Advanced aRchitectures for ultra-thin high-efficiency CIGS solar cells with high Manufacturability

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Cu(In,Ga)Se2 based ultrathin solar cells: the pathway from lab rigid to large scale flexible technology

Publication . Lopes, Tomás; Teixeira, Jennifer; Curado, Marco; Ferreira, Bernado; Oliveira, Antonio; Cunha, José; Monteiro, Margarida; Violas, André; Barbosa, João; Sousa, Patricia; Çaha, Ihsan; Borme, Jérôme; Oliveira, Kevin; Ring, Johan; Chen, Wei; Zhou, Ye; Takei, Klara; Niemi, Esko; Francis, Leonard; Edoff, Marika; Brammertz, Guy; Fernandes, Paulo; Vermang, Bart; Salomé, Pedro

For the first time, the incorporation of interface passivation structures in ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) based solar cells is shown in a flexible lightweight stainless-steel substrate. The fabrication was based on an industry scalable lithography technique - nanoimprint lithography (NIL) - for a 15x15 cm2 dielectric layer patterning, needed to reduce optoelectronic losses at the rear interface. The nanopatterning schemes are usually developed by lithographic techniques or by processes with limited scalability and reproducibility (nanoparticle lift-off, spin-coating, etc). However, in this work the dielectric layer is patterned using NIL, a low cost, large area, high resolution, and high throughput technique. To assess the NIL performance, devices with a NIL nanopatterned dielectric layer are benchmarked against electron-beam lithography (EBL) patterning, using rigid substrates. Up to now, EBL is considered the most reliable technique for patterning laboratory samples. The device patterned by NIL shows similar light to power conversion efficiency average values compared to the EBL patterned device - 12.6 % vs 12.3 %, respectively - highlighting the NIL potential for application in the solar cell sector. Moreover, the impact of the lithographic processes, such as different etch by-products, in the rigid solar cells’ figures of merit were evaluated from an elemental point of view via X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and electrically through a Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator (SCAPS) fitting procedure. After an optimised NIL process, the device on stainless-steel achieved an average power conversion efficiency value of 11.7 % - a slightly lower value than the one obtained for the rigid approach, due to additional challenges raised by processing and handling steel substrates, even though scanning transmission electron microscopy did not show any clear evidence of impurity diffusion towards the absorber. Notwithstanding, time-resolved photoluminescence results strongly suggested the presence of additional non-radiative recombination mechanisms in the stainless-steel absorber, which were not detected in the rigid solar cells, and are compatible with elemental diffusion from the substrate. Nevertheless, bending tests on the stainless-steel device demonstrated the mechanical stability of the CIGS-based device up to 500 bending cycles.

2022Journal article

Open access

Encapsulation of Nanostructures in a Dielectric Matrix Providing Optical Enhancement in Ultrathin Solar Cells

Publication . Oliveira, Antonio; de Wild, Jessica; Oliveira, Kevin; Valença, Beatriz A.; Guerreiro, Joana Rafaela; Abalde-Cela, Sara; Lopes, Tomás; Ribeiro, Rodrigo M.; Cunha, José Miguel; M.C.Alberto; Monteiro, Margarida; Violas, André; Silva, Ana Gomes; Prado, Marta; Fernandes, P. A.; Vermang, Bart; Salomé, P. M. P.

The incorporation of nanostructures in optoelectronic devices for enhancing their optical performance is widely studied. However, several problems related to the processing complexity and the low performance of the nanostructures have hindered such actions in real-life devices. Herein, a novel way of introducing gold nanoparticles in a solar cell structure is proposed in which the nanostructures are encapsulated with a dielectric layer, shielding them from high temperatures and harsh growth processing conditions of the remaining device. Through optical simulations, an enhancement of the effective optical path length of approximately four times the nominal thickness of the absorber layer is verified with the new architecture. Furthermore, the proposed concept in a Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cell device is demonstrated, where the short-circuit current density is increased by 17.4%. The novel structure presented in this work is achieved by combining a bottom-up chemical approach of depositing the nanostructures with a top-down photolithographic process, which allows for an electrical contact.

2020-08-27Journal article

Open access