Ultrathin PECVD epitaxial Si solar cells on glass via low-temperature transfer process

Cariou, Romain; Chen, Wanghua; Cosme, Ismael; Maurice, Jean‐Luc; Foldyna, Martin; Depauw, Valérie; Patriarche, G.; Gaucher, Alexandre; Cattoni, Andréa; Massiot, Inès; Collin, Stéphane; Cadel, E.; Pareige, P.; Cabarrocas, Pere Roca i

doi:10.1002/pip.2762

Cited by 32 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…We consider c-Si solar cells with Gaussian roughness for light trapping, focusing on the thickness dependence of the figures of merit and on the effect of extrinsic recombination. Our main goal is to understand realistic efficiency limits and prospects for thin-film c-Si solar cells produced with non-waferbased techniques like layer transfer or liquid-phase recrystallization [90][91][92][93][94][95], which are needed for thicknesses below the wafer limit of~80 µm.…”

Section: Electro-optical Modeling For Thin-film Silicon Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicon solar cells: toward the efficiency limits

Andreani

Bozzola

Kowalczewski

et al. 2018

Advances in Physics: X

271

211

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Photovoltaic (PV) conversion of solar energy starts to give an appreciable contribution to power generation in many countries, with more than 90% of the global PV market relying on solar cells based on crystalline silicon (c-Si). The current efficiency record of c-Si solar cells is 26.7%, against an intrinsic limit of~29%. Current research and production trends aim at increasing the efficiency, and reducing the cost, of industrial modules. In this paper, we review the main concepts and theoretical approaches that allow calculating the efficiency limits of c-Si solar cells as a function of silicon thickness. For a given material quality, the optimal thickness is determined by a trade-off between the competing needs of high optical absorption (requiring a thicker absorbing layer) and of efficient carrier collection (best achieved by a thin silicon layer). The efficiency limits can be calculated by solving the transport equations in the assumption of optimal (Lambertian) light trapping, which can be achieved by inserting proper photonic structures in the solar cell architecture. The effects of extrinsic (bulk and surface) recombinations on the conversion efficiency are discussed. We also show how the main conclusions and trends can be described using relatively simple analytic models. Prospects for overcoming the 29% limit by means of silicon/perovskite tandems are briefly discussed.

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Section: Electro-optical Modeling For Thin-film Silicon Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicon solar cells: toward the efficiency limits

Andreani

Bozzola

Kowalczewski

et al. 2018

Advances in Physics: X

271

211

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…[2][3][4] To produce thin c-Si cells without excessive material waste, new manufacturing technologies have been recently developed, including silicon epitaxial growth and direct wafering. [5][6][7][8] Despite the cost benefits, the combination of an indirect band gap and thinness of the absorber make thin c-Si cells a poor absorber of near-infrared light, leading to significant photocurrent losses. Therefore, light trapping is paramount for thin c-Si PV cells to approach the Shockley-Queisser limit.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mismatched front and back gratings for optimum light trapping in ultra-thin crystalline silicon solar cells

Hsu

Tong

Branham

et al. 2016

Optics Communications

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The implementation of a front and back grating in ultra-thin photovoltaic cells is a promising approach towards improving light trapping. A simple design rule was developed using the least common multiple (LCM) of the front and back grating periods. From this design rule, several optimal period combinations can be found, providing greater design flexibility for absorbers of indirect band gap materials. Using numerical simulations, the photo-generated current (J ph) for a 10-μm-thick crystalline silicon absorber was predicted to be as high as 38 mA/cm 2 , which is 11.74% higher than that of a single front grating (J ph =34 mA/cm 2).

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“…Note that the electrical activity of such crystal defects remains to be determined. But given that this low temperature epi-Si on GaAs material contains a large amount of hydrogen (0.1–1%) 29 , a significant fraction of those defects may be passivated.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low temperature plasma enhanced CVD epitaxial growth of silicon on GaAs: a new paradigm for III-V/Si integration

Cariou

Chen

Maurice

et al. 2016

Sci Rep

Self Cite

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The integration of III-V semiconductors with silicon is a key issue for photonics, microelectronics and photovoltaics. With the standard approach, namely the epitaxial growth of III-V on silicon, thick and complex buffer layers are required to limit the crystalline defects caused by the interface polarity issues, the thermal expansion, and lattice mismatches. To overcome these problems, we have developed a reverse and innovative approach to combine III-V and silicon: the straightforward epitaxial growth of silicon on GaAs at low temperature by plasma enhanced CVD (PECVD). Indeed we show that both GaAs surface cleaning by SiF4 plasma and subsequent epitaxial growth from SiH4/H2 precursors can be achieved at 175 °C. The GaAs native oxide etching is monitored with in-situ spectroscopic ellipsometry and Raman spectroscopy is used to assess the epitaxial silicon quality. We found that SiH4 dilution in hydrogen during deposition controls the layer structure: the epitaxial growth happens for deposition conditions at the transition between the microcrystalline and amorphous growth regimes. SIMS and STEM-HAADF bring evidences for the interface chemical sharpness. Together, TEM and XRD analysis demonstrate that PECVD enables the growth of high quality relaxed single crystal silicon on GaAs.

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Ultrathin PECVD epitaxial Si solar cells on glass via low-temperature transfer process

Abstract: International audienc

Cited by 32 publications

References 35 publications

Silicon solar cells: toward the efficiency limits

Silicon solar cells: toward the efficiency limits

Mismatched front and back gratings for optimum light trapping in ultra-thin crystalline silicon solar cells

Low temperature plasma enhanced CVD epitaxial growth of silicon on GaAs: a new paradigm for III-V/Si integration

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