Title :
Study of the hydrogenation mechanism by rapid thermal anneal of SiN:H in thin-film polycrystalline-silicon solar cells
Author :
Carnel, L. ; Dekkers, H.F.W. ; Gordon, I. ; Van Gestel, D. ; Van Nieuwenhuysen, K. ; Beaucarne, G. ; Poortmans, J.
Author_Institution :
IMEC, Leuven, Belgium
fDate :
3/1/2006 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
A considerable cost reduction in photovoltaics could be achieved if efficient solar cells could be made from thin polycrystalline-silicon (pc-Si) films. Although hydrogen passivation of pc-Si films is crucial to obtain good solar cells, the exact mechanism of hydrogen diffusion through pc-Si layers is not yet understood. In this letter, the influence of the junction and the grain size are investigated. We find that the presence of a p-n junction acts as a barrier for hydrogen diffusion in thin-film polysilicon solar cells. Therefore, pc-Si solar cells should preferably be passivated before junction formation. Furthermore, pc-Si layers with large grains retain less hydrogen after passivation than layers with small grains. This indicates that hydrogen atoms get mainly trapped at the grain boundaries.
Keywords :
grain boundaries; grain size; hydrogen; p-n junctions; passivation; rapid thermal annealing; semiconductor thin films; silicon compounds; solar cells; SiN:H; grain boundaries; grain size; hydrogen diffusion; hydrogen passivation; hydrogenation mechanism; p-n junction; photovoltaics; rapid thermal annealing; solar cells; thin poly-crystalline-silicon films; Atomic layer deposition; Costs; Grain boundaries; Grain size; Hydrogen; P-n junctions; Passivation; Photovoltaic cells; Rapid thermal annealing; Transistors; Hydrogenation; polycrystalline-silicon (pc-Si); solar cells;
Journal_Title :
Electron Device Letters, IEEE
DOI :
10.1109/LED.2005.863566
