ch3 Solar Cell process-IN - 20190820

Solar Cell Process
Schematic Cross Section of Multi-Si Solar Cell

Solar Cell Process Overview
Process Step 1: Defect etching + Cleaning
Process Step 1: Defect etching (Surface Texturing) + Cleaning
 Base-based texture (KOH)
 anisotropic etching
 Etching rate depends on the crystallographic orientation
: Si atoms on a (100) surface feature 2 back bonds

=> high etching rate
: Si atoms on a (111) surface feature 3 back bonds

=> low etching rate
textured multi-Si wafer surface

random pyramids [with (111) surfaces] on a Si(100) wafer

 Acid-based texture (HF/HNO3)
 isotropic etching
 etching rate does not depend on the crystallographic orientation

textured multi-Si wafer surface

Process Step 2: POCl3 Diffusion
 Formation of a P-doped n+ emitter (= formation of a pn-junction)
Thermal Oxidation
 dry oxidation:
 wet oxidation:
 to grow a SiO2 layer with a thickness of d, a Si layer with a thickness

of 0.44 d is consumed
Thermal Diffusion
 Diffusion coefficient
D0: diffusion coefficient extrapolated to infinite

temperature [cm2/s]
Ea: activation energy [eV]
Thermal Diffusion
 enhanced diffusion along grain boundaries

Process Step 3: Edge Isolation
Process Step 4: Oxide Etching + Cleaning
Process Step 5: SiNx Deposition
 PECVD (plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition)
 PECVD (plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition)
 Antireflection coating (ARC)
 reflection minimum in the red part of the spectrum => wafer appears blue
 Antireflection coating (ARC)
 the required thickness depends on the surface texture

What is Plasma? (FuseSchool, 2016.01)
What is CVD (2017.04)
 Hydrogen passivation
 SiNx layer contains hydrogen
 hydrogen diffuse into Si wafer during step

7 and thus passivate defects
 improving the material quality

Process Step 6: Screen Printing + Drying
 Screen printing process
 Screen printing process
Process Step 7: Firing
 After screen printing process
What is going to happen for both at the top and rare surface during
subsequent firing process?
 Lists of the whole solar cell processes
1) ( )
2) ( )
3) ( )
4) ( )
5) ( )
6) ( )
7) ( )
8) ( )
 Front contact – grid design (Ex.)
Base-based Texture of Multi-Si Solar Cell
 From Q-Cells – front side
Acid-based Texture of Multi-Si Solar Cell
 From Q-Cells – front side
Acid-based Texture of Multi-Si Solar Cell
 From Q-Cells – rear side
Data of a Multi-Si Solar Cell (Example)
• A = 156 mm x 156 mm = 243 cm2

• FF= 78 %, Voc = 625 mV, Isc = 8.5 A (Jsc = 35 mA/cm2)
𝜂= %
• Vmp= 515 mV, Imp= 8.0 A (Jmp= 33 mA/cm2)
𝜂= %
• A = 156 mm x 156 mm = 243 cm2

• FF= 78 %, Voc = 625 mV, Isc = 8.5 A (Jsc = 35 mA/cm2)
• Vmp= 515 mV, Imp= 8.0 A (Jmp= 33 mA/cm2)

Pm = Vmp x Jmp = 515 mV x 33 mA/cm2 = 17 mW/cm2
Pm x A = 17 mW/cm2 x 243 cm2 = 4.1 W/cell
 For 1 GW/year production, how many cells need to be produced per year?
 How many cells per day?
Pm = Vmp x Jmp = 515 mV x 33 mA/cm2 = 17 mW/cm2
Pm x A = 17 mW/cm2 x 243 cm2 = 4.1 W/cell
 For 1 GW/year production, how many cells need to be produced per year?
(1 GW/year) / (4.1 W/cell) = 244 million cells/year
 How many cells per day?
(244 million cells/year) / (365 days/year) = 668 226 cells/day

Record Multi-Si Solar Cells
Mono-Crystalline Si wafer for Solar Cells
Si ingots are cylindrical-shaped

=> Si wafers are round-shaped
but
Wafer should be square-shaped to utilize the module area efficiently
How do Solar cells work? / Learn Engineering
(2018.11.29)
Efficiency of solar cells – Measurements /
plasticphotovoltaics (2017.09.11)
Mono-Si Solar Cells
Mono-Crystalline Si Solar Cells - History
 First silicon solar cells

• Ohl (1941) : efficiency < 1 %
• Grown-in junction formed by impurity segregation during recrystallization of a silicon melt
Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

 First silicon solar cells

• Kingsbury and Ohl (1952) : efficiency ∼ 1 %
• Recrystallization of pure silicon to prevent impurity segregation
- Junction formation by He ion bombardment

 First modern silicon solar cells

• Chapin, Fuller, Pearson (1954) : efficiency ∼ 4.5 %
• Junction formation by lithium diffusion (Li diffused wraparound)
• Boron diffused wraparound ∼ 11 % (1955)

 Space silicon solar cells
• Standard in the 1960’s (2cm × 2cm)
• p-type wafers instead of n-type wafers due to the better radiation resistance
• 10 Ω𝑐𝑚 substrates: better radiation resistance
• 0.5 𝜇𝑚 emitter : less shunting during contact processing

 Space silicon solar cells (violet cells)
• early 1970’s: efficiency improvement by Al-based back surface field
• < 0.5 𝜇𝑚 emitter : improve response at short wavelengths
• TiO2 ARC improved response at short wavelengths

 Space silicon solar cells (black cells)
• middle 1970’s: efficiency ∼ 17 %
• efficiency improvement by textured top surfaces (random pyramids)

 Passivated emitter solar cells (PESC)
• middle 1980’s: efficiency ∼ 19 %
• surface passivation by SiO2 (very thin layer)
• reduce contact area

 Microgrooved passivated emitter solar cells (microgrooved PESC)
• middle 1980’s : PESC + textured surface (selective etching): efficiency > 20 % (1985)

 Rear point contact solar cells
• originally developed for concentrator applications)
• late 1980’s: efficiency > 22 % (1988)
• surface passivation on both front and rear
• rear point contacts : contact area is reduced

 Passivated emitter, rear locally-diffused
(PERL) solar cells
• 1990’s: efficiency = 25.0 % (1988)

• surface passivation on both front and rear
• point contacts on both front and rear +
inverted pyramids
• thin oxide + double layer ARC
• World record until 2014

 IV characteristic of a 24 % PERL solar cell

 Evolution of silicon solar cell efficiency

 Standard process steps for screen-printed solar cells
 Process steps:

 Standard process steps for screen-printed solar cells
• process steps:
① saw damage removal

② texturing
③ phosphorous diffusion
④ edge isolation
⑤ oxide etching
⑥ screen-printing for contacts
⑦ firing

Mono-Crystalline Si Solar Cells
 Solar cell (front)
Mono-Crystalline Si Solar Cells
 Solar cell (rear)
Solar Cell Technologies
 Types of contact structures
 Laser fired contacts (LFC) solar cell

 Passivated Emitter and Rear Cell (PERC)
 New standard solar cell technology
 Contact openings are prepared by laser ablation
 Bifacial solar cells from Hitachi
 Bifacial cell with Boron diffused Back surface field
 front and rear texturing (random pyramids)
 Bifacial solar cells from Hitachi (front)
 Bifacial solar cells from Hitachi (rear)
 Bifacial solar cells from Hitachi
 Bifacial solar cells from Hitachi - simulation
 Bifacial solar cell technology
International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV) - 2017 Results

 Buried contact solar cells
• process steps:
① saw damage removal

② texturing
③ phosphorous diffusion (n+)
④ growth of oxide or nitride layer
⑤ grooves by laser scribing
⑥ cleaning of the grooves
⑦ phosphorous diffusion (n++)
⑧ Al deposition
⑨ firing
⑩ oxide removal
⑪ electroless plating (Ni/Cu/Ag)
Types of Contact Structures
Emitter Wrap Through (EWT) Processes
 Metal wrap through (MWT) solar cell concept
• emitter-busbar and base-busbar at the rear (less shadowing)
 Emitter wrap through (EWT) solar cell concept
• No metal contacts on the front (no shadowing)
 Interdigitated back-contact (IBC) solar cell
• Both contacts at the rear
• High quality material is required

 Rear contact solar cell from Sunpower (front)
 Rear contact solar cell from Sunpower (front)
 Rear contact solar cell from Sunpower (rear)
 a-Si:H/c-Si heterojunction solar cells
• HIT structure (Heterojunction with Intrinsic Thin layer
• Transparent conductive oxide (TCO) on the front
• both surfaces are textured
 a-Si:H/c-Si heterojunction solar cells (Sanyo)
• bifacial HIT structure
 Bifacial HIT solar cell from Sanyo (front)
 Bifacial HIT solar cell from Sanyo (rear)
 a-Si:H/c-Si heterojunction solar cells (Panasonic/Sanyo)
• World record until 07/2016
 a-Si:H/c-Si heterojunction solar cells (Kaneka)
• World record since 03/2017
𝜂 = 26.7 %, Jsc = 42.65 mA/cm2, Voc = 738 mV, FF = 84.9 %, A = 79.0 cm2 (da)
World Market Share for Different Wafer Types

World Market Share for Cell Technologies

Average stabilized Efficiencies

Efficiency Overview
UNSW: 25.0 % (p-type, homojunction, top/rear contacts, 4 cm2)
ISFH: 26.1 % (p-type, passivated poly-Si, rear contacts, 4 cm2)
Sunpower: 25.2 % (n-type, homojunction, rear contacts, 153 cm2)
Panasonic (Sanyo): 25.6 % (n-type, heterojunction, rear contacts, 144 cm2)
Fraunhofer ISE: 25.8 % (n-type, homojunction, top/rear contacts, 4 cm2)
Kaneka: 26.6 % (n-type, heterojunction, rear contacts, 180 cm2)
Kaneka: 26.7 % (n-type, heterojunction, rear contacts, 79 cm2)

Efficiency Limits (AM1.5g, 100mW/cm2, 25°C)

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Solar Cell Process

Schematic Cross Section of Multi-Si Solar Cell

 Etching rate depends on the crystallographic orientation

: Si atoms on a (100) surface feature 2 back bonds

: Si atoms on a (111) surface feature 3 back bonds

textured multi-Si wafer surface

random pyramids [with (111) surfaces] on a Si(100) wafer

 etching rate does not depend on the crystallographic orientation

textured multi-Si wafer surface

 to grow a SiO2 layer with a thickness of d, a Si layer with a thickness

D0: diffusion coefficient extrapolated to infinite

 enhanced diffusion along grain boundaries

 the required thickness depends on the surface texture

 SiNx layer contains hydrogen

 hydrogen diffuse into Si wafer during step

 improving the material quality

 Lists of the whole solar cell processes

• A = 156 mm x 156 mm = 243 cm2

• Vmp= 515 mV, Imp= 8.0 A (Jmp= 33 mA/cm2)

• A = 156 mm x 156 mm = 243 cm2

• Vmp= 515 mV, Imp= 8.0 A (Jmp= 33 mA/cm2)

Pm = Vmp x Jmp = 515 mV x 33 mA/cm2 = 17 mW/cm2

Pm x A = 17 mW/cm2 x 243 cm2 = 4.1 W/cell

Pm = Vmp x Jmp = 515 mV x 33 mA/cm2 = 17 mW/cm2

Pm x A = 17 mW/cm2 x 243 cm2 = 4.1 W/cell

(1 GW/year) / (4.1 W/cell) = 244 million cells/year

 How many cells per day?

(244 million cells/year) / (365 days/year) = 668 226 cells/day

Si ingots are cylindrical-shaped

 First silicon solar cells

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

 First silicon solar cells

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

 First modern silicon solar cells

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

• 1990’s: efficiency = 25.0 % (1988)

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

① saw damage removal

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

 Laser fired contacts (LFC) solar cell

International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV) - 2017 Results

① saw damage removal

Green: “Silicon Solar Cells”, UNSW 1995

International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV) - 2017 Results

International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV) - 2017 Results

International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV) - 2017 Results

ISFH: 26.1 % (p-type, passivated poly-Si, rear contacts, 4 cm2)

Sunpower: 25.2 % (n-type, homojunction, rear contacts, 153 cm2)

Panasonic (Sanyo): 25.6 % (n-type, heterojunction, rear contacts, 144 cm2)

Fraunhofer ISE: 25.8 % (n-type, homojunction, top/rear contacts, 4 cm2)

Kaneka: 26.6 % (n-type, heterojunction, rear contacts, 180 cm2)

Kaneka: 26.7 % (n-type, heterojunction, rear contacts, 79 cm2)

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