Interface Studies for Microcrystalline Silicon Thin-Film Solar Cells deposited on TCO-coated planar and textured glass superstrates

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the most important interfaces of microcrystalline silicon (?c-Si:H) thin-film solar cells on glass superstrates. These interfaces are crucially important for either the electrical or optical performance of the solar cells, for example the p/i interface (and a buffer layer added at this interface) or the textured glass/TCO interface as well as the textured TCO/Si interface. The influence of the growth surface?s morphology on the ?c-Si:H film growth and on the solar cell performance is investigated. First, a standard ?c-Si:H deposition process is established on planar glass. Then follows the investigation of boron-doped ?c-Si:H p+ layers on different types of glass superstrates (planar and textured). Subsequently, the addition of a buffer layer (e.g. intrinsic a-Si:H or ?c-Si:H) at the p/i interface is studied and the influence on the cell efficiency is investigated. We also use numerical simulations to explain the main observed phenomena.