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Title: Annealing results on low-energy proton-irradiated GaAs solar cells

Journal Article · · J. Appl. Phys.; (United States)
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.341187· OSTI ID:7088872

AlGaAs/GaAs solar cells with an approximately 0.5-..mu..m-thick Al/sub 0.85/Ga/sub 0.15/As window layer were irradiated using normal and isotropic incident protons having energies between 50 and 500 keV with fluence up to 1 x 10/sup 12/ protons/cm/sup 2/. The irradiated cells were annealed at temperatures between 150 and 300 /sup 0/C in nitrogen ambient. The annealing results reveal that significant recovery in spectral response at longer wavelengths occurred. However, the short-wavelength spectral response showed negligible annealing, irrespective of the irradiation energy and annealing conditions. This indicates that the damage produced near the AlGaAs/GaAs interface and the space-charge region anneals differently than damage produced in the bulk. This is explained by using a model in which the as-grown dislocations interact with irradiation-induced point defects to produce thermally stable defects.

Research Organization:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, California 91109
OSTI ID:
7088872
Journal Information:
J. Appl. Phys.; (United States), Vol. 64:9
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English