Characterization of poly-Si thin-film solar cell functions and parameters with IR optical interaction techniques

Three different optical interaction techniques have been employed to characterise the electrical and material parameters of polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin-film solar cells with an interdigitated mesa structure. First, Light Beam Induced Current (LBIC) in the infrared range was used to locally analyse the light collection properties. Second, electroluminescence in forward bias (EL) yielding information on band to band recombination was performed. Third, electroluminescence in reverse bias (ELR) was utilized to gain information on the intraband relaxation. The EL and ELR measurements were performed using cooled Si-CCD (Silicon-based Charge Coupled Device) and InGaAs (Indium Gallium Arsenide) detectors. The high resolution IR-LBIC measurement equipped with a 1,064 nm wavelength laser has been applied to investigate the grain boundary characteristics in the absorber layer. Additionally, the local electrical characteristics of the absorber layer (diffusion length, doping concentration and built-in potential) have been extracted by performing a bias-dependent IR-LBIC measurement based on a simple theoretical model with the assumption of relatively small diffusion length compared to the absorber layer thickness. The local/spatial distribution of the diffusion length in the absorber layer of the thin-film solar cell has been extracted. Furthermore, the temperature dependence of the photocurrent of thin-film solar cells in a temperature range of −25 to +70 °C has been locally investigated using IR-LBIC. Additionally, the temperature dependence of the reverse bias characteristics of the poly-Si thin-film solar cell is analysed and compared with that of monocrystalline Si solar cell. For the EL and ELR measurements a spectral analysis of the emitted light has been performed. From the EL results material properties like diffusion length and process induced defects have been deduced and insights on the quality of production processes like metallization and etching were gained. The complementary information from the ELR measurements provides access to additional types of defects resulting from generation centres, such as lattice disorder, crystal defects and charged coulomb centers.