Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vacuum.2015.10.027
Title: Investigation of the thickness effect on material and surface texturing properties of sputtered ZnO:Al films for thin-film Si solar cell applications
Authors: Yan, Xia 
Li, Weimin 
Aberle, Armin G 
Venkataraj, Selvaraj 
Keywords: Science & Technology
Technology
Physical Sciences
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Physics, Applied
Materials Science
Physics
ZnO:Al
Film thickness
Magnetron sputtering
Surface texturing
Thin film
ZINC-OXIDE FILMS
ELECTRICAL-PROPERTIES
BACK REFLECTORS
ETCHED ZNO
AL
MORPHOLOGIES
DEPOSITION
Issue Date: 1-Jan-2016
Publisher: PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
Citation: Yan, Xia, Li, Weimin, Aberle, Armin G, Venkataraj, Selvaraj (2016-01-01). Investigation of the thickness effect on material and surface texturing properties of sputtered ZnO:Al films for thin-film Si solar cell applications. VACUUM 123 : 151-159. ScholarBank@NUS Repository. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vacuum.2015.10.027
Abstract: © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. Transparent conductive Al-doped ZnO (AZO) layers are widely used as the front electrode for thin-film silicon solar cells. For superstrate configurations, the front AZO layer simultaneously provides both electrical conductance and optical scattering. To improve the device performance, a textured surface is needed to enhance the photogeneration inside the solar cell through better light scattering. One approach is to wet-chemically etch the AZO films using hydrochloric (HCl) acid. In this work, AZO films with different initial layer thicknesses (900, 700 and 500 nm) are deposited onto soda-lime glass via magnetron sputtering and their texturing behaviours are compared. It is found that not only the material properties but also the surface texturing process greatly depends on the as-grown thickness of the AZO layer. The increased resistivity is mainly caused by a deteriorating carrier mobility as the thickness reduces. In terms of morphology, thick AZO films (i.e., 900 and 700 nm) show similar texture features after etching. In contrast, the thin AZO films (i.e., 500 nm) show irregularly shaped textures and over-etching, which leads to limited scattering. Hence the AZO layer thickness must be suitably chosen to achieve both good electrical conductance and optical scattering for high-efficiency thin-film Si solar cell applications.
Source Title: VACUUM
URI: https://scholarbank.nus.edu.sg/handle/10635/171643
ISSN: 0042207X
DOI: 10.1016/j.vacuum.2015.10.027
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