Amorphous thin films for solar cell application. Final technical report, March 15, 1979-February 29, 1980

Abstract

Magnetron sputtering, a deposition method in which magnetic confinement of a plasma encourages high deposition rates at low working gas partial pressures, is under investigation in this program as a candidate production technology for large-scale manufacture of high-efficiency, thin-film amorphous silicon solar photovoltaic cells. The approach uses two dc magnetron geometries: (1) a low-cost planar magnetron (PM) system for exploratory and detailed examination of deposition parameter space; and (2) a cylindrical magnetron (CM) system, scalable to production sizes, for deposition of homogeneous films over large areas. Detailed descriptions of these two systems are included. During this first-year effort, amorphous silicon films and device structures were sputtered in both PM and CM systems under a wide range of deposition conditions (i.e., T/sub s/, P/sub Ar/, P/sub H/sub 2//) using both doped and undoped sputter targets. Measured electrical and optical film properties indicate that control over a wide range of conductivity, photoconductivity, conductivity activation energy, and optical and infrared absorption behavior is achievable. Multiple depositions to fabricate simple MIS device structures and simultaneously to deposit monitor samples of individual constituent layers have been successful. Other program highlights are: (1) deposition rates as great as 1500 A/min were achieved in high-power dc magnetronmore » operation at practical substrate-target spacings; (2) p-type and n-type a-Si:H consistently deposited from p- and n-type targets, respectively; (3) demonstrated correlation of argon and hydrogen partial pressure variations with optical, electronic, and structural properties of magnetron-sputtered a-Si:H films; and (4) initial depositions have achieved properties comparable to those in films made by rf sputtering and glow-discharge methods.« less