Abstract
Two fundamental mechanisms limit the maximum attainable efficiency of solar cells, namely the radiative recombination and Auger recombination. We show in this paper that proper band gap grading of the solar cell localizes the Auger recombination around the metallurgical junction. Two beneficial effects result from this Auger recombination localization; first the cell is less sensitive to the surface conditions, and second, the previous estimates for the limiting efficiency of solar cells by Shockley, Tiedje, and Green are revised upwardly. We calculate the optimum bandgap grading profile for several real material systems, including GaInAsP lattice matched to InP, and a-SiGe on a-Si substrate.
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