ThinFilmPhotovoltaics

Thinfilmmodulesarefabricatedbydepositing extremelythinlayersofphotosensitivematerials ontoalowcostbackingsuchasglass,stainless steelorplastic. Thisresultsinlowerproductioncostscompared tothemorematerialintensivecrystalline technology,apriceadvantagewhichiscurrently counterbalancedbysubstantiallylower efficiencyrates.

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ThinFilmPhotovoltaics

Threetypesofthinfilmmodulesare commerciallyavailableatthemoment.These aremanufacturedfrom

amorphousandcrystallinesilicon(aSi,cSi), copperindiumdiselenide(CIS,CIGS) cadmiumtelluride(CdTe).

AdvantagesofthinfilmPV technologies:

savingsinmaterialandenergyconsumption largeareadeposition monolithicintegration energypaybacktime implementationinbuildingindustry

ComparisonThinFilmCrystalline

MarketSharecSivs.thinfilm

Thinfilmsiliconsolarcells
Thinfilm silicon solar cells usually contain amorphous silicon layers deposited by plasma enhancedchemicalvapordeposition(PECVD).

This CVD method has the advantage that large area devices can be manufactured at a low processing temperature, thus facilitating lowcost solarcellsonglass,metalfoil,orpolymerfoil.

ThinFilmSiPhotovoltaiccells

Material:Siliconindifferentphase:amorphous; microcrystalline;crystalline Mostcommonone:amorphoushydrogenated Si(aSi:H) aSi:H:shortrangeorder;Hplaysaroleinthe fabricationandinthepassivationofdangling bonds Duetodeviationfromtheidealcrystalline structurethedensityofstatesfeaturesband tails;defectsleadtomidgapstates

aSi:HDensityofStates

ArchitectureforThinFilm Photovoltaiccells

Defectscauselargerecombinationrates; AsaconsequencethesimplePNjunctionwith extendedneutralregions,requiringlarge diffusionlengthisnotsuitable ThePiNstructurewithtwothindoped(N,P) regionsandanextended(100nm1um) intermediateintrinsic(i)regionisadopted

ThinFilmSiPiNsolarcell
ArchitectureofthePiNcell: superstrate(a)and substrateconfigurations(b)

Bandconfigurationona PiNcell: equilibrium(a),directbias (b)andopencircuit(c)

Soga,Nanostructured materialsforsolarenergy conversion,Elsevie,2006

PiNPhotovoltaicscells

TheworkfunctiondifferencebetweentheNand Pregionssupportsanelectricfieldinsidethe intrinsiclayer Mostofcarriergenerationoccursintheintrinsic layer(thankstoitslargeextension) GeneratedcarriersdrifttowardstheN (electrons)andtotheP(holes)regions,pushed bythebuiltinfield

Opticalpropertiesofamorphousand crystallineSi

aSi:Hbehavesasadirectgapsemiconductor withbandgapof1.71.8EV Theabsorptionrateislarge,allowingtheuseof thinlayers(200400nmforsinglejunction devices) cSi(nanocrystalsembeddedinaSi:H) featuresopticalcharacteristicssimilartocSi

Opticalpropertiesofamorphousand crystallineSi

Soga,Nanostructured materialsforsolarenergy conversion,Elsevie,2006

AmorphousandcrystallineSi

Thepossibilitytocontrolbandgapopensthe opportunitytoovercomeoneofthelimitationsto conversionefficiency(lossofhEG) Adoptionofmultijunctionarchitecture The1.1eV1.8eVcombinationisidealforthe caseofconversionofsolarlight. Additionalpossibleimprovementwithathree junctionarchitectureincludinganaSiGe:H layer

MicromorphTFaSi:handucSi:HSolarCells

SlidesfromM.Zeman(DelftUniversityoftechnology)

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MultiJunctionaSi:HmucSi:H

Soga,Nanostructured 17 materialsforsolarenergy conversion,Elsevier,2006

MultiJunctionPVcells

Semiempiricalupperlimitoftheefficiencygasafunctionofthe energygapEgofthebottomandtopcellsofatandemsolarcell JournalofNonCrystallineSolids338340(2004)639645

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SibasedThinFilmTechnology

ThecommondepositionprocessisPlasma EnhancedChemicalVaporDeposition(PECVD)

RFgeneratedplasmapromotesthedepositionof siliconstartingfromagaseousprecursor Silane(SiH4)moleculesdissociatedueto interactionswithenergeticelectronsoftheplasma, generatingneutralradicals,moleculesandions Reactionsintheplasmawithformationofspecies (Si,H)thatpermeatesthroughthesurface RealizationofhydrogenatedSinetworkandrelease ofH Depositionrateiscriticalfordefectconcentration
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SibasedThinFilmPECVD Technology

Soga,Nanostructured 20 materialsforsolarenergy conversion,Elsevier,2006

Longtermreliability

aSi:HbasedPVcellsareaffectedby degradation(StaeblerWronskyeffects) Thisismainlyduetoaphotoinducedremoval ofSiHbondsthatpassivatedanglingbonds Thisdegradationtendstosaturateandcanbe partiallyrecoveredbythermaltreatments

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Longtermreliability

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Longtermreliability

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RoadmapforTHINFILMSOLARCELLS
ModuleEfficiency>12% Targetcost:0.95Eu/Wp

Processsimplification Photoniccrystals Higherperformancematerials

ModuleEfficiency>15% Targetcost:0.65Eu/Wp

Improvedsubstratesandlight trappingstrategies Advancedtechniquesforabsorber deposition

StableCellEfficiency>17% Targetcost:<0.4Eu/Wp

Highratedepositiontechniques Substratequalityimprovement

2008

2013

2018

2023

2028

Year

Geometricallightconfinement: surfacetexturing

Thegeometricalsizeoftextureelements(w,p,h) 25 istypicallymuchsmallerthan.

Geometricallightconfinement: surfacetexturing

SEMpictureofAsahi UTypesurface

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Lighttrappingtechniques

K. Yamamoto et al. / Solar Energy 77 (2004) 939949

Lighttrappingtechniques

K. Yamamoto et al. / Solar Energy 77 (2004) 939949

NonSiliconbasedthinfilmPVcells

CdS,CuInSe2(CIS)arepromisingmaterialsfor thinfilmcellsatlowcost CdS/CISsolarcellsofferefficienciesupto17% thankstothelargeabsorptioncoeff.ofCIS pCISandnCdSformanheterojunctionwith bandgaps1.02eVand2.41eV,respectively CdSactsasawindowforphotonswithhv< 2.41eVthatareabsorbedbyCIS Chargeseparationoccursatthejunction

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CdS/CISsolarcells

Soga,Nanostructured 30 materialsforsolarenergy conversion,Elsevier,2006

CdTebasedthinfilmPVcells

Amongthecandidatesforthinfilmsolarcellscapable CdTehasshownconsiderablepromise CdTehastheadvantageofanearlyidealbandgapfor solarterrestrialphotoconversion(1.45eV)andashort absorptionlengthwhencomparedtograinsizes typicallyencountered Thislatterpropertyreducesrecombinationatgrain boundariesamajorproblemwithotherpolycrystalline materials Asaresult,alargefractionofthephotogenerated carriersaregeneratedwithinthedepletionlayer allowingmoreefficientcollection.

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CdTebasedthinfilmPVcells

BecauseitisdifficulttoproducethinfilmCdTe solarcellswiththinnCdTelayers, heterojunctionsutilizingwidebandgapntype semiconductorsandpCdTearemostcommon CdShasabandgapof2.42eVandisthemost commonlyemployedheterojunctionpartnerto pCdTeduetoitssimilarchemicalproperties. NecessitytouseasmallthicknessofCdSfor enhancedshortwavelengthresponse.

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CdTebasedthinfilmPVcells

J.BrittandC.FerekidesAppl.Phys.Lett.,Vol.82,No.22,31May1993
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CdTebasedthinfilmPVcells

Recently,cheapfabricationprocesshavebeen developedandthistechnologyisgaininggreat relevance Approximately10%efficiencyatlessthan 1$/Wattinstalled Prospectfor12%efficiencyincommercial productsby2012

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CdTebasedthinfilmPVcells
1MwattPVfield installedontheroof oftheBentegodi StadiuminVerona

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