Epitaxial film silicon solar cells fabricated by hot wire chemical vapor deposition below 750°C

We report the fabrication of film c-Si solar cells on Si wafer templates by hot wire chemical vapor deposition. These devices, grown at glass-compatible temperatures below 750° C, demonstrate open-circuit voltages greater than 500 mV and efficiencies above 5%. Analysis of the device characteristics and quantum efficiency provides important information about the epitaxial c-Si absorber material quality as a function of growth temperature.