Advanced, thin, polycrystalline Silicon-Film{trademark} solar cells on low-cost substrates

Book · Tue Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1996

OSTI ID:417666

Hall, R B; Barnett, A M; Cotter, J E; Ford, D H; Ingram, A E; Rand, J A ^[1]

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1. AstroPower, Inc., Solar Park, Newark, DE (United States)

Thin, polycrystalline silicon solar cells have the potential for the realization of a 15%, low-cost photovoltaic product. As a photovoltaic material, polycrystalline material is abundant, benign, and electrically stable. The thin-film polycrystalline silicon solar cell design achieves high efficiency by incorporating techniques to enhance optical absorption, ensure electrical confinement, and minimize bulk recombination currents. AstroPower`s approach to a thin-film polycrystalline silicon solar cell technology is based on the Silicon-Film{trademark} process, a continuous sheet manufacturing process for the growth of thin films of polycrystalline silicon on los-cost substrates. A new barrier layer and substrate have been developed for advanced solar cell designs. External gettering with phosphorus has been employed to effect significant improvements leading to effective minority carrier diffusion lengths greater than 250 micrometers in the active silicon layer. Light trapping has been observed in 60-micrometer thick films of silicon grown on the new barrier-coated substrate. An efficiency of 12.2% in a 0.659 cm{sup 2} solar cell has been achieved with the advanced structure.

• Sponsoring Organization: National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)
• OSTI ID: 417666
• Report Number(s): CONF-960401--; ISBN 1-55899-329-0
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
ABSORPTIVITY
CERAMICS
CONTAMINATION
CURRENT DENSITY
DIFFUSION LENGTH
EFFICIENCY
ELECTRIC POTENTIAL
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FABRICATION
FILL FACTORS
GRAIN SIZE
GRAPHITE
HEAT TRANSFER
INTERFACES
LIQUIDS
MORPHOLOGY
PERFORMANCE
SILICON
SILICON SOLAR CELLS
STEELS
SUBSTRATES