PVSAT-14_27_Tsai.pdf (227.5 kB)
Combined electrical and optical characterisation of recombination mechanisms and minority carrier lifetime in solar cells
conference contribution
posted on 2018-07-10, 08:57 authored by Vincent Tsai, Francesco Bittau, Christos Potamialis, Martin BlissMartin Bliss, Tom BettsTom Betts, Ralph GottschalgThis work presents the development of a measurement system which combines optical and electrical characterisation of carrier lifetime and recombination mechanisms of thin film solar cells. It combines spectrally-resolved photoluminescence (PL), time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL), and transient photocurrent (TPCD), which are measured using a single excitation laser source at the same spot of the solar cell. Initial PL, TRPL and TPCD measurements have been conducted on CdS/CdTe and MZO/CdTe samples. The resulting PL spectra show emission peaks corresponding to the material bandgap. Under the same excitation conditions and same measurement spot, initial TRPL and TPCD measurements were successfully conducted, yielding effective carrier lifetime values (τ1=1.39ns, τ2=3.91ns) and (τ=40.5ns), respectively for the CdS/CdTe sample and (τ1=0.98ns, τ2=3.3ns) and (τ=36.8ns), respectively for the MZO/CdTe sample. These values are affected by different recombination processes in solar cells. Therefore, as well as characterising solar cell material quality, the electronic properties of the finished PV device can also be characterised.
Funding
This work was supported by the UK Engineering and Research Council through the PVteam project EP/L017792/1: Photovoltaic Technology based on Earth Abundant Materials and by the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in New and Sustainable Photovoltaics CDT-PV, EP/L01551X/1.
History
School
- Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering
Published in
PVSAT-14Citation
TSAI, V. ... et al, 2018. Combined electrical and optical characterisation of recombination mechanisms and minority carrier lifetime in solar cells. IN: Proceedings of the 14th Photovoltaic Science, Applications and Technology Conference (PVSAT-14), London, UK, 18-19 April 2018.Publisher
© The Solar Energy SocietyVersion
- AM (Accepted Manuscript)
Publisher statement
This work is made available according to the conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) licence. Full details of this licence are available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Acceptance date
2018-04-18Publication date
2018Notes
This is a conference paper.Publisher version
Language
- en