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An experimental study on laser ablation of Journal of Micromanufacturing

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Ultra-thin SiNx layer of PERC solar cell © The Author(s) 2022
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https://doi.org/10.1177/25165984221129958
DOI: 10.1177/25165984221129958
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Pinal Rana1 , Durga Prasad Khatri2,3 , Anil Kottantharayil2,3 and Deepak Marla1

Abstract
In this work, a nanosecond green laser (532 nm) is used to generate narrow openings by removing an ultra-thin (85 nm) SiNx
layer that is coated on a silicon substrate for application in the fabrication of Passivated Emitter and Rear Contact (PERC)
solar cells. An experimental analysis is presented to identify the optimal range of laser parameters for an efficient ablation
with minimal damage to the silicon substrate. The ablated samples were characterized using a 3D profilometer to obtain
the surface profiles and scanning electron microscope imaging to observe the surface quality. Further, energy-dispersive
X-ray line analysis and atom probe tomography were performed to evaluate the nitrogen content on the surface and along
the depth, respectively. The experimental results suggest that the SiNx layer starts to ablate only above a threshold laser
fluence of 1.4 J/cm2, while the surface bulged out for laser fluence slightly below the ablation threshold. The central part of
the ablated region was clean with a negligible nitrogen concentration at the surface, about ∼0.03% at a fluence of 2.4 J/cm2.
Nitrogen concentration reduces continuously and almost becomes zero at 80 nm depth, suggesting complete ablation of the
SiNx layer for establishing electrical contacts. The ablation width was close to the laser spot diameter only at lower values of
the laser fluence. The lowest value of ablation depth was about 180 nm, suggesting that only about 95 nm layer of the silicon
is ablated. The study demonstrates that nanosecond laser ablation is a potential technique for ablation of the SiNx layer of
PERC solar cells but requires choosing the optimal parameters.

Keywords
Nanosecond laser, laser ablation, PERC solar cell, passivation layer, SiNx ablation

Introduction applications such as texturing,6 annealing,7 and thin layer

The Passivated Emitter and Rear Cell or Passivated Emitter
and Rear Contact (PERC) solar cells are modified conventional
silicon-based solar cells with 6–8% higher efficiency.1 PERC
solar cell contains 85–100 nm thin passivation layer of a
dielectric material such as SiNx, SiO2, SiOxNy, or Al2O3 on
the rear side.2 In order to create electrical contacts with the
silicon wafer, narrow openings are created by selectively
removing the passivation layer. Various techniques such as
photolithography,3 chemical etching,4 and laser ablation5
have been reported in the literature to create narrow openings.
The main challenge here is to effectively and efficiently
remove the passivation layer locally with minimal damage to
the underlying silicon substrate. Chemical etching is a very
slow process, and photolithography involves too many
complex steps. Compared to the aforementioned techniques,
the laser ablation process is a fast, stable, cost-effective, and
reliable method. Moreover, laser is widely used in photovoltaic
deposition.8
Laser ablation is commonly performed using pulsed lasers
with pulse durations in the range of nanoseconds (ns),
picoseconds (ps), and femtoseconds (fs).9,10 Experimental
work of Chiu et al.11 successfully demonstrated the use of a
nanosecond laser (532 nm wavelength) for ablation of SiNx
layer of the PERC solar cell. Experimental investigation
using a picosecond laser to ablate a SiNx layer deposited on
1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology
Bombay, Mumbai, India
2 Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology
Bombay, Mumbai, India
3 National Centre for Photovoltaics Research and Education, Indian
Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, India
Corresponding author:
Deepak Marla, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of
Technology Bombay, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400076, India.
Email: dmarla@iitb.ac.in
2 Journal of Micromanufacturing
silicon substrate was carried out by Heinrich et al.12 at three
different wavelengths corresponding to the ultraviolet (UV),
visible, and infrared radiation (IR) regime. The authors
observed that the ablation mechanisms differed with laser
wavelength as the absorption in the SiNx layer is strongly
wavelength-dependent. The UV wavelength laser is absorbed
in the SiNx layer due to high absorption coefficient (106 cm –1).
Whereas visible and IR wavelength laser became transparent
for the SiNx layer and absorbed in the substrate silicon as the
absorption coefficient is in the range of 100 to 1000 cm−1.
Besides, all the wavelengths seem to influence the crystalline
structure of the ablated surface due to recrystallization and
amorphization. They concluded that picosecond lasers with
wavelength only in the UV regime could effectively ablate
the SiNx layer for applications in solar cells. Experimental
investigations of Zeng et al.13 on laser ablation of silicon
using UV nanosecond and UV femtosecond lasers show that
the ablation efficiency is superior in the case of femtosecond
lasers. The ablation crater produced using a femtosecond
laser was twice deeper than that obtained using a nanosecond
laser. This was attributed to the higher intensities in the
femtosecond laser and enhanced plasma shielding effects in
the nanosecond laser. Besides, a large amount of material
deposition at the crater’s edge was observed in nanosecond
laser processing. However, experimental studies of Ali et al.14
on laser ablation of SiNx layer of PERC solar cells reveal that
the electrical performance of PERC solar cells fabricated
using nanosecond laser processing is superior than
femtosecond laser processing. The authors did a comparative
study on the laser ablation of the passivation layer using
nanosecond and femtosecond laser at green wavelengths.
They observed that femtosecond laser processing induces
severe damages in the silicon substrate, causing a reduction in
solar cell performance. Therefore, it is evident from the
literature that nanosecond lasers can be used to ablate the thin
passivation layers of PERC solar cells. However, the poor
ablation characteristics produced using the nanosecond lasers
severely limit their usage. Hence, the need to optimize the
Figure 1. SEM image of a sample showing SiNx layer on top of a
silicon substrate.
nanosecond laser parameters to enhance the ablation
characteristics is critical to their application in the field of the
solar cell.
In this work, nanosecond laser ablation of SiNx layer of
thickness 80–85 nm deposited on a silicon substrate is studied
experimentally to understand the effect of process parameters
on the ablated surface characteristics with an aim to identify
the optimal range of laser parameters to be used. Experiments
are carried out over a range of laser parameters, and the
ablated surface was analyzed using an optical profilometer to
obtain a groove profile and scanning electron microscope
(SEM) imaging to understand the surface characteristics. In
the literature, researchers only focus on the amount of
ablation. However, the quality of ablation is also important as
it affects the PERC solar cell performance through
recombination losses. Therefore, the present study analyzes
the ablation quality by measuring nitrogen content along with
the amount of ablation. The energy dispersive X-ray
spectroscopy (EDX) and atom probe tomography (APT)
techniques are used to estimate the nitrogen content on the
surface and along the depth, respectively.
Experiments
The diamond wire sawn as-cut industrial grade p-type
Czochralski (Cz) monocrystalline silicon wafers (4 inches,
boron-doped, <100>, 160 ± 20 μm thickness, 3 Ω-cm
resistivity) is used as a substrate material. The as-cut wafer
was dipped into NaOCl solution to remove saw damage. On
top of the silicon substrate, the SiNx layer is deposited at
380◦C for 6 minutes using Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor
Deposition (PECVD). Figure 1 shows an SEM image of a
sample with SiNx layer deposited over a silicon wafer. Each
wafer was sliced into four parts to handle it properly during
experimentation. The thickness of the SiNx layer was
measured using ellipsometry and found to be 85 nm with the
refractive index of 2.01 at 532 nm wavelength.
Figure 2. Schematic of the laser processing setup.
Rana et al.
Ablation experiments were carried out using a nanosecond
green laser system, SLTL Scribo, manufactured by SLTL,
India. The laser system consists of a solid-state NdYVO4
laser source emitting pulses of duration 25 ns in TEM00 mode
at a wavelength of 532 nm. The beam propagation ratio (M2)
is nearly 1.2 indicating an accurate laser source. The laser
pulse repetition rate (PRR) can be varied between a single
pulse to 150 kHz, and the average laser power can be varied
between 0.05 and 30 W by adjusting the value of current. The
laser is focussed using a planoconvex lens of focal length
70 mm, generating a spot diameter of 25 µm on the surface of
XYZ stage, corresponding to the 1/e2 profile. The laser setup
shown in Figure. 2 is placed on a optical table to ensure
vibration-free processing of samples. Laser scanning is
achieved by the movement of a CNC XYZ stage on which the
samples are mounted.
Based on a preliminary study, it was observed that ablation
characteristics were good only when the laser fluence (F) was
between 1.5 and 7.8 J/cm2. Above 7.8 J/cm2 very high ablation
occurred, resulting in poor surface characteristics, while no
ablation occurred below 1.5 J/cm2 laser fluence. Further,
experiments were carried out to understand the effect of laser
fluence, which was controlled by changing average laser
power and PRR. The average laser power was varied between
0.06 W and 0.52 W. This was achieved by changing the value
of current in the system between 8 A and 9.25 A. Further,
PRR was chosen between 40 and 50 kHz and laser fluence
values were calculated for each setting. During all the
experimentation, a fixed value of the scanning speed is
chosen, which is equal to 1 m/min. All the other parameters
such as spot diameter, pulse duration, and wavelength were
kept fixed.
Further, the ablated samples were analyzed using four
different characterization techniques. An optical microscope
(Alicona infinite focus G5) was used to measure the surface
profile of the ablated samples. The data of depth and width
Figure 3. Schematic showing the location from where the APT
sample was extracted.
3
of the ablated region were obtained from the surface profiles.
High-resolution images of the ablated samples were obtained
using SEM (Zeiss Ultra 55) to observe the surface
characteristics. The SEM imaging is perofrmed at 4.5 mm
working distance and 5 kV electron high tension. In order to
verify if the ablation was clean, nitrogen content on the
sample surface was measured using the EDX technique on
Zeiss Ultra 55 machine. The nitrogen content was measured
by a line scan along the width of the ablated region. Since,
there is a possibility of nitrogen getting diffused into the
silicon substrate during ablation, the concentration of
nitrogen atoms along the depth of the sample is measured
using Atom Probe Tomography (APT), which is one of the
accurate methods to measure the precise compositional and
positional information of the subsurface region15,16. APT
characterization was carried out in a LEAP 5000X HR
instrument (Cameca) which is equipped with a reflectron
ion optic design and a UV pulsed laser (λ of 355 nm) with a
pulse duration of length 10–15 ps. This makes the analysis
possible for semi-conductive materials, which is necessary
for the present study. The APT analysis was carried out in a
chamber with pressure maintained at 2 × 10−8 Pa, and the
specimen was cooled down to a temperature of 70 K. The
energy of the laser used in APT was 50 pJ, at a repetition
rate of 200 kHz. The data analysis was done using the
Integrated Visualization and Analysis Software (IVAS-
3.8.2). The resolution for semiconducting samples is lower,
typically 1 nm at best. The chemical sensitivity for APT is
10 ppm. The samples used in APT had the shape of a tip
with a very small radius of curvature (in the range of
nanometres), which were prepared using the focussed ion
beam technique using a lift-out method. Figure 3 displays
the location from where the APT tips are extracted with the
help of a schematic.
Results and discussion
Surface characteristics
Figure 4(a) shows an SEM image of a laser-ablated sample at
a laser fluence of 2.4 J/cm2. Change in color and texture of the
surface due to ablation is evident. High magnification images
of the edge and central part of the ablated region are shown in
Figures. 4(b) and 4(c), respectively, showing a clear picture
of the surface. The edges are seen to contain a large number
of pores, while the central part has a relatively smoother
surface in comparison.
The shape of the crater profile for the sample in Figure. 4
is shown in Figure. 5, represented by the line corresponding
to 2.4 J/cm2. Note that the scales on the x and y axes are
different. The surface profile suggests that the maximum
ablation depth of 315 nm is observed at the center and
decreases along the width. Humps are formed at the edges,
possibly due to the solidification of molten material driven
4 Journal of Micromanufacturing
Figure 4. Surface image of the sample ablated at F = 2.4 J/cm2.
Figure 5. A 2D surface profile of the ablated samples at two
different laser fluences.
out by Marangoni convection and vapor pressure exerted by
the ablated material.17
The ablated samples were observed to have a distinct
surface below a particular threshold value of the laser
fluence. The surface profile in Figure. 5 represented by a
dotted line corresponds to a lower laser fluence of 1.5 J/cm2.
Unlike the one at 2.4 J/cm2 of laser fluence, the surface
profile at 1.5 J/cm2 laser fluence does not have any ablation
depth (or material removal). The surface appears to have
bulged out. This is an interesting phenomenon that sheds
light on the mechanism involved in the ablation process. The
bulging effect could be due to the heating of the material
below the normal boiling point and its subsequent expansion
due to thermal effects. Due to high temperature, the material
undergoes plastic deformation, and upon cooling, retains the
Figure 6. Proposed ablation mechanism: (a) laser absorption and
heating, (b) bulging, (c) breakdown and blow-off.
shape. The deformation of the material is most likely to
occur due to the sub-surface heating effect. Since the SiNx
layer is transparent to the laser radiation, it does not absorb
any radiation. Laser radiation absorption occurs only in the
silicon layer. Subsequently, the SiNx layer also gets heated
up due to the conduction of heat from the underlying silicon
layer. Therefore, the temperature is maximum at the interface
and gradually decreases outward in the SiNx layer, with the
top surface having the lowest temperature. At lower laser
fluences, it is likely that the temperature of the top part of the
SiNx layer does not reach the normal boiling point for
ablation to initiate. However, the sub-surface region could be
at much higher temperatures, leading to bulging of the
material. A schematic representation of this phenomenon is
shown in Figure. 6.
Rana et al.
Figure 7. Variation in ablation width with laser fluence.
Figure 8. Variation in ablation depth with laser fluence.
Ablation depth and width
The variation in ablation width and depth with laser fluence
are shown in Figures 7 and 8, respectively. The measurements
were taken at three different locations in the ablated region,
and the average value is reported. It can be observed that no
ablation occurs below 1.5 J/cm2 laser fluence. Further, the
data also suggest that with an increase in laser fluence ablation
width increases. This is because the heat input per unit area
increases with an increase in laser fluence and ablation of the
material largely depends on the laser fluence or pulse energy.
No ablation occurs if the laser fluence is below a specific
threshold value, as observed for the 0.9 J/cm2 value of the
laser fluence.
The trends in ablation width and depth are similar. The
increase in ablation width and depth with an increase in the
laser fluence is very significant initially up to laser fluence
5
of 3.9 J/cm2. Beyond this value of the laser fluence, the
increase in ablation depth and width is marginal. This could
be due to the effect of plasma shielding, which becomes
significant at higher laser fluences, leading to saturation in
ablation depth. A similar trend has been predicted using a
computation model by Marla et al.18 The ablation width in
Figure. 7 is lower than the spot size of 25 µm only at lower
laser fluence values. At higher laser fluence, the ablation
width is nearly double that of the spot size. Besides, an
ablation depth of less than 190 nm is observed for 1.5 J/cm2
laser fluence. At all other values, the ablation depth is more
than 230 nm. A higher value of ablation depth is undesirable
as it increases the losses due to surface recombination.
Therefore, the experiments reveal it is important to choose
laser fluence close to the ablation threshold for precise
ablation.
Nitrogen content
The nitrogen content in the ablated region plays a vital role in
solar cell performance. If the SiNx layer is not adequately
ablated, the printed aluminum paste may not make proper
electrical contact with the silicon beneath owing to its
insulation property. This may lead to higher surface
recombination losses and reduces the performance of the
PERC solar cell. Figure 9 shows a plot of nitrogen content at
2.4 J/cm2 laser fluence measured along the width of the
ablation channel using EDX. Measurements are taken both in
the ablated as well as non-ablated region to have a comparison
between the two. The amount of nitrogen content in the
ablated region is as low as 0.76 counts, whereas the count is
3.29 in the non-ablated region. During the laser ablation
process, when the temperature of SiNx reaches 2150 K, it
decomposes into silicon and nitrogen.19 Ideally, nitrogen
content in the ablated region should be zero. However, the
traces of nitrogen can be present due to: (i) chemical reaction
with ambient air as the silicon material reaches higher
temperatures during the ablation, and (ii) due to the
decomposition of SiNx layer into silicon and nitrogen, and
subsequent diffusion of nitrogen into the underlying silicon.
The ratio of nitrogen content in the ablation region to the
non-ablated region can be used to analyze the quality of
ablation. It can be considered an efficient ablation if the ratio
is close to zero. Figure 10 shows the variation in the ratio of
nitrogen content with laser fluence. With an increase in laser
fluence, the ratio has a steep decline initially and then shows
a marginal decrease after that. A sudden drop in ratio of
nitrogen content from 1 to 0.076 when the laser fluence is
increased from 0.9 J/cm2 to 2.4 J/cm2 signifies the onset of
ablation. With an increase in the laser fluence, the ratio is
seen to increase, which could be due to the reasons outlined
above. These data suggest that moderate values of laser
fluence are preferred for an efficient ablation.
Further, APT measurement was used to know the nitrogen
concentration along the depth of the laser-ablated region.
6 Journal of Micromanufacturing
Figure 9. Nitrogen count on the surface of a sample ablated at
F = 2.4 J/cm2.
Figure 10. Ratio of nitrogen count in ablated to non-ablated
region with laser fluence obtained using EDX.
Figure 11. 3D reconstruction of an APT specimen taken from a
sample ablated at F = 2.4 J/cm2.
Figure 12. Nitrogen iso-concentration surface of an APT
specimen taken from a sample ablated at F = 2.4 J/cm2.
Figure 13. Variation in nitrogen concentration along the depth
for a sample ablated at F = 2.4 J/cm2.
Apart from nitrogen, various other elements were also
observed during the APT characterization. In Figure. 11, a 3D
reconstruction obtained from the APT analysis is shown. The
layered structure consists of different elements such as
silicon, nitrogen, oxygen, and its compounds. During the
analysis, a single and doubly charged silicon with atom count
in the range of 106 is observed near 28 and 14 mass to charge
ratios, respectively. Whereas, nitrogen and its compounds are
found at 30 and 44 mass to charge ratio values.
Figure 12 shows the iso-concentration surface of nitrogen,
which highlights the regions containing clusters of nitrogen
atoms. Note that this does not represent the concentration of
nitrogen atoms, but only the regions in which they are present.
It can be seen that nitrogen clusters are present up to a depth
of 80 nm and the concentration of these clusters is higher at
the surface.
Rana et al.
The variation in the nitrogen concentration along the depth
for a sample ablated at a laser fluence of 2.4 J/cm2 is shown
in Figure. 13. The nitrogen concentration is maximum at the
surface and is observed to be very low (about 0.03%), and it
further reduces along the depth. At 80 nm depth, the nitrogen
concentration becomes almost zero. The depth of nitrogen
diffusion is well below the permissible limit since the printed
aluminum back surface field can diffuse up to few microns to
establish metal contacts at the rear side. Further, a low
concentration of nitrogen leads to a reduction of recombination
losses and improves the performance of PERC solar cells.
Thus suggesting that laser ablation is a reliable process for
effective removal of the SiNx layer in the fabrication of PERC
solar cells.
Conclusion
Localized removal of the thin (85 nm) SiNx layer of PERC
solar cells is essential in establishing electrical contacts. This
work demonstrates the use of a green nanosecond laser (532
nm wavelength) for localized ablation of the SiNx layer.
Based on the surface profile and SEM images of the ablated
area at different laser fluences, this study found that ablation
occurs only above a certain threshold laser fluence (1.5 J/
cm2). A bumpy surface was formed slightly below threshold
fluence instead of a crater. This was identified to occur due to
the transparent nature of the SiNx layer, causing laser
absorption only in the underlying silicon. As a consequence,
bulging of the SiNx layer occurs at lower laser fluences due to
thermal deformation or deterioration of the silicon–SiNx
interface. The SiNx layer will be completely blown off at
slightly higher laser fluences. This could be due to the higher
subsurface heating leading to excessive thermal deformation
or thermal decomposition or vaporization of the SiNx layer.
Although the ablation depth increased with an increase in
laser fluence, it was found to be very small (between 150 and
230 nm) for laser fluence between 1.5 and 2.4 J/cm2. Further,
it was observed that the ablated surface was clean at the
central part. The nitrogen content in the ablated region was
negligible compared to the non-ablated region. At a laser
fluence of 2.4 J/cm2, slightly above the threshold laser fluence
of ablation, the maximum nitrogen concentration in the
ablated region was noticed to be 0.03% at the surface. Further,
the nitrogen concentration decreased continuously over the
depth of the sample and became zero at 80 nm depth. The
experimental study established that green nanosecond lasers
can be used for the efficient removal of the SiNx layer of
PERC solar cells by choosing an appropriate laser fluence.
Acknowledgments
This research work was supported by the Prime Minister’s Research
Fellowship (PMRF), Government of India, and National Centre for
Photovoltaic Research and Education (NCPRE), IIT Bombay. The
authors acknowledge the support of IIT Madras for APT
7
characterization. The authors are greatly thankful to Anup Sharma
and Saima Cherukat for their help during the data analysis.
Declaration of conflicting interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to
the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.
ORCID iDs
Pinal Rana https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8153-2740
Durga Prasad Khatri https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1846-0673
Deepak Marla https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6829-7830
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