GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell

Nelson, George T.; Juang, Bor-Chau; Slocum, Michael A.; Bittner, Zachary S.; Laghumavarapu, Ramesh B.; Huffaker, Diana L.; Hubbard, Seth M.

doi:10.1063/1.4991548

Title: GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell

Abstract

We present that growth of GaSb with low threading dislocation density directly on GaAs may be possible with the strategic strain relaxation of interfacial misfit arrays. This creates an opportunity for a multijunction solar cell with access to a wide range of well-developed direct bandgap materials. Multijunction cells with a single layer of GaSb/GaAs interfacial misfit arrays could achieve higher efficiency than state-of-the-art inverted metamorphic multi-junction cells while forgoing the need for costly compositionally graded buffer layers. To develop this technology, GaSb single junction cells were grown via molecular beam epitaxy on both GaSb and GaAs substrates to compare homoepitaxial and heteroepitaxial GaSb device results. The GaSb-on-GaSb cell had an AM1.5g efficiency of 5.5% and a 44-sun AM1.5d efficiency of 8.9%. The GaSb-on-GaAs cell was 1.0% efficient under AM1.5g and 4.5% at 44 suns. The lower performance of the heteroepitaxial cell was due to low minority carrier Shockley-Read-Hall lifetimes and bulk shunting caused by defects related to the mismatched growth. A physics-based device simulator was used to create an inverted triple-junction GaInP/GaAs/GaSb model. Lastly, the model predicted that, with current GaSb-on-GaAs material quality, the not-current-matched, proof-of-concept cell would provide 0.5% absolute efficiency gain over a tandem GaInP/GaAs cell at 1more »« less

Authors:

Nelson, George T. ^[1]; Juang, Bor-Chau ^[2];

^[1];

^[1]; Laghumavarapu, Ramesh B. ^[2]; Huffaker, Diana L. ^[2];

^[1]

Rochester Inst. of Technology, Rochester, NY (United States)
Univ. of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

Publication Date:: 2017-12-05

Research Org.:: Stanford Univ., CA (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Solar Energy Technologies Office

OSTI Identifier:: 1579855

Alternate Identifier(s):: OSTI ID: 1411283

Grant/Contract Number:: EE0004946

Resource Type:: Accepted Manuscript

Journal Name:: Applied Physics Letters

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 111; Journal Issue: 23; Journal ID: ISSN 0003-6951

Publisher:: American Institute of Physics (AIP)

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; 14 SOLAR ENERGY

Citation Formats


                    Nelson, George T., Juang, Bor-Chau, Slocum, Michael A., Bittner, Zachary S., Laghumavarapu, Ramesh B., Huffaker, Diana L., and Hubbard, Seth M.. GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell.  United States: N. p., 2017. 
Web.  doi:10.1063/1.4991548.

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                    Nelson, George T., Juang, Bor-Chau, Slocum, Michael A., Bittner, Zachary S., Laghumavarapu, Ramesh B., Huffaker, Diana L., & Hubbard, Seth M.. GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4991548

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                    Nelson, George T., Juang, Bor-Chau, Slocum, Michael A., Bittner, Zachary S., Laghumavarapu, Ramesh B., Huffaker, Diana L., and Hubbard, Seth M.. Tue .  
"GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4991548.  https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1579855.

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@article{osti_1579855,

  title        = {GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell},

  author       = {Nelson, George T. and Juang, Bor-Chau and Slocum, Michael A. and Bittner, Zachary S. and Laghumavarapu, Ramesh B. and Huffaker, Diana L. and Hubbard, Seth M.},

  abstractNote = {We present that growth of GaSb with low threading dislocation density directly on GaAs may be possible with the strategic strain relaxation of interfacial misfit arrays. This creates an opportunity for a multijunction solar cell with access to a wide range of well-developed direct bandgap materials. Multijunction cells with a single layer of GaSb/GaAs interfacial misfit arrays could achieve higher efficiency than state-of-the-art inverted metamorphic multi-junction cells while forgoing the need for costly compositionally graded buffer layers. To develop this technology, GaSb single junction cells were grown via molecular beam epitaxy on both GaSb and GaAs substrates to compare homoepitaxial and heteroepitaxial GaSb device results. The GaSb-on-GaSb cell had an AM1.5g efficiency of 5.5% and a 44-sun AM1.5d efficiency of 8.9%. The GaSb-on-GaAs cell was 1.0% efficient under AM1.5g and 4.5% at 44 suns. The lower performance of the heteroepitaxial cell was due to low minority carrier Shockley-Read-Hall lifetimes and bulk shunting caused by defects related to the mismatched growth. A physics-based device simulator was used to create an inverted triple-junction GaInP/GaAs/GaSb model. Lastly, the model predicted that, with current GaSb-on-GaAs material quality, the not-current-matched, proof-of-concept cell would provide 0.5% absolute efficiency gain over a tandem GaInP/GaAs cell at 1 sun and 2.5% gain at 44 suns, indicating that the effectiveness of the GaSb junction was a function of concentration.},

  doi          = {10.1063/1.4991548},

  journal      = {Applied Physics Letters},

  number       = 23,

  volume       = 111,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {2017},

  month        = {12}

}

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Title: GaSb solar cells grown on GaAs via interfacial misfit arrays for use in the III-Sb multi-junction cell

Abstract

Citation Formats

Fabrication and simulation of GaSb thermophotovoltaic cells journal, February 2001

Modeling of degradation behavior of InGaP/GaAs/Ge triple-junction space solar cell exposed to charged particles journal, February 2009

Transmission Electron Microscopy-Based Analysis of Electrically Conductive Surface Defects in Large Area GaSb Homoepitaxial Diodes Grown Using Molecular Beam Epitaxy journal, March 2014

Interfacial misfit array formation for GaSb growth on GaAs journal, May 2009

Performance and optimization of monochromatic heteroface AlGaAs/GaAs photovoltaic cells journal, November 1997

GaSb thermophotovoltaic cells grown on GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy using interfacial misfit arrays journal, March 2015

Atomistic modeling of strain distribution in self-assembled interfacial misfit dislocation (IMF) arrays in highly mismatched III–V semiconductor materials journal, May 2007

Reduction of crosshatch roughness and threading dislocation density in metamorphic GaInP buffers and GaInAs solar cells journal, May 2012

Energy Harvesting for GaAs Photovoltaics Under Low-Flux Indoor Lighting Conditions journal, July 2016

Characterization of GaSb/GaAs interfacial misfit arrays using x-ray diffraction journal, December 2011

Quadruple-Junction Inverted Metamorphic Concentrator Devices journal, January 2015

High-efficiency quadruple junction solar cells using OMVPE with inverted metamorphic device structures journal, April 2010

Atomic layer deposited Al 2 O 3 passivation of type II InAs/GaSb superlattice photodetectors journal, April 2012

Two-Terminal Monolithic I n 0.5 G a 0.5 P / G a A s Tandem Solar Cells with a High Conversion Efficiency of Over 30% journal, October 1997

High-efficiency GaInP∕GaAs∕InGaAs triple-junction solar cells grown inverted with a metamorphic bottom junction journal, July 2007

Optimization of the $\hbox{Al}_{2}\hbox{O}_{3}/ \hbox{GaSb}$ Interface and a High-Mobility GaSb pMOSFET journal, October 2011

Efficiency calculations of thin‐film GaAs solar cells on Si substrates journal, November 1985

Characterization and simulation of GaSb device-related properties journal, January 2000

Development of InGaP/GaAs/InGaAs inverted triple junction concentrator solar cells conference, January 2013

Short-Wave Infrared GaInAsSb Photodiodes Grown on GaAs Substrate by Interfacial Misfit Array Technique journal, February 2012

Strain relief by periodic misfit arrays for low defect density GaSb on GaAs journal, March 2006

GaSb Thermophotovoltaic Cells Grown on GaAs Substrate Using the Interfacial Misfit Array Method journal, February 2014

Fabrication and simulation of GaSb thermophotovoltaic cells
journal, February 2001

Modeling of degradation behavior of InGaP/GaAs/Ge triple-junction space solar cell exposed to charged particles
journal, February 2009

Transmission Electron Microscopy-Based Analysis of Electrically Conductive Surface Defects in Large Area GaSb Homoepitaxial Diodes Grown Using Molecular Beam Epitaxy
journal, March 2014

Interfacial misfit array formation for GaSb growth on GaAs
journal, May 2009

Performance and optimization of monochromatic heteroface AlGaAs/GaAs photovoltaic cells
journal, November 1997

GaSb thermophotovoltaic cells grown on GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy using interfacial misfit arrays
journal, March 2015

Atomistic modeling of strain distribution in self-assembled interfacial misfit dislocation (IMF) arrays in highly mismatched III–V semiconductor materials
journal, May 2007

Reduction of crosshatch roughness and threading dislocation density in metamorphic GaInP buffers and GaInAs solar cells
journal, May 2012

Energy Harvesting for GaAs Photovoltaics Under Low-Flux Indoor Lighting Conditions
journal, July 2016

Characterization of GaSb/GaAs interfacial misfit arrays using x-ray diffraction
journal, December 2011

Quadruple-Junction Inverted Metamorphic Concentrator Devices
journal, January 2015

High-efficiency quadruple junction solar cells using OMVPE with inverted metamorphic device structures
journal, April 2010

Atomic layer deposited Al ₂ O ₃ passivation of type II InAs/GaSb superlattice photodetectors
journal, April 2012

Two-Terminal Monolithic I n _0.5 G a _0.5 P / G a A s Tandem Solar Cells with a High Conversion Efficiency of Over 30%
journal, October 1997

High-efficiency GaInP∕GaAs∕InGaAs triple-junction solar cells grown inverted with a metamorphic bottom junction
journal, July 2007

Optimization of the $\hbox{Al}_{2}\hbox{O}_{3}/ \hbox{GaSb}$ Interface and a High-Mobility GaSb pMOSFET
journal, October 2011

Efficiency calculations of thin‐film GaAs solar cells on Si substrates
journal, November 1985

Characterization and simulation of GaSb device-related properties
journal, January 2000

Development of InGaP/GaAs/InGaAs inverted triple junction concentrator solar cells
conference, January 2013

Short-Wave Infrared GaInAsSb Photodiodes Grown on GaAs Substrate by Interfacial Misfit Array Technique
journal, February 2012

Strain relief by periodic misfit arrays for low defect density GaSb on GaAs
journal, March 2006

GaSb Thermophotovoltaic Cells Grown on GaAs Substrate Using the Interfacial Misfit Array Method
journal, February 2014