30 µm wide contacts on silicon cells by laser transfer

We present a new fine line metallization process, called laser transferred contacts (LTC), with finger width w <; 30 μm. This method uses a laser transfer of metals to contact the emitter directly through the anti-reflection coating without the need of high temperature steps. The laser transfer process is not limited to a special material; hence a variety of metals can be used for contact formation. After the laser transfer, electroplating thickens the contacts to increase the conductivity of the fingers. First solar cells with efficiency η = 17.4% and fill factor FF = 77.7% demonstrate the great potential of LTC.