Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-jr42d Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-24T00:31:46.465Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Measurement of the Electric Potential on Amorphous Silicon and Amorphous Silicon Germanium Alloy Thin-Film Solar Cells by Scanning Kelvin Probe Microscopy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 March 2011

C.-S. Jiang ,
H. R. Moutinho ,
Q. Wang ,
M. M. Al-Jassim ,
B. Yan ,
J. Yang  and
S. Guha
C.-S. Jiang
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
H. R. Moutinho
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
Q. Wang
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
M. M. Al-Jassim
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401
B. Yan
Affiliation:
United Solar Ovonic Corporation, Troy, MI 48084
J. Yang
Affiliation:
United Solar Ovonic Corporation, Troy, MI 48084
S. Guha
Affiliation:
United Solar Ovonic Corporation, Troy, MI 48084
Get access

Abstract

We report on direct measurements of surface potentials on cross sections of a-Si:H and a-SiGe:H n-i-p solar cells using scanning Kelvin probe microscopy. External bias voltage (Vb)induced changes in the electric field distributions in the i layer were further deduced by taking the derivative of the Vb-induced potential changes. This procedure avoids the effect of surface charges or surface Fermi-level pinning on the potential measurement. We found that the electric field does not distribute uniformly through the i layer of a-Si:H cells, but it is stronger in the regions near the n and p layers than in the middle of the i layer. The non-uniformity is reduced by incorporating buffer layers at the n/i and i/p interfaces in the a-Si:H solar cells. For a-SiGe:H solar cells, the electric field at the p side of the i layer is much stronger than at the n side and the middle. The non-uniformity becomes more severe when a profiled Ge content is incorporated with a high Ge content on the p side. We speculate that the increase in defect density with increasing of Ge content causes charge accumulation at the i/p interface.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 808: Symposium A – Amorphous and Nanocrystaline Silicon Science and Technology-2004 , 2004 , A9.42
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2004

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

1. Yang, J., Banerjee, A., and Guha, S., Appl. Phys. Lett. 70, 2975 (1997).Google Scholar
2. Hack, M. and Shur, M., J. Appl. Phys. 58, 997 (1985).Google Scholar
3. Pawlikiewicz, A. H. and Guha, S., Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 118, 599 (1988).Google Scholar
4. Jiang, C.–S., Hasoon, F. S., Moutinho, H. R., Al-Thani, H. A., Romero, M. J., and Al-Jassim, M. M., Appl. Phys. Lett. 82, 127 (2003).Google Scholar
5. Jiang, C.-S., Moutinho, H. R., Friedman, D. J., Geisz, J. F., and Al-Jassim, M. M., J. Appl. Phys. 93, 10035 (2003).Google Scholar
6. Banerjee, A., Xu, X., Yang, J., and Guha, S., Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 377, 675 (1995).Google Scholar
7. Guha, S., Yang, J., Pawlikiew, A., Glatfeilter, T., Ross, R., and Ovshinsky, S.R., Appl. Phys. Lett. 54 2330 (1989).Google Scholar
8. Xu, X., Yang, J., Banerjee, A., Guha, S., Vasanth, K., and Wagner, S., Appl. Phys. Lett. 67 (1995) 2323.Google Scholar
9. Levinshtein, M. E. and Rumyantsev, S. L., In Levinshtein, M., Rumyantsev, S., and Shur, M. (Eds.), Handbook Series on Semiconductor Parameters, Vol. 1, (World Scientific, River Edge, NJ, 1996).Google Scholar
10. Jiang, L., Lyou, J. H., Rane, S., Schiff, E. A., Wang, Q., and Yuan, Q., Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 609, A18.3 (2000).Google Scholar