scholarly journals Ferroelectric-Semiconductor Solar Cells: An Alternative Configuration With High-Efficiency

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hulusi Yilmaz
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Carrier Transport ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Photovoltaic Cell ◽  
Ferroelectric Material ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Ferroelectric Materials ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Carrier Tunneling

The power generation of conventional solar cells suffers from their low open-circuit voltages that are restricted by the bandgap of employed semiconductors. We propose a novel photovoltaic cell based on the combination of ferroelectric materials and conventional semiconductors to overcome this restriction. In the proposed configuration, a semiconductor slab sandwiched between two parallel polarized ferroelectric materials attains an electric field parallel to the interfaces leading to an above-bandgap voltage across the semiconductor. Furthermore, the configuration allows the charge carriers produced in the semiconductor to be transported within the semiconductor to the contacts without having to cross the semiconductor-ferroelectric interface. The power generation is expected to be higher than those of conventional solar cells and previously studied combined designs: (i) Firstly because its open-circuit voltage can be much higher, as it is not restricted by the bandgap of the semiconductor material; (ii) secondly because certain unfavorable carrier transport processes, such as carrier tunneling through the interface and carrier transport through the low-mobility ferroelectric material, are not part of the circuit.

scholarly journals Numerical Simulation Analysis of Ag Crystallite Effects on Interface of Front Metal and Silicon in the PERC Solar Cell

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 592
Author(s):  
Myeong Sang Jeong ◽  
Yonghwan Lee ◽  
Ka-Hyun Kim ◽  
Sungjin Choi ◽  
Min Gu Kang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Surface Recombination ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Metal Interface ◽  
Ag Crystallites ◽  
Recombination Velocity

In the fabrication of crystalline silicon solar cells, the contact properties between the front metal electrode and silicon are one of the most important parameters for achieving high-efficiency, as it is an integral element in the formation of solar cell electrodes. This entails an increase in the surface recombination velocity and a drop in the open-circuit voltage of the solar cell; hence, controlling the recombination velocity at the metal-silicon interface becomes a critical factor in the process. In this study, the distribution of Ag crystallites formed on the silicon-metal interface, the surface recombination velocity in the silicon-metal interface and the resulting changes in the performance of the Passivated Emitter and Rear Contact (PERC) solar cells were analyzed by controlling the firing temperature. The Ag crystallite distribution gradually increased corresponding to a firing temperature increase from 850 ∘C to 950 ∘C. The surface recombination velocity at the silicon-metal interface increased from 353 to 599 cm/s and the open-circuit voltage of the PERC solar cell decreased from 659.7 to 647 mV. Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD) simulation was used for detailed analysis on the effect of the surface recombination velocity at the silicon-metal interface on the PERC solar cell performance. Simulations showed that the increase in the distribution of Ag crystallites and surface recombination velocity at the silicon-metal interface played an important role in the decrease of open-circuit voltage of the PERC solar cell at temperatures of 850–900 ∘C, whereas the damage caused by the emitter over fire was determined as the main cause of the voltage drop at 950 ∘C. These results are expected to serve as a steppingstone for further research on improvement in the silicon-metal interface properties of silicon-based solar cells and investigation on high-efficiency solar cells.

17.8%-efficient Amorphous Silicon Heterojunction Solar Cells on p-type Silicon Wafers

2006 ◽  
Vol 910 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi Wang ◽  
Matt P. Page ◽  
Eugene Iwancizko ◽  
Yueqin Xu ◽  
Yanfa Yan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
Amorphous Silicon ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Layer Growth ◽  
Surface Recombination Velocity ◽  
Back Contact ◽  
P Type

AbstractWe have achieved an independently-confirmed 17.8% conversion efficiency in a 1-cm2, p-type, float-zone silicon (FZ-Si) based heterojunction solar cell. Both the front emitter and back contact are hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) deposited by hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD). This is the highest reported efficiency for a HWCVD silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cell. Two main improvements lead to our most recent increases in efficiency: 1) the use of textured Si wafers, and 2) the application of a-Si:H heterojunctions on both sides of the cell. Despite the use of textured c-Si to increase the short-circuit current, we were able to maintain the same 0.65 V open-circuit voltage as on flat c-Si. This is achieved by coating a-Si:H conformally on the c-Si surfaces, including covering the tips of the anisotropically-etched pyramids. A brief atomic H treatment before emitter deposition is not necessary on the textured wafers, though it was helpful in the flat wafers. It is essential to high efficiency SHJ solar cells that the emitter grows abruptly as amorphous silicon, instead of as microcrystalline or epitaxial Si. The contact on each side of the cell comprises a thin (< 5 nm) low substrate temperature (~100°C) intrinsic a-Si:H layer, followed by a doped layer. Our intrinsic layers are deposited at 0.3-1.2 nm/s. The doped emitter and back-contact layers were deposited at a higher temperature (>200°C) and grown from PH3/SiH4/H2 and B2H6/SiH4/H2 doping gas mixtures, respectively. This combination of low (intrinsic) and high (doped layer) growth temperatures was optimized by lifetime and surface recombination velocity measurements. Our rapid efficiency advance suggests that HWCVD may have advantages over plasma-enhanced (PE) CVD in fabrication of high-efficiency heterojunction c-Si cells; there is no need for process optimization to avoid plasma damage to the delicate, high-quality, Si wafers.

Improvement in Wide-Gap A-SI:H For High-Efficiency Solar Cells

1992 ◽  
Vol 258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sadaji Tsuge ◽  
Yoshihiro Hishikawa ◽  
Shingo Okamoto ◽  
Manabu Sasaki ◽  
Shinya Tsuda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Plasma Treatment ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Defect Density ◽  
Hydrogen Plasma ◽  
Wide Band ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Wide Band Gap ◽  
High Efficiency Solar Cells ◽  
Wide Gap

ABSTRACTA hydrogen-plasma treatment has been used for the first time to fabricate wide-gap, high-quality a-Si:H films. The hydrogen content (CH) of a-Si:H films substantially increases by the hydrogen-plasma treatment after deposition, without deteriorating the opto-electric properties of the films. The photoconductivity (σph) of ≥ 10-5 ο-1 cm-1, photosensitivity ( σ ph/σ d) of > 106 and SiH2/SiH of <0.2 are achieved for a film with CH of ∼25 atomic >%. The optical gap of the film is > 1.70 eV by the (α h ν )1/3 plot, and is >2 eV by the Tauc's plot. The open circuit voltage of a-Si solar cells exceeds 1 V conserving the fill factor of > 0.7 when the wide-gap a∼Si:H films are used as the i-layer, which proves the wide band gap and low defect density.

scholarly journals Affordable and sustainable new generation of solar cells: calcium titanate (CaTiO3) - based perovskite solar cells

2018 ◽  
Vol 67 ◽  
pp. 01010
Author(s):  
Alfonsina Abat Amelenan Torimtubun ◽  
Anniza Cornelia Augusty ◽  
Eka Maulana ◽  
Lusi Ernawati
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Power Efficiency ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Heating Temperature ◽  
Sol Gel ◽  
Perovskite Solar Cells ◽  
Calcium Titanate ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Lead Free

Indonesia is located along the equator lines with the high intensity of solar radiation averaging about 4.5 kWh of electrical energy/day. This potential leads to the selfsustaining energy possibility fulfilling the electricity needs. Due to their unique electronic structures and high-cost merit over the existing commercial PV technologies, perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have emerged as the next-generation photovoltaic candidate. Their highest power efficiency can be achieved of up to 22.1% in the last 5-6 years. However, this high efficiency came from CH3NH3PbI3 materials which contain lead, a toxic material. Herein calcium titanate (CT) as a lead-free perovskite material were synthesized through sintering of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and titanium oxide (TiO2) by the sol-gel method. CT powders were characterized by SEM, XRF, FTIR and XRD then applied it onto the mesoporous heterojunction PSCs, with a device architecture ITO/TiO2/CaTiO3/C/ITO. By manipulating the raw material stoichiometry and heating temperature in the synthesis of CaTiO3, the device shows the highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 2.12%, shortcircuit current density (JSC) of 0.027 mA cm-2, open circuit voltage (VOC) of 0.212 V and fill factor (FF) of 53.90%. This sample can be an alternative way to create lead-free, largescale, and low-cost perovskite solar cells.

scholarly journals Photovoltaic Cell: Optimum Photon Utilisation

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 64-85
Author(s):  
Liam Caruana ◽  
Thomas Nommensen ◽  
Toan Dinh ◽  
Dennis Tran ◽  
Robert McCormick
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
Entropy Generation ◽  
Light Trapping ◽  
Photovoltaic Cell ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Light Spectrum ◽  
Energy Incident ◽  
Global Energy Consumption

In the 21st century, global energy consumption has increased exponentially and hence, sustainable energy sources are essential to accommodate for this. Advancements within photovoltaics, in regards to light trapping, has demonstrated to be a promising field of dramatically improving the efficiency of solar cells. This improvement is done by using different nanostructures, which enables solar cells to use the light spectrum emitted more efficiently. The purpose of this meta study is to investigate irreversible entropic losses related to light trapping. In this respect, the observation is aimed at how nanostructures on a silicon substrate captures high energy incident photons. Furthermore, different types of nanostructures are then investigated and compared, using the étendue ratio during light trapping. It is predicted that étendue mismatching is a parasitic entropy generation variable, and that the matching has an effect on the open circuit voltage of the solar cell. Although solar cells do have their limiting efficiencies, according to the Shockley-Queisser theory and Yablonovitch limit, with careful engineering and manufacturing practices, these irreversible entropic losses could be minimized. Further research in energy losses, due to entropy generation, may guide nanostructures and photonics in exceeding past these limits.Keywords: Photovoltaic cell; Shockley-Queisser; Solar cell nanostructures; Solar cell intrinsic and extrinsic losses; entropy; étendue; light trapping; Shockley Queisser; Geometry; Meta-study

The Study of Optical and Electrical Properties of a-SiC:H for Multi-junction Si Thin Film Solar Cell

2010 ◽  
Vol 1245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny H. Shim ◽  
W.K. Yoon ◽  
S.T. Hwang ◽  
S.W. Ahn ◽  
H.M. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Defect Density ◽  
Wide Bandgap ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Deposition Condition ◽  
Wide Bandgap Material ◽  
Pressure Regime

AbstractStudies have shown that wide bandgap material is required for high efficiency multi-junction solar cell applications. Here, we address proper deposition condition for high quality a-SiC:H films. In high power high pressure regime, we observed that the defect density get much lowered to the similar defect level of a-Si:H film with high H2 dilution. Single junction solar cells fabricated with the optimized condition show high open circuit voltage and low LID effect. The degradation after the LID test was only 13 % reduction of the efficiency indicating that a-SiC:H could be promising material for multi-junction solar cells.

scholarly journals Deposition Technologies of High-Efficiency CIGS Solar Cells: Development of Two-Step and Co-Evaporation Processes

Crystals ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-Hua Huang ◽  
Wen-Jie Chuang ◽  
Chun-Ping Lin ◽  
Yueh-Lin Jan ◽  
Yu-Chiu Shih
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Film Properties ◽  
Step Process ◽  
Metal Precursors ◽  
Stage Process ◽  
Cigs Solar Cells ◽  
Surface Morphologies ◽  
The Given

The two-step process including the deposition of the metal precursors followed by heating the metal precursors in a vacuum environment of Se overpressure was employed for the preparation of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) films. The CIGS films selenized at the relatively high Se flow rate of 25 Å/s exhibited improved surface morphologies. The correlations among the two-step process parameters, film properties, and cell performance were studied. With the given selenization conditions, the efficiency of 12.5% for the fabricated CIGS solar cells was achieved. The features of co-evaporation processes including the single-stage, bi-layer, and three-stage process were discussed. The characteristics of the co-evaporated CIGS solar cells were presented. Not only the surface morphologies but also the grading bandgap structures were crucial to the improvement of the open-circuit voltage of the CIGS solar cells. Efficiencies of over 17% for the co-evaporated CIGS solar cells have been achieved. Furthermore, the critical factors and the mechanisms governing the performance of the CIGS solar cells were addressed.

scholarly journals Stable P3HT: amorphous non-fullerene solar cells with a high open-circuit voltage of 1 V and efficiency of 4%

RSC Advances ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (36) ◽  
pp. 20733-20741 ◽  
Author(s):  
HyunKyung Lee ◽  
Sora Oh ◽  
Chang Eun Song ◽  
Hang Ken Lee ◽  
Sang Kyu Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Stability ◽  
Solar Cells ◽  
Organic Solar Cells ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Energy Levels ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Good Thermal Stability

A 3D-shaped SF-HR was designed and synthesized for use in non-fullerene organic solar cells. Owing to the aligned energy levels, the P3HT:SF-HR system exhibited a high efficiency of 4.01% with good thermal stability and photostability.

A high efficiency solution processed polymer inverted triple-junction solar cell exhibiting a power conversion efficiency of 11.83%

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 303-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abd. Rashid bin Mohd Yusoff ◽  
Dongcheon Kim ◽  
Hyeong Pil Kim ◽  
Fabio Kurt Shneider ◽  
Wilson Jose da Silva ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Solar Cell ◽  
Power Conversion Efficiency ◽  
Conversion Efficiency ◽  
Triple Junction ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Power Conversion ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Tandem Solar Cells

We propose that 1 + 1 + 1 triple-junction solar cells can provide an increased efficiency, as well as a higher open circuit voltage, compared to tandem solar cells.

Simulation of InAIN/Si Single-Heterojunction Solar Cells Using wxAMPS

2014 ◽  
Vol 665 ◽  
pp. 111-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Huang ◽  
Xiao Ming Shen ◽  
Xiao Feng Wei
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cells ◽  
Fill Factor ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Open Circuit Voltage ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Short Circuit Current ◽  
Indium Content ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Heterojunction Solar Cells ◽  
Si Solar Cells

In this paper, InAlN/Si single-heterojunction solar cells have been theoretically simulated based on wxAMPS software. The photovoltaic parameters, such as open circuit voltage, short circuit current, fill factor and conversion efficiency were investigated with changing the indium content and thickness of n-InAlN layer. Simulation results show that the optimum efficiency of InAlN/Si solar cells is 23.1% under AM 1.5G spectral illuminations, with the indium content and thickness of n-InAlN layer are 0.65 and 600nm, respectively. The simulation would contribute to design and fabricate high efficiency InAlN/Si solar cells in experiment.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document