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Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells
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Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A2: Solar Energy and Photovoltaic Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 September 2021) | Viewed by 17304

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Paweł Karasiński

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Optoelectronics, Silesian University of Technology, B. Krzywoustego 2, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Interests: integrated optics; planar waveguide films; sol-gel method; optical sensors; evanescent field spectroscopy; grating couplers; antireflective coatings
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Cuma Tyszkiewicz

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Optoelectronics, Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Interests: integrated optics; evanescent wave spectroscopy; material characterization; thin films and nanotechnology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Solar energy is a practically inexhaustible natural power resource for Earth. Therefore, the effort in the development of highly efficient solar cells, which is a response to the most pressing environmental and economic concerns, is of extreme importance. Many types of photovoltaic cells are being developed, among which thin-film solar cells have acquired a significant position. This Special Issue will cover new topics that have arisen with the development of thin-film solar cell technologies, initiated by the necessity of reducing material costs. We welcome research and review papers, both theoretical and experimental, in the areas concerning the development of high-conversion thin-film solar and photovoltaic cells, as well as in the related areas. This Special Issue will cover the following, but is not limited to this list:

  • Thin-film solar cells,
  • Multiple junction thin-film solar cells,
  • Inorganic–organic hybrid nanostructured solar cells,
  • All-polymer solar cells,
  • Colloidal quantum dot photovoltaics,
  • Design, modeling, and fabrication of plasmonic nanostructures and Mie scatterers for more efficient light trapping,
  • Carrier recombination and electronic transport mechanisms,
  • Protective and antireflective coatings,
  • Transparent conductive oxides,
  • Photovoltaic systems,
  • Theoretical analysis of thin-film solar cells.

We welcome papers on various aspects of thin-film solar cells, including topics concerning material engineering, fabrication technology, theoretical analysis, characterization and optimization of thin-film solar cell structures, as well as papers describing innovative industrial solutions and practices, thereby allowing better targeting of academic research toward the improvement of thin-film solar cell conversion efficiency.

Dr. Paweł Karasiński
Dr. Cuma Tyszkiewicz
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Thin-film solar cells
  • Design and modeling of materials and solar cell stacks
  • Multifunctional coatings
  • Semiconductors for thin-film solar cells
  • Quantum dot solar cells

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 5872 KiB  
Article
Interlayer Microstructure Analysis of the Transition Zone in the Silicon/Perovskite Tandem Solar Cell
by Grażyna Kulesza-Matlak, Kazimierz Drabczyk, Anna Sypień, Agnieszka Pająk, Łukasz Major and Marek Lipiński
Energies 2021, 14(20), 6819; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14206819 - 18 Oct 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2067
Abstract
The aim of the paper was to determine the morphology of the layers and the microstructure of the transition zone present in the proposed tandem solar structure. The bottom-silicon solar cell plays a double role: first as a highly porous non-reflecting material, and [...] Read more.
The aim of the paper was to determine the morphology of the layers and the microstructure of the transition zone present in the proposed tandem solar structure. The bottom-silicon solar cell plays a double role: first as a highly porous non-reflecting material, and second as a scaffold for top-perovskite cell. In the presented solution, the use of a porous layer made of (e.g., TiO2) is excluded in favor of chemically etched wires on the silicon surface. The porous layer of silicon consists of nano- and microwires etched with metal assisted etching (MAE). The perovskite layer is introduced by a two-step chemical method into the spaces between the wires to fully fill them and intentionally form an additional capping layer at the same time. To examine the structure made in this way, advanced microscopic methods were used including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), also in high resolution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells)
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17 pages, 5381 KiB  
Article
Application Properties of ZnO and AZO Thin Films Obtained by the ALD Method
by Barbara Swatowska, Wiesław Powroźnik, Halina Czternastek, Gabriela Lewińska, Tomasz Stapiński, Rafał Pietruszka, Bartłomiej S. Witkowski and Marek Godlewski
Energies 2021, 14(19), 6271; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14196271 - 1 Oct 2021
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4153
Abstract
The thin layers of ZnO and ZnO: Al (Al doped zinc oxide—AZO) were deposited by the atomic deposition layer (ALD) method on silicon and glass substrates. The structures were deposited using diethylzinc (DEZ) and deionized water as zinc and oxygen precursors. A precursor [...] Read more.
The thin layers of ZnO and ZnO: Al (Al doped zinc oxide—AZO) were deposited by the atomic deposition layer (ALD) method on silicon and glass substrates. The structures were deposited using diethylzinc (DEZ) and deionized water as zinc and oxygen precursors. A precursor of trimethylaluminum (TMA) was used to introduce the aluminum dopant. The present study of ALD-deposited ZnO and AZO films was motivated by their applications in photovoltaics. We attempted to expose several properties of such films. Structural, optical (including ellipsometric measurements) and electrical investigations were performed. We discussed the relations between samples doped with different Al fractions and their properties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells)
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9 pages, 12534 KiB  
Article
Monolithic Perovskite-Carrier Selective Contact Silicon Tandem Solar Cells Using Molybdenum Oxide as a Hole Selective Layer
by Hoyoung Song, Changhyun Lee, Jiyeon Hyun, Sang-Won Lee, Dongjin Choi, Dowon Pyun, Jiyeon Nam, Seok-Hyun Jeong, Jiryang Kim, Soohyun Bae, Hyunju Lee, Yoonmook Kang, Donghwan Kim and Hae-Seok Lee
Energies 2021, 14(11), 3108; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14113108 - 26 May 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4776
Abstract
Monolithic perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells with MoOx hole selective contact silicon bottom solar cells show a power conversion efficiency of 8%. A thin 15 nm-thick MoOx contact to n-type Si was used instead of a standard p+ emitter to collect [...] Read more.
Monolithic perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells with MoOx hole selective contact silicon bottom solar cells show a power conversion efficiency of 8%. A thin 15 nm-thick MoOx contact to n-type Si was used instead of a standard p+ emitter to collect holes and the SiOx/n+ poly-Si structure was deposited on the other side of the device for direct tunneling of electrons and this silicon bottom cell structure shows ~15% of power conversion efficiency. With this bottom carrier selective silicon cell, tin oxide, and subsequent perovskite structure were deposited to fabricate monolithic tandem solar cells. Monolithic tandem structure without ITO interlayer was also compared to confirm the role of MoOx in tandem cells and this tandem structure shows the power conversion efficiency of 3.3%. This research has confirmed that the MoOx layer simultaneously acts as a passivation layer and a hole collecting layer in this tandem structure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells)
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20 pages, 1375 KiB  
Article
Theoretical Analysis of Experimental Data of Sodium Diffusion in Oxidized Molybdenum Thin Films
by Orlando Ayala, Benjamin Belfore, Tasnuva Ashrafee, John Akwari, Grace Rajan, Shankar Karki, Deewakar Poudel and Sylvain Marsillac
Energies 2021, 14(9), 2479; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14092479 - 26 Apr 2021
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 1897
Abstract
In this work, the diffusion process of sodium (Na) in molybdenum (Mo) thin films while it was deposited on soda lime glass (SLG) was studied. A small amount of oxygen was present in the chamber while the direct-current (DC) magnetron sputtering was used [...] Read more.
In this work, the diffusion process of sodium (Na) in molybdenum (Mo) thin films while it was deposited on soda lime glass (SLG) was studied. A small amount of oxygen was present in the chamber while the direct-current (DC) magnetron sputtering was used for the deposition. The substrate temperatures were varied to observe its effect. Such molybdenum films, with or without oxidations, are often used in thin film solar cells, either as back contact or as hole transport layers. Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) was used to quantify the concentration of the species. A grain diffusion mechanistic model incorporating the effect of grain and grain boundary geometrical shape and size was developed. The model was used to provide an in-depth theoretical analysis of the sodium diffusion in molybdenum thin films that lead to the measured SIMS data. It was observed that not only diffusion coefficients should be considered when analyzing diffusion processes in thin films but also the ratio of grain boundary size to grain size. Both depend on substrate temperature and directly affect the amount of diffused species in the film. The data were analyzed under the light of the film growth speed versus diffusion front speed, the effect of oxygen content, and the effect of substrate temperature on the overall diffusion process. The temperature inversely affects the ratio of grain boundary size and grain size and directly affects the diffusion coefficient, which leads to a preferable temperature at which the highest amount of alkali can be found in the film. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells)
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19 pages, 5373 KiB  
Article
Phototransistor Behavior in CIGS Solar Cells and the Effect of the Back Contact Barrier
by Ricardo Vidal Lorbada, Thomas Walter, David Fuertes Marrón, Dennis Muecke, Tetiana Lavrenko, Oliver Salomon and Raymund Schaeffler
Energies 2020, 13(18), 4753; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13184753 - 11 Sep 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2909
Abstract
In this paper, the impact of the back contact barrier on the performance of Cu (In, Ga) Se2 solar cells is addressed. This effect is clearly visible at lower temperatures, but it also influences the fundamental parameters of a solar cell, such [...] Read more.
In this paper, the impact of the back contact barrier on the performance of Cu (In, Ga) Se2 solar cells is addressed. This effect is clearly visible at lower temperatures, but it also influences the fundamental parameters of a solar cell, such as open-circuit voltage, fill factor and the efficiency at normal operation conditions. A phototransistor model was proposed in previous works and could satisfactorily explain specific effects associated with the back contact barrier, such as the dependence of the saturated current in the forward bias on the illumination level. The effect of this contribution is also studied in this research in the context of metastable parameter drift, typical for Cu (In, Ga) Se2 thin-film solar cells, as a consequence of different bias or light soaking treatments under high-temperature conditions. The impact of the back contact barrier on Cu (In, Ga) Se2 thin-film solar cells is analyzed based on experimental measurements as well as numerical simulations with Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD). A barrier-lowering model for the molybdenum/Cu (In, Ga) Se2 Schottky interface was proposed to reach a better agreement between the simulations and the experimental results. Thus, in this work, the phototransistor behavior is discussed further in the context of metastabilities supported by numerical simulations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Thin Film Solar Cells)
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