Application of low-temperature electron cyclotron resonance CVD to silicon thin-film solar cell preparation

Electron cyclotron resonance chemical vapor deposition (ECRCVD) has been applied to deposit p- and n-doped silicon layers in crystalline and amorphous modification onto different substrates. These layers were characterized with respect to their microstructural, electrical and optoelectrical properties. Moreover they have been used as emitters in Si heterostructure solar cells and as active layers in thin-film solar cells. The obtained characteristics were related to numerical calculations based on a continuum conception concerning carrier mobility and recombination. The numerical estimations confirm that 5 /spl mu/m thick microcrystalline Si solar cells may attain efficiencies >10% if carrier mobilities >10 cm/sup 2//Vs and diffusion lengths which exceed twice the cell thickness can be supposed.