High-Efficiency Thin-Film Cadmium Telluride Photovoltaic Cells; Final Subcontract Report, Final Technical Report, 21 January 1994-31 March 1998

Abstract

This report describes work performed during the past year by The University of Toledo photovoltaics group. Researchers continued to develop rf sputtering for CdS/CdTe thin-film solar cells and to optimize the post-deposition process steps to match the characteristics of the sputtering process. During the fourth phase of the present contract, we focused on determining factors that limit the efficiency in our ''all-sputtered'' thin-film CdTe solar cells on soda-lime glass. These issues include controlling CdS/CdTe interdiffusion, understanding the properties of the CdS{sub x}Te{sub 1-x} alloy, optimizing process conditions for CdCl{sub 2} treatments, manipulating the influence of ion bombardment during rf sputtering, and understanding the role of copper in quenching photoluminescence and carrier lifetimes in CdTe. To better understand the important CdS/CdTe interdiffusion process, we have continued our collaboration with the University at Buffalo and Brookhaven National Synchrotron Light Source in measurements using grazing-incidence X-rays. Interdiffusion results in the formation of the ternary alloy material CdS{sub x}Te{sub 1-x} at or near the heterojunction, where its properties are critical to the operation of the solar cell. We have placed significant effort on characterizing this alloy, an effort begun in the last phase. A complete set of films spanning the alloy range, prepared by pulsed-laser deposition, has now been characterized by wavelength dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and optical absorption at NREL; by Raman scattering, X-ray diffraction, and electrical measurements in our lab; and by spectroscopic ellipsometry at Brooklyn College. We continued to participate in cooperative activity with the CdTe National Team. We prepared a series of depositions on borosilicate glass substrates having doped SnO{sub 2} layers coated with TiO{sub 2} (prepared by the University of South Florida and Harvard) and similar substrates having a resistive SnO{sub 2} layer on the doped tin oxide (fabricated by Golden Photon). The Golden Photon high-resistivity SnO{sub 2} structure yielded excellent cell performance.