Monocrystalline 1.7-eV MgCdTe solar cells

Ding, Jia; Campbell, Calli M.; Becker, Jacob J.; Tsai, Cheng-Ying; Schaefer, Stephen T.; McCarthy, Tyler T.; Boccard, Mathieu; Holman, Zachary C.; Zhang, Yong-Hang

doi:10.1063/5.0071682

Title: Monocrystalline 1.7-eV MgCdTe solar cells

Journal Article · 12 January 2022 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0071682 · OSTI ID:1837489

^[1]; Campbell, Calli M. ^[2]; Becker, Jacob J. ^[2];

^[2];

^[2]; McCarthy, Tyler T. ^[2];

^[3]; Holman, Zachary C. ^[2];

^[2]

Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States); Arizona State University
Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States)
Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States); EPFL, Photovoltaics and Thin Film Electronics Lab., Neuchatel (Switzerland)

Monocrystalline 1.7-eV Mg_0.13Cd_0.87Te/Mg_xCd_1-xTe (x > 0.13) double-heterostructure (DH) solar cells with varying Mg composition in the barrier layers are grown by molecular beam epitaxy. Furthermore, a Mg_0.13Cd_0.87Te/Mg_0.37Cd_0.63Te DH solar cell featuring abrupt interfaces between barriers and absorber and the addition of a SiO₂ anti-reflective coating demonstrates open-circuit voltage (V_OC), short-circuit current density (J_SC), fill factor (FF), and device active-area efficiencies up to 1.129 V, 17.3 mA/cm², 77.7% and 15.2%, respectively. The V_OC and FF vary oppositely with the Mg_xCd_1-xTe barrier height indicating an optimal design of the MgCdTe DHs as a tradeoff between carrier confinement and carrier transport. Temperature-dependent V_OC measurements reveal the majority of carrier recombination in the devices occurs outside the DHs, in the a-Si:H hole-contact layer and at the interface between the a-Si:H layer and the Mg_xCd_1-xTe top barrier at room temperature. Simulation results for the device with the highest efficiency show that the p-type a-Si:H layer and Mg_0.37Cd_0.63Te top barrier contribute 1.3 mA/cm² and 2.4 mA/cm² J_SC loss, respectively.

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Research Organization:: Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)

Grant/Contract Number:: EE0007552

OSTI ID:: 1837489

Journal Information:: Journal of Applied Physics, Journal Name: Journal of Applied Physics Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 131; ISSN 0021-8979

Publisher:: American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Title: Monocrystalline 1.7-eV MgCdTe solar cells

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