Effect of Front TCO Layer on Properties of Substrate-Type Thin-Film Microcrystalline Silicon Solar Cells

Power conversion efficiency of thin-film microcrystalline silicon solar cells has been remarkably improved recently: from 10.1% to 11.8%. Front transparent conductive oxide (TCO) films have played an important role in this efficiency improvement. In this study, the impact of the front TCO films was investigated by comparing microcrystalline silicon solar cells with In
₂
O
₃
:Sn films grown by sputtering and ZnO:B films grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Improvement mechanisms in open-circuit voltages and fill factors in solar cells are investigated and discussed.