Monolithic, two-terminal InP/Ga{sub 0.47}In{sub 0.53}As tandem solar cells
Monolithic InP/Ga{sub 0.7}In{sub 0.53}As tandem solar cells have been studied extensively in our laboratory over the last 4 years. Using the three-terminal approach, the tandem cell performance progressed rapidly, and improvements in the epitaxial growth and device processing procedures eventually led to a terrestrial concentrator tandem cell efficiency of 31.8%. Recently, our research has been directed towards the development of two-terminal (i.e., series-connected) monolithic InP/Ga{sub 0.47}In{sub 0.53}As tandem cells. Two-terminal tandem cells are desirable because they can he substituted directly for single-junction solar cells in photovoltaic module circuits that are being manufactured presently. Furthermore, in principle, two-terminal tandems should take less time to grow and process than three-terminal tandems, which would lead to reduced cell manufacturing costs. The data obtained from our previous study of three-terminal InP/Ga{sub 0.47}In{sub 0.53}As tandem cells have shown that the potential performance of two-terminal InP/Ga{sub 0.47}In{sub 0.53}As cells is quite high. Two fundamental problems must be addressed to realize high-performance, two-terminal cells. First, an ohmic electrical interconnect between the top and bottom subcells must be integrated into the monolithic structure to connect the subcells in series. The optical and joule losses in the interconnect should be negligible compared to the tandem cell output. Second, because the subcells are connected in series, techniques for matching the subcell photocurrents and maximizing the tandem cell photocurrent, under relevant solar spectra, are necessary to achieve the highest tandem cell efficiency. In this paper, we describe preliminary progress towards solving these problems and outline directions for future work.
- Research Organization:
- National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC02-83CH10093
- OSTI ID:
- 10160785
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9304151-1; ON: DE93014037
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 5. international conference on Indium Phosphide (InP) and related materials,Paris (France),18-22 Apr 1993; Other Information: PBD: [1993]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Performance of proton- and electron-irradiated, two-terminal, monolithic InP/Ga{sub 0.47}In{sub 0.53}As tandem solar cells
Molecular beam epitaxy of InP single junction and InP/In{sub 0.53}Ga{sub 0.47}As monolithically integrated tandem solar cells using solid phosphorous source material
Related Subjects
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
INDIUM PHOSPHIDE SOLAR CELLS
PERFORMANCE
GALLIUM ARSENIDE SOLAR CELLS
INDIUM PHOSPHIDES
GALLIUM ARSENIDES
CONFIGURATION
ELECTRIC CONTACTS
EPITAXY
ETCHING
QUANTUM EFFICIENCY
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
TESTING
140501
360601
PHOTOVOLTAIC CONVERSION
PREPARATION AND MANUFACTURE