Efficient hydrogen passivation for MIS inversion layer solar cells on multicrystalline silicon

The effect of hydrogenation on the performance of multicrystalline MIS (metal-insulator-silicon) inversion layer solar cells is demonstrated, and the excellent suitability of their low-temperature fabrication process to hydrogen treatment is shown. It was found that the plasma hydrogenation for the inversion layer cells can be performed on the as-sawn silicon substrates prior to cell processing. In particular, the surface damage layer introduced by the plasma treatment can be completely removed on the bare wafer by an alkaline etchant, and therefore any negative influence on the cell properties is excluded