Optimization and characterization of the Front Surface Field in Back-Contact Silicon Solar Cells

Abstract

Interdigitated back-contact (IBC) solar cells are devices requiring very high carrier lifetimes. In this thesis, an investigation of the front-surface field (FSF) for increasing the effective lifetime of such solar cells has been carried out. Silicon samples with various doping levels have been processed, and the resulting lifetime has been characterized using photoconductance measurements, in order to obtain an understanding of FSF-optimized process parameters. The in-diffusion of dopants is assessed through the consideration of resulting dopant profiles. Simulation tools have been utilized for achieving dopant profiles, as well as for investigating the dependence of profiles on the effective lifetime.