Abstract
Recent investigations have firmly established that the metastable defect which is responsible for the light-induced degradation in Czochralski silicon (Cz-Si) is correlated with oxygen and boron. Thus, an attractive way to improve the material quality is to substitute boron by gallium as the p-type dopant. The authors have verified that no degradation and excellent carrier lifetimes close to the theoretical limit are observed over a wide doping concentration range. Stable efficiencies higher than 20% can be achieved with an RP-PERC cell structure on gallium-doped Cz-Si with resistivities from 0.12 /spl Omega/ cm to 1.5 /spl Omega/ cm. A maximum efficiency of 22.2% was obtained at 0.3 /spl Omega/ cm despite the Ga-doped Cz-Si having a significant concentration of interstitial oxygen. Standard Cz-Si (boron-doped, oxygen-contaminated) can be improved by an optimized high-temperature step without external gettering. Choosing the optimal process parameters, it is possible to increase the stable lifetime significantly in both conventional tube furnace and rapid thermal processing (RTP) system. Using the RTP system, the stable lifetime can be improved by a factor of two within 120 s.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
