Sputter-Deposited AlTiO Thin Films for Semi-Transparent Silicon Thin Film Solar Cells

Abstract

This paper reports on sputter-deposited AlTiO (ATO) thin films and their effects on the performance of semi-transparent silicon thin film solar cells. The electrical resistivity and the transparency of the ATO films depend significantly on the flow ratio of oxygen to argon during the reactive sputtering process. With highly transparent ATO films, transmittances of over 80% were obtained by increasing this flow ratio. When the ATO films were used on silicon substrates, they exhibited an anti-reflection property, where the minimum reflectance at visible light wavelength was decreased to 1.2%. The introduction of ATO thin film layers into solar cells resulted in a 24% increase in transmittance at wavelengths of around 700 nm, due to the film’s anti-reflection characteristic. In addition, the color of the cells changed from green to bright red as the ATO layers were adopted. These beneficial effects of the sputter-deposited ATO films suggest an effective pathway towards the semi-transparent silicon thin film solar cells for building-integrated photovoltaic system applications.