CdTe single-crystal heterojunction photovoltaic cells

Most recent gains in CdTe photovoltaic (PV) device efficiency have been in short-circuit current density (J sc ) and fill factor (FF), rather than open-circuit voltage (V oc ). Because J sc is nearing its theoretical limit, further improvements in device efficiency will require increasing V oc beyon...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Duenow, Joel N., Burst, James M., Albin, David S., Kuciauskas, Darius, Johnston, Steven W., Reedy, Robert C., Duda, Anna, DeHart, Clay M., Metzger, Wyatt K.
Format: Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Subjects:
cadmium compounds
current-voltage characteristics
Gold
heterojunctions
II-VI semiconductor materials
Performance evaluation
Photovoltaic cells
Photovoltaic systems
solar energy
Surface treatment
Online Access:Request full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Most recent gains in CdTe photovoltaic (PV) device efficiency have been in short-circuit current density (J sc ) and fill factor (FF), rather than open-circuit voltage (V oc ). Because J sc is nearing its theoretical limit, further improvements in device efficiency will require increasing V oc beyond 860 mV and increasing FF. V oc and FF may be improved by increasing both the carrier concentration and minority-carrier lifetime of the CdTe. However, V oc may be limited for other reasons, including Fermi-level pinning and surface recombination. In this study, we used doped CdTe single crystals to test whether higher carrier concentration and lifetime can overcome traditional V oc barriers. In our work to date, we have fabricated heterojunction CdTe PV cells with V oc up to 929 mV, FF of ~60%, and efficiencies of 10%.
ISSN:0160-8371
DOI:10.1109/PVSC.2014.6925388