Enhancement of photovoltaic properties of multicrystalline silicon solar cells by combination of buried metallic contacts and thin porous silicon

Photovoltaic properties of buried metallic contacts (BMCs) with and without application of a front porous silicon (PS) layer on multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) solar cells were investigated. A Chemical Vapor Etching (CVE) method was used to perform front PS layer and BMCs of mc-Si solar cells. Good electrical performance for the mc-Si solar cells was observed after combination of BMCs and thin PS films. As a result the current–voltage (I–V) characteristics and the internal quantum efficiency (IQE) were improved, and the effective minority carrier diffusion length (Ln) increases from 75 to 110 μm after BMCs achievement. The reflectivity was reduced to 8% in the 450–950 nm wavelength range. This simple and low cost technology induces a 12% conversion efficiency (surface area = 3.2 cm2). The obtained results indicate that the BMCs improve charge carrier collection while the PS layer passivates the front surface.