Composites of Upgraded Metallurgical Grade (UMG) Si with Photovoltaic (PV) Grade Si
At the beginning of this project 125 wafers of UMG material blended with non-UMG were obtained in the various blends; 50/50,70/30,80/20. 90/10 and 100% UMG. Solar grade , non-UMG material was used for comparison. Many techniques for starting substrate evaluation were used including lifetime, resitivity, SEM, IPCMS. Some degree of gettering was implemented by lengthening the time of phosphorous diffusion. The UMG/solar blends resulted in 14.5% -15% efficiencies, and even 100% UMG showed 14.5% values, not less than standard cells manufactured at the time and an encouraging result for the prospects of using UMG material due to the lower $/watt. A later decline in the cost of Si and an emphasis on reaching higher efficiencies in general led to a vanishing interest in the use of UMG.
- Research Organization:
- The Solar Energy Consortium
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- Contributing Organization:
- IBM and Clarkson University
- DOE Contract Number:
- ee0000332
- OSTI ID:
- 1176923
- Report Number(s):
- Final 332 TSEC
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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