Thick-film metallization for solar cell applications

The use of an integral printing technique for the fabrication of silicon solar cells is attractive due to its throughput rate, materials utilization, and modular, automatable design. The transfer of this technology from single crystal to semicrystalline silicon requires a significant amount of process optimization. Processing parameters found to be critical include the optimum glass frit content in the silver-based inks, the silver ink firing temperature, and the formation of the back-surface field using screen-printed aluminum layers. Open-circuit voltages as high as 617 mV have been achieved using a novel BSF approach on 4-in wafers. Important mechanisms controlling ink contact resistance, ink sheet resistivity, and ohmic contact on and silicon materials are discussed in this paper. The solar cell stability is a function of the glass frit and the firing temperature of the silver-based inks. Finally, a simple economic analysis, based on the IPEG technique, indicates that screen printing is a cost-effective option when the cell manufacturing is done on a large scale.