Optical and electrical characterization of poly-Si/SiOx contacts and their implications on solar cell design

The scope of this paper lies on the phenomenon of free-carrier absorption (FCA) in heavily phosphorus-doped poly-Si layers, applied at solar cells featuring poly-Si/SiOx passivating contacts at the rear. Firstly, FCA is investigated on test structures featuring poly-Si contacts of different thickness and doping level. Secondly, these passivating contacts are integrated into the rear of solar cells featuring a boron-diffused emitter at the front. The infrared (IR) response of the solar cells is analyzed and FCA losses are quantified. In agreement with theory, it is shown that Jsc losses due to FCA increase with poly-Si doping level and thickness. For instance, a total Jsc loss of ~0.5 mA/cm² is obtained for a 145 nm thick poly-Si layer with a doping concentration of 1.9x1020 cm-3.