Spatially-Resolved Studies of Grain-Boundary Effects in Polycrystalline Solar Cells Using Micro-Photoluminescence and Near-Field Microscopy

Title: Spatially-Resolved Studies of Grain-Boundary Effects in Polycrystalline Solar Cells Using Micro-Photoluminescence and Near-Field Microscopy

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Abstract

Photoluminescence and photocurrent spectroscopies combined with diffraction-limited and sub- diffraction-limited spatial resolution are achieved via micro-photoluminescence (m-PL) and near-field microscopy (NSOM). These methods are used to examine the photo-response of individual grain boundaries in thin-film, polycrystalline solar cells at room and cryogenic temperatures. A systematic m-PL study of the effect of CdCl2-treatment on recombination in CdTe/CdS solar cell structures of varying thickness directly reveals the grain-boundary and surface passivation action of this important post-growth processing step. We achieve 50nm (l/10) spatial resolution in near-field Optical Beam Induced Current imaging (n-OBIC) of polycrystalline silicon solar cells using NSOM, at varying stages of silicon nitride grain-boundary passivation, and measure lateral variations in photo-response of CdTe/CdS solar cells with subwavelength spatial resolution.

Authors:: Smith, S; Dhere, R; Gessert, T; Stradins, P; Mascarenhas, A

Publication Date:: 2005-01-01

Research Org.:: National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:: USDOE

OSTI Identifier:: 860698

Report Number(s):: NREL/CP-590-37037
TRN: US200524%%249

DOE Contract Number:: AC36-99-GO10337

Resource Type:: Conference

Resource Relation:: Related Information: Presented at the 2004 DOE Solar Energy Technologies Program Review Meeting, 25-28 October 2004, Denver, Colorado. Also included in the proceedings available on CD-ROM (DOE/GO-102005-2067; NREL/CD-520-37140)

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 14 SOLAR ENERGY; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; CRYOGENICS; GRAIN BOUNDARIES; MICROSCOPY; PASSIVATION; PHOTOCURRENTS; PHOTOLUMINESCENCE; PROCESSING; RECOMBINATION; SILICON NITRIDES; SILICON SOLAR CELLS; SOLAR CELLS; SPATIAL RESOLUTION; THICKNESS; SOLAR ENERGY; PV; SPATIALLY RESOLUTION; PHOTOCURRENT SPECTROSCOPIC; DIFFRACTION-LIMITED; SUB- DIFFRACTION-LIMITED; VIA MICRO-PHOTOLUMINESCENCE (M-PL); NEAR-FIELD MICROSCOPY (NSOM); GRAIN BOUNDARY; POLYCRYSTALLINE SILICON; Basic Sciences; Solar Energy - Photovoltaics; Solid State Spectroscopy

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                    Smith, S, Dhere, R, Gessert, T, Stradins, P, and Mascarenhas, A. Spatially-Resolved Studies of Grain-Boundary Effects in Polycrystalline Solar Cells Using Micro-Photoluminescence and Near-Field Microscopy.  United States: N. p., 2005. 
        Web.

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                    Smith, S, Dhere, R, Gessert, T, Stradins, P, & Mascarenhas, A. Spatially-Resolved Studies of Grain-Boundary Effects in Polycrystalline Solar Cells Using Micro-Photoluminescence and Near-Field Microscopy.  United States.

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                    Smith, S, Dhere, R, Gessert, T, Stradins, P, and Mascarenhas, A. Sat .  
        "Spatially-Resolved Studies of Grain-Boundary Effects in Polycrystalline Solar Cells Using Micro-Photoluminescence and Near-Field Microscopy".  United States.  https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/860698.

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@article{osti_860698,

  title        = {Spatially-Resolved Studies of Grain-Boundary Effects in Polycrystalline Solar Cells Using Micro-Photoluminescence and Near-Field Microscopy},

  author       = {Smith, S and Dhere, R and Gessert, T and Stradins, P and Mascarenhas, A},

  abstractNote = {Photoluminescence and photocurrent spectroscopies combined with diffraction-limited and sub- diffraction-limited spatial resolution are achieved via micro-photoluminescence (m-PL) and near-field microscopy (NSOM). These methods are used to examine the photo-response of individual grain boundaries in thin-film, polycrystalline solar cells at room and cryogenic temperatures. A systematic m-PL study of the effect of CdCl2-treatment on recombination in CdTe/CdS solar cell structures of varying thickness directly reveals the grain-boundary and surface passivation action of this important post-growth processing step. We achieve 50nm (l/10) spatial resolution in near-field Optical Beam Induced Current imaging (n-OBIC) of polycrystalline silicon solar cells using NSOM, at varying stages of silicon nitride grain-boundary passivation, and measure lateral variations in photo-response of CdTe/CdS solar cells with subwavelength spatial resolution.},

  doi          = {},

  url          = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/860698},
  journal      = {},
number       = ,

  volume       = ,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {2005},

  month        = {1}

}

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