Recent advances in polycrystalline silicon thin-film solar cells on glass at UNSW

Polycrystalline Si (pc-Si) thin-film solar cells on glass are a very promising approach for lowering the cost of photovoltaic solar electricity. This paper reports on the status of three distinctly different pc-Si thin-film solar cells on glass under development at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). The cells are termed EVA, ALICE and ALICIA, are less than 3 microns thick, and are made by vacuum evaporation, a fast and inexpensive Si deposition method. EVA cells are made on non-seeded glass, whereas ALICE and ALICIA are both made on a thin large-grained pc-Si seed layer formed on glass by metal-induced crystallisation. All three solar cells seem to be capable of voltages of over 500 mV and, owing to their potentially inexpensive and scalable fabrication process, have significant industrial appeal.