Optimal hydrogenated amorphous silicon/silicon nitride bilayer passivation of n-type crystalline silicon using response surface methodology

Abstract

This study reports the highest quality surface passivation achieved with hydrogenated amorphous silicon and amorphous silicon nitride (SiNx) bilayer stack deposited using plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition on 1–2 Ωcm n-type crystalline silicon. The SiNx deposition conditions were investigated using response surface methodology (RSM). Optimized deposition parameters obtained from the RSM study yielded a low surface recombination velocity (SRV) of 3.5 cm/s. Interface defect and charge densities, inferred using the interface dangling bond recombination model, revealed a strong influence of charge on the SRV reduction. The model predicts a lower SRV of 1.5 cm/s for the bilayer passivation scheme.