Near surface defects: Cause of deficit between internal and external open-circuit voltage in solar cells

in Progress in Photovoltaics (2021)

Interface recombination in a complex multilayered thin-film solar structure causes a disparity between the internal open-circuit voltage (VOC,in), measured by photoluminescence, and the external open ... [more ▼]

Interface recombination in a complex multilayered thin-film solar structure causes a disparity between the internal open-circuit voltage (VOC,in), measured by photoluminescence, and the external open-circuit voltage (VOC,ex), that is, a VOC deficit. Aspirations to reach higher VOC,ex values require a comprehensive knowledge of the connection between VOC deficit and interface recombination. Here, a near-surface defect model is developed for copper indium di-selenide solar cells grown under Cu-excess conditions. These cell show the typical signatures of interface recombination: a strong disparity between VOC,in and VOC,ex, and extrapolation of the temperature dependent q·VOC,ex to a value below the bandgap energy. Yet, these cells do not suffer from reduced interface bandgap or from Fermi-level pinning. The model presented is based on experimental analysis of admittance and deep-level transient spectroscopy, which show the signature of an acceptor defect. Numerical simulations using the near-surface defects model show the signatures of interface recombination without the need for a reduced interface bandgap or Fermi-level pinning. These findings demonstrate that the VOC,in measurements alone can be inconclusive and might conceal the information on interface recombination pathways, establishing the need for complementary techniques like temperature dependent current–voltage measurements to identify the cause of interface recombination in the devices. [less ▲]

Over 15% efficient wide-band-gap Cu(In,Ga)S2 solar cell: Suppressing bulk and interface recombination through composition engineering

in Joule (2021), 5

Lifetime, quasi-Fermi level splitting and doping concentration of Cu-rich CuInS2 absorbers

in Materials Research Express (2021), 8

How band tail recombination influences the open-circuit voltage of solar cells.

in Progress in Photovoltaics (2021)

How photoluminescence can predict the efficiency of solar cells

in JPhys Materials (2021)

Absorber composition: A critical parameter for the effectiveness of heat treatments in chalcopyrite solar cells

in Progress in Photovoltaics (2020)

Post-device heat treatment (HT) in chalcopyrite [Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2] solar cells is known to improve the performance of the devices. However, this HT is only beneficial for devices made with absorbers grown ... [more ▼]

Post-device heat treatment (HT) in chalcopyrite [Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2] solar cells is known to improve the performance of the devices. However, this HT is only beneficial for devices made with absorbers grown under Cu-poor conditions but not under Cu excess.. We present a systematic study to understand the effects of HT on CuInSe2 and CuInS2 solar cells. The study is performed for CuInSe2 solar cells grown under Cu-rich and Cu-poor chemical potential prepared with both CdS and Zn(O,S) buffer layers. In addition, we also study Cu-rich CuInS2 solar cells prepared with the suitable Zn(O,S) buffer layer. For Cu-poor selenide device low-temperature HT leads to passivation of bulk, whereas in Cu-rich devices no such passivation was observed. The Cu-rich devices are hampered by a large shunt. The HT decreases shunt resistance in Cu-rich selenides, whereas it increases shunt resistance in Cu-rich sulfides.. The origin of these changes in device performance was investigated with capacitance-voltage measurement which shows the considerable decrease in carrier concentration with HT in Cu-poor CuInSe2, and temperature dependent current-voltage measurements show the presence of barrier for minority carriers. Together with numerical simulations, these findings support a highly-doped interfacial p+ layer device model in Cu-rich selenide absorbers and explain the discrepancy between Cu-poor and Curich device performance. Our findings provide insights into how the same treatment can have a completely different effect on the device depending on the composition of the absorber. [less ▲]

Phonon coupling and shallow defects in CuInS2

in Physical Review. B (2020), 101(8), 085119-

Oxidation as Key Mechanism for Efficient Interface Passivation in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Thin-Film Solar Cells

in Physical Review Applied (2020)

Ultra-thin passivation layers in cu(in,Ga)Se2 thin-film solar cells: full-area passivated front contacts and their impact on bulk doping

in Scientific Reports (2020)

Chemical instability at chalcogenide surfaces impacts chalcopyrite devices well beyond the surface

in Nature Communications (2020)