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Multicrystalline Silicon Thin‐Film Solar Cells Based on Vanadium Oxide Heterojunction and Laser‐Doped Contacts
Author(s) -
Martín Isidro,
López Gema,
Plentz Jonathan,
Jin Chen,
Ortega Pablo,
Voz Cristóbal,
Puigdollers Joaquim,
Gawlik Annett,
Jia Guobin,
Andrä Gudrun
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
physica status solidi (a)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.532
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1862-6319
pISSN - 1862-6300
DOI - 10.1002/pssa.201900393
Subject(s) - materials science , optoelectronics , wafer , silicon , heterojunction , substrate (aquarium) , amorphous silicon , doping , vanadium oxide , crystalline silicon , laser , polymer solar cell , nanocrystalline silicon , common emitter , solar cell , oxide , optics , metallurgy , oceanography , physics , geology
Liquid phase crystallized (LPC) silicon thin films on glass substrates are a feasible alternative to conventional crystalline silicon (c‐Si) wafers for solar cells. Due to substrate limitation, a low‐temperature technology is needed for solar cell fabrication. While silicon heterojunction is typically used, herein, the combination of vanadium oxide/c‐Si heterojunction as emitter and base contacts defined by IR laser processing of phosphorus‐doped amorphous silicon carbide stacks is explored. LPC solar cells are fabricated using such technologies to identify their issues and advantages with a promising performance of an active‐area efficiency of 5.6%. Apart from the absence of light‐trapping techniques, the relatively low efficiency obtained is attributed to a low lifetime in the LPC silicon bulk. These poor material properties imply a short diffusion length that makes it that only photogenerated carriers in the emitter regions can be collected. Consequently, future devices should show narrower base contact regions, suggesting a shorter‐wavelength laser, combined with longer LPC substrate lifetimes.