Mobility gap profiles in Si:H intrinsic layers prepared by H2-dilution of SiH4: Effects on the performance of p-i-n solar cells

Authors

R. J. Koval, Pennsylvania State University
A. S. Ferlauto, Pennsylvania State University
J. M. Pearce, Pennsylvania State UniversityFollow
R. W. Collins, Pennsylvania State University
C. R. Wronski, Pennsylvania State University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-1-2002

Volume

299-302

Issue

PART 2

Journal

Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids

First Page

1136

URL with Digital Object Identifier

10.1016/S0022-3093(01)01081-X

Last Page

1141

Abstract

Insights into the growth processes and microstructural evolution for intrinsic (i) hydrogenated silicon (Si:H) films obtained from real-time spectroscopic ellipsometry (RTSE) are extended to the characterization of the optoelectronic properties of the corresponding solar cells. Numerical modeling of the J-V characteristics and their temperature dependences support the RTSE results and provide new information about the optoelectronic properties of the i-layer materials. Experimental results are presented that strongly suggest changes in the mobility gap of the i-layer materials as their microstructure evolves with thickness, further confirming the important effect of the hydrogen dilution ratio R(R ≡ [H2]/[SiH4]) on the transitions from the amorphous to the microcrystalline phase in plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). © 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.