-throughput ALD that can be used for roll-to-roll and large-area applications. In an ideal spatial ALD reactor, the design of the injector should be tuned to the deposition kinetics of the ALD reaction, requiring an in-depth knowledge of the dependencies of the growth per cycle (GPC) on the main kinetic parameters. The authors have investigated the deposition kinetics of spatial ALD of alumina from trimethylaluminum and H2O at atmospheric pressure. A kinetic model was developed, which describes the growth per cycle as a function of the main kinetic parameters. The observation of a √t time dependency in the GPC indicates that precursor diffusion to substrate is rate limiting. Next to a fundamental insight into the kinetics of atmospheric pressure spatial ALD, this model can be used for design optimization of new spatial ALD reactors. Furthermore, the model shows that the maximum alumina deposition rates obtainable with spatial ALD are in the order of several nm/s.

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“…2. The separate reaction zone inlets are incorporated in a round reactor head, surrounded and separated by gas-bearing planes [ Fig.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the kinetics of spatial atomic layer deposition

Poodt¹,

Lieshout²,

Illiberi³

et al. 2012

Journal of Vacuum Science &Amp; Technology A: Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…20 Moreover, considerable interest in Al 2 O 3 surface passivation films for silicon photovoltaics has developed over the last few years, 21,22 which also spurred the development of ALD processes for high-volume manufacturing. 22,23 For the synthesis of Er 2 O 3 by ALD, on the other hand, only a few reports exist. Päiväsaari et al reported an ALD process for Er 2 O 3 , using Er(thd) 3 and Er(CpMe) 3 as precursors, in combination with O 3 and H 2 O as oxidants, respectively.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Er3+ and Si luminescence of atomic layer deposited Er-doped Al2O3 thin films on Si(100)

Dingemans

Clark²,

Delft

et al. 2011

Journal of Applied Physics

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Atomic layer deposition was used to deposit amorphous Er-doped Al2O3 films (0.9–6.2 at. % Er) on Si(100). The Er3+ photoluminescence (PL), Er3+ upconversion luminescence, as well as the Si PL and associated surface passivation properties of the films were studied and related to the structural change of the material during annealing. The PL signals from Er3+ and Si were strongly dependent on the annealing temperature (T = 450–1000 °C), but not directly influenced by the transition from an amorphous to a crystalline phase at T > 900 °C. For T > 650 °C, broad Er3+ PL centered at 1.54 μm (4I13/2) with a full width at half maximum of 55 nm was observed under excitation of 532 nm light. The PL signal reached a maximum for Er concentrations in the range of 2–3 at. %. Multiple photon upconversion luminescence was detected at 660 nm (4F9/2), 810 nm (4I9/2), and 980 nm (4I11/2), under excitation of 1480 nm light. The optical activation of Er3+ was related to the removal of quenching impurities, such as OH (3 at. % H present initially) as also indicated by thermal effusion experiments. In contrast to the Er3+ PL signal, the Si luminescence, and consequently the Si surface passivation, decreased for increasing annealing temperatures. This trade-off between surface passivation quality and Er3+ PL can be attributed to an opposite correlation with the decreasing hydrogen content in the films during thermal treatment.

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“…[7][8][9][10] Spatial-ALD combines the advantages of conventional ALD (e.g., superior control of film composition, growth of uniform, pinhole free, and highly conformal thin-films on large area and flexible substrates) with high deposition rates (up to $nm/s). 11 For this reason, atmospheric pressure spatial-ALD is emerging as an industrially scalable technique for the deposition of thin film electrodes (e.g., ZnO) and encapsulation (e.g., by Al 2 O 3 thin-films) of solar and electronic devices. 10,12 In this paper, we report on the stability of the electrical, optical and structural properties of spatial-ALD intrinsic (i-ZnO) and In-doped ZnO (In:ZnO) films, exposed to a high humidity and high temperature environment [85% relative humidity (RH), 85 C].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the environmental stability of ZnO thin films by spatial atomic layer deposition

Illiberi¹,

Scherpenborg²,

Theelen³

et al. 2013

Journal of Vacuum Science &Amp; Technology A: Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films

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Undoped and indium-doped ZnO films have been deposited by atmospheric spatial atomic-layer-deposition (spatial-ALD). The stability of their electrical, optical, and structural properties has been investigated by a damp-heat test in an environment with 85% relative humidity at 85 °C. The resistivity of the ZnO films increased during damp-heat exposure mainly due to a sharp decrease in the carrier mobility, while the carrier density and transparency degraded only partially. The increase in resistivity can be ascribed to a degradation of the structural properties of ZnO films, resulting in a higher level of tensile stress, as indicated by x-ray diffraction analysis, and in a reduced near-ultravoilet emission level in their photoluminescence spectra. Al2O3 thin (25–75 nm) films grown by spatial-ALD at 0.2 nm/s are used as moisture barrier to effectively enhance the stability of the electrical and structural properties of the films.

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High‐Speed Spatial Atomic‐Layer Deposition of Aluminum Oxide Layers for Solar Cell Passivation

Cited by 309 publications

References 12 publications

On the kinetics of spatial atomic layer deposition

On the kinetics of spatial atomic layer deposition

Er3+ and Si luminescence of atomic layer deposited Er-doped Al2O3 thin films on Si(100)

On the environmental stability of ZnO thin films by spatial atomic layer deposition

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