Radiation-resistance of InGaP solar cells

Irradiation effects of 1-MeV electrons in In/sub 0.5/Ga/sub 0.5/P (hereafter written as InGaP) space solar cells fabricated on GaAs substrates have been examined in comparison with those of GaAs and InP cells. Superior radiation-resistance of InGaP cells compared to GaAs cells has been found in terms of solar cell properties and minority-carrier diffusion length. Moreover, minority-carrier injection-enhanced annealing of radiation-induced defects in InP-related materials has also been observed.