Effects of grain boundaries on the current-voltage characteristics of polycrystalline silicon solar cells

The current components associated with the grain boundaries of diffused p/n junction polysilicon solar cells made on n- and p-type Wacker substrates are analyzed and experimentally identified. New electrical methods for determining the presence or absence of preferential diffusion along the grain boundaries and for determining the average doping density of preferentially diffused regions along the grain boundaries are described. For p-type substrates, these methods revealed preferential phosphorus diffusion along grain boundaries; no preferential boron diffusion along grain boundaries was observed. The recombination current components were analyzed for the cells in which preferential diffusion occurred. The analysis shows that the dominant current component at small bias levels (0-300 mV) is the recombination current at the grain boundaries within the p/n junction space-charge region. At higher bias levels (
V \simeq V_{OC} \simeq 500-600
mV), both this current component and the current component due to recombination at that part of the grain boundary below the preferentially diffused region are important. The grain-boundary shunt resistance does not contribute a significant current component. It is shown that the preferential diffusion makes negligible the recombination current injected into the sidewall of the preferentially diffused region. This is consistent with a model in which the phosphorus diffusion significantly lowers the surface recombination velocity at the grain boundaries and in which the retarding built-in electric field further decreases the recombination current.