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Title: Plasma charge injection technology and its application to c-Si solar cells for field-effect passivation

Abstract

A plasma charge injection technology applicable for field-effect passivation in crystalline silicon solar cells is discussed. The technology uses an inert-gas plasma (helium, argon, N2, etc.) as a charge source and a DC bias to extract desired charges from a remote plasma source. A charging model is proposed, and it gives a good guideline to determine a proper charging operation condition for a desired injection charge density. The technology can introduce electric charges into a nitride–oxide or oxide–nitride–oxide passivation stack in a few hundred milliseconds with a charge density equivalent to or higher than that of A l 2 O 3 in a range of 5 × 1012 to 8 × 1012 cm-2. Most-like charge injection mechanisms are discussed for both negative and positive charging. This technology uses a cheap inert-gas plasma which does not cause any parasitic film deposition nor any corrosion inside the chamber during the charging operation and, thus, does not require regular maintenance for chamber cleaning, which leads to a very low cost of ownership. This charging technology is promising for a low-cost alternative to the complex A l 2 O 3 technology. This plasma charge injection can be another important application of the plasma technology among other well-known applications such as dry etching, thin-film deposition, sputtering, etc.

Authors:
ORCiD logo [1]
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  1. Amtech Systems, Inc., Tempe, AZ (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Amtech Systems, Inc., Tempe, AZ (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Solar Energy Technologies Office
OSTI Identifier:
1510327
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1510143
Grant/Contract Number:  
EE0007189
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Journal of Applied Physics
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 125; Journal Issue: 17; Journal ID: ISSN 0021-8979
Publisher:
American Institute of Physics (AIP)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; 14 SOLAR ENERGY; plasma processing; solar cells; noble gas; charge transfer; plasma applications; passivation; thin film deposition

Citation Formats

Hwang, Jeong-Mo. Plasma charge injection technology and its application to c-Si solar cells for field-effect passivation. United States: N. p., 2019. Web. doi:10.1063/1.5087725.
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Hwang, Jeong-Mo. Plasma charge injection technology and its application to c-Si solar cells for field-effect passivation. United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5087725
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Hwang, Jeong-Mo. Wed . "Plasma charge injection technology and its application to c-Si solar cells for field-effect passivation". United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5087725. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1510327.
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@article{osti_1510327,
title = {Plasma charge injection technology and its application to c-Si solar cells for field-effect passivation},
author = {Hwang, Jeong-Mo},
abstractNote = {A plasma charge injection technology applicable for field-effect passivation in crystalline silicon solar cells is discussed. The technology uses an inert-gas plasma (helium, argon, N2, etc.) as a charge source and a DC bias to extract desired charges from a remote plasma source. A charging model is proposed, and it gives a good guideline to determine a proper charging operation condition for a desired injection charge density. The technology can introduce electric charges into a nitride–oxide or oxide–nitride–oxide passivation stack in a few hundred milliseconds with a charge density equivalent to or higher than that of A l 2 O 3 in a range of 5 × 1012 to 8 × 1012 cm-2. Most-like charge injection mechanisms are discussed for both negative and positive charging. This technology uses a cheap inert-gas plasma which does not cause any parasitic film deposition nor any corrosion inside the chamber during the charging operation and, thus, does not require regular maintenance for chamber cleaning, which leads to a very low cost of ownership. This charging technology is promising for a low-cost alternative to the complex A l 2 O 3 technology. This plasma charge injection can be another important application of the plasma technology among other well-known applications such as dry etching, thin-film deposition, sputtering, etc.},
doi = {10.1063/1.5087725},
journal = {Journal of Applied Physics},
number = 17,
volume = 125,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed May 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019},
month = {Wed May 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019}
}
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https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5087725
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