The Critical Influence of Spin‐Dry Technique on the Surface Passivation Quality of Crystalline Silicon Solar Cell Structures

This study examines the effects of spin‐dry (SD) and N 2 blow‐dry (ND) techniques on the quality and surface passivation performance of silicon oxide grown in ozone‐dissolved deionized water. The SD method achieves greater oxide thickness uniformity, averaging 1.39 nm ± 4.17% across 49 points, compared to 1.68 nm ± 21.67% for the ND wafers. However, persistently poor passivation of ozonated oxide‐grown wafers following the SD process is exhibited, with carrier lifetime, τ eff < 0.3 ms and saturation current density, J 0 (per side) ranging from 26 to 45 fA cm 2 . These findings are analyzed in the context of the fundamental phenomena involved in the drying processes of both techniques. Following this, an optimized spin‐drying process is developed, resulting in improved τ eff and J 0 values of 1.4 ms and 5.6 fA cm −2 , respectively. Scanning electron microscopy further confirms that the oxide films dried with the enhanced SD technique are free of pinholes.