Improving structural, optical, and electrical properties of μc-Si:H using non-uniform hydrogen dilution treatment on RF-PECVD prepared layers

Dorostghol, Zahra; Kosarian, Abdolnabi

doi:10.1016/j.mssp.2021.105790

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 40 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The band gap can be extended by adjusting the method and conditions of deposition. Additionally, a-Si:H is relatively easy to dope and can be easily prepared as either n-type or p-type by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) (Shin et al, 2014;Juneja et al, 2015;Lin et al, 2020;Dorostghol, & Kosarian, 2021;Zeng et al, 2022). As a result, numerous researchers in the field of a-Si: H solar cells continue to invest significant efforts in developing and optimizing a-Si: H-based alloys to enhance their efficiency.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Optical Properties Characterization of Hydrogenated Silicon by Spectroscopic Ellipsometry for Solar Cell Applications

Mungchamnankit,

Limnonthakul

2023

JCST

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Amorphous and microcrystalline silicon play a critical role as layers in solar cell design, specifically in the absorption process layer which is crucial for the efficiency of sunlight conversion. This study explores the creation of hydrogenated amorphous silicon films (a-Si:H) via very high-frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (VHF-PECVD) and analyzes their optical properties and crystal structure. We determine the optical band gap of amorphous silicon using a Tauc plot and Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (SE) analysis of transmittance results. By comparing the data, we gain insights into the material's optical properties, aiding our understanding of the findings and enabling a swift evaluation of its optical band gap. Furthermore, we characterize the film's crystal structure using grazing X-ray diffraction. Our results reveal that a-Si:H on glass, produced by VHF-PECVD at a substrate temperature of 200°C with various hydrogen dilutions (RH=H2/SiH4) ranging from 1.0 to 5.0, remains in the amorphous phase. The SE modeling provides the optical band gap of the a-Si:H film, with the lowest and highest optical band gap values occurring at RH 1.0 (1.79 eV) and RH 3.0 (1.84 eV), respectively. We employed the Tauc-Lorentz model with five fitting parameters to extract optical properties and the band gap of amorphous silicon, including the real part of the dielectric function. This model incorporates three layers: the interface layer between the glass substrate and a-Si:H, the a-Si:H film, and surface roughness, yielding the most accurate model. This comprehensive analysis unveils the exact optical properties of the fabricated films, offering valuable insights for solar cell design and manufacturing. This research confirms that Spectroscopic Ellipsometry, a rapid and non-destructive method for measuring the optical band gap, can significantly benefit the solar cell fabrication industry.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Optical Properties Characterization of Hydrogenated Silicon by Spectroscopic Ellipsometry for Solar Cell Applications

Mungchamnankit,

Limnonthakul

2023

JCST

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The crystals in the columns have sizes in the order of hundreds of nanometers, and the crystalline fraction (X C ) of the films can be tailored by the deposition conditions. Compared with a-Si:H, µc-Si:H has higher room temperature conductivity, higher µ e , is more stable against radiation, and the bandgap (E g ) and absorption coefficient (α) are different [11,12]. When compared with poly-Si, µc-Si:H has lower crystal sizes, a lower X C , and lower µ e .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of the RF Power of PECVD on the Crystalline Fractions of Microcrystalline Silicon (μc-Si:H) Films and Their Structural, Optical, and Electronic Properties

Moreno,

Torres-Sánchez,

Rosales

et al. 2023

Electronic Materials

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this work, we report on the deposition of microcrystalline silicon (µc-Si:H) films produced from silane (SiH4), hydrogen (H2), and argon (Ar) mixtures using the plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) technique at 200 °C. Particularly, we studied the effect of RF power on the crystalline fraction (XC) of the deposited films, and we have correlated the XC with their optical, electrical, and structural characteristics. Different types of characterization were performed in the µc-Si:H film series. We used several techniques, such as Raman scattering spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), among others. Our results show that RF power had a strong effect on the XC of the films, and there is an optimal value for producing films with the largest XC.

show abstract

Improving structural, optical, and electrical properties of μc-Si:H using non-uniform hydrogen dilution treatment on RF-PECVD prepared layers

Cited by 2 publications

References 40 publications

The Optical Properties Characterization of Hydrogenated Silicon by Spectroscopic Ellipsometry for Solar Cell Applications

The Optical Properties Characterization of Hydrogenated Silicon by Spectroscopic Ellipsometry for Solar Cell Applications

Effect of the RF Power of PECVD on the Crystalline Fractions of Microcrystalline Silicon (μc-Si:H) Films and Their Structural, Optical, and Electronic Properties

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About