| title: | Contacts for Semiconductor Solar Cells |
|---|---|
| reg no: | ETF5914 |
| project type: | Estonian Science Foundation research grant |
| subject: |
2.2. Materials Science |
| status: | completed |
| institution: | TTU Faculty of Chemistry and Materials Technology |
| head of project: | Tiit Varema |
| duration: | 01.01.2004 - 31.12.2005 |
| description: | The present project is concerning with the contacting problems of monograin membrane solar cells. For a solar cell it is not sufficient to produce p-n heterojunction with high quantum efficiency. The electrons generated by light have to be transfered to the external current curcuit. The solution of this problem depends on the choice of appropriate contact material and on the preparation of the absorber material surface. At the same time the economical expedience has to be guarantied. Contacting problems of solar cells working on the base of p-n heterojunction can be devided into two groups - optical window or front contact and back contact problems. Front contact. Largely used appropriate material for solar cell windows is ZnO. The optical and electrical characteristics of ZnO are greatly depending on the deposition technology used. The project has the aim to continue the studies of ZnO and ZnO:Al thin films formation by cathodic radiofrequency (RF) sputtering method and to get highly conductive and optically transparent electrodes for monograin layer solar cells, developed in the laboratory of semiconductor materials technology. RF sputtering as a low temperature technology for ZnO and ZnO:Al thin film windows has been chosen for covering a composite, consisting of semicondustor crystals embedded in a polymer material. All ordinarily used technologies for ZnO electrode production are high temperature ones and lead to the thermal destruction of polymer material of the monograin layer. Back contact. The choice of appropriate ohmic-contact material and the preparation of the absorber material surface before contacting is the subject of the present project. |
| project group | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| no | name | institution | position | |
| 1. | Mare Altosaar | Tallinna Tehnikaülikool | vanemteadur | |
| 2. | Enn Mellikov | Tallinna Tehnikaülikool | professor | |
| 3. | Tiit Varema | TTU Faculty of Chemistry and Materials Technology | senior researcher | |