Abstract: This chapter provides an overview of thin silicon solar cells. Thin silicon solar cells can greatly benefit from light-trapping effects, which can offset the relatively weak absorption near-bandgap energy photons by increasing the optical path length of light within a solar cell structure. Three types of reflective surfaces can be employed—random texture, geometric or regular structuring, and the use of optical elements external to the silicon solar cell structure—to implement light trapping in silicon solar cells. Light trapping has been incorporated in structures with thickness ranging from less than 1 micron to 400 microns with varying degrees of success. The factors that influence the open-circuit voltage of a silicon solar cell are the same irrespective of the fact whether the device is thin or thick. These include doping levels, various bulk recombination mechanisms, and surface recombination.
Publication Year: 2005
Publication Date: 2005-01-01
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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