Relationship between the blue response and open-circuit voltage of high performance silicon solar cells

The relationship between the response at blue wavelengths and the open-circuit voltage of high performance silicon solar cells with a virtually "transparent" emitter is analyzed. It is shown that a one-dimensional cell model cannot simultaneously model the optical collection properties and operating characteristics of such cells. The analysis highlights the importance of surface conditions and shows that previous conclusions regarding bounds on Auger coefficients imposed by correlating these parameters must be treated with caution.