Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7czq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-24T10:27:49.919Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Mixed phase silicon oxide layers for thin-film silicon solar cells

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 June 2011

Peter Cuony ,
Duncan T.L. Alexander ,
Linus Löfgren ,
Michael Krumrey ,
Michael Marending ,
Mathieu Despeisse  and
Christophe Ballif
Peter Cuony
Affiliation:
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Institute of Microengineering (IMT), Photovoltaics and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory (PV-Lab), Rue Breguet 2, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Duncan T.L. Alexander
Affiliation:
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Interdisciplinary Centre for Electron Microscopy (CIME), 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Linus Löfgren
Affiliation:
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Institute of Microengineering (IMT), Photovoltaics and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory (PV-Lab), Rue Breguet 2, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Michael Krumrey
Affiliation:
Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), Abbestr. 2-12, 10587 Berlin, Germany
Michael Marending
Affiliation:
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Institute of Microengineering (IMT), Photovoltaics and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory (PV-Lab), Rue Breguet 2, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Mathieu Despeisse
Affiliation:
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Institute of Microengineering (IMT), Photovoltaics and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory (PV-Lab), Rue Breguet 2, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Christophe Ballif
Affiliation:
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Institute of Microengineering (IMT), Photovoltaics and Thin Film Electronics Laboratory (PV-Lab), Rue Breguet 2, 2000 Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Get access

Abstract

Lower absorption, lower refractive index and tunable resistance are three advantages of doped silicon oxide containing nanocrystalline silicon grains (nc-SiOx) compared to doped microcrystalline silicon, for the use as p- and n-type layers in thin-film silicon solar cells. In this study we show how optical, electrical and microstructural properties of nc-SiOx layers depend on precursor gas ratios and we propose a growth model to explain the phase separation in such films into Si-rich and O-rich regions as visualized by energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy.

Keywords

photovoltaicthin filmSi
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1321: Symposium A – Amorphous and Polycrystalline Thin-Film Silicon Science and Technology , 2011 , mrss11-1321-a12-02
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

1. Cuony, P., Marending, M., Alexander, D. T. L., Boccard, M., Bugnon, G., Despeisse, M. and Ballif, C., Appl Phys Lett 97 (21), 213502 (2010).10.1063/1.3517492Google Scholar
2. Buehlmann, P., Bailat, J., Domine, D., Billet, A., Meillaud, F., Feltrin, A. and Ballif, C., Appl Phys Lett 91, 143505 (2007).10.1063/1.2794423Google Scholar
3. Grundler, T., Lambertz, A. and Finger, F., physica status solidi (c) 7 (3-4), 1085–1088 (2010).Google Scholar
4. Dominé, D., Buehlmann, P., Bailat, J., Billet, A., Feltrin, A. and Ballif, C., Phys Status Solidi-R 2 (4), 163–165 (2008).10.1002/pssr.200802118Google Scholar
5. Buehlmann, P., Bailat, J., Feltrin, A. and Ballif, C., Photovoltaic Materials and Manufacturing Issues 1123 (2009).Google Scholar
6. Despeisse, M., Bugnon, G., Feltrin, A., Stueckelberger, M., Cuony, P., Meillaud, F., Billet, A. and Ballif, C., Appl Phys Lett 96, 073507 (2010).10.1063/1.3324704Google Scholar
7. Krumrey, M., Hoffmann, M., Ulm, G., Hasche, K. and Thomsen-Schmidt, P., Thin Solid Films 459 (1-2), 241–244 (2004).10.1016/j.tsf.2003.12.100Google Scholar
8. Droz, C., Vallat-Sauvain, E., Bailat, J., Feitknecht, L., Meier, J. and Shah, A., Sol Energ Mat Sol C 81 (1), 61–71 (2004).10.1016/j.solmat.2003.07.004Google Scholar
9. Lucovsky, G., Yang, J., Chao, S. S., Tyler, J. E. and Czubatyj, W., Phys Rev B 28 (6), 3225–3233 (1983).10.1103/PhysRevB.28.3225Google Scholar
10. Iftiquar, S. M., J Phys D Appl Phys 31 (14), 1630–1641 (1998).10.1088/0022-3727/31/14/004Google Scholar
11. He, L. N., Wang, D. M. and Hasegawa, S., J Non-Cryst Solids 261 (1-3), 67–71 (2000).10.1016/S0022-3093(99)00616-XGoogle Scholar
12. Smith, F. W. and Yin, Z., J Non-Cryst Solids 137-138 (Part 2), 871–874 (1991).10.1016/S0022-3093(05)80258-3Google Scholar
13. Parratt, L. G., Phys Rev 99 (5), 1635–1635 (1955).Google Scholar
14. Schamm, S., Bonafos, C., Coffin, H., Cherkashin, N., Carrada, M., Ben Assayag, G., Claverie, A., Tence, M. and Colliex, C., Ultramicroscopy 108 (4), 346–357 (2008).10.1016/j.ultramic.2007.05.008Google Scholar
15. Nicotra, G., Lombardo, S., Spinella, C., Ammendola, G., Gerardi, C. and Demuro, C., Appl Surf Sci 205 (1–4), 304–308 (2003).10.1016/S0169-4332(02)01155-8Google Scholar
16. Iacona, F., Bongiorno, C., Spinella, C., Boninelli, S. and Priolo, F., J Appl Phys 95 (7), 3723–3732 (2004).10.1063/1.1664026Google Scholar
17. Matsuda, A., Thin Solid Films 337 (1–2), 1–6 (1999).10.1016/S0040-6090(98)01165-1Google Scholar