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Investigation and optimization of ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells by using silvaco-TCAD tools

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Abstract

This paper presents an investigation of ultrathin Cu (In1−xGax) Se2 solar cell which was calibrated from the fabricated cell using Silvaco-TCAD tools. Carrier transport mechanism and conduction band alignment at the CdS/CIGS interface shows a large influence on PV parameters. The influence of the absorber trap density on the electrical characteristics of the single junction cell was investigated under AM 1.5G one-sun (100 mW/cm2) illumination. Further simulations quantify significant improvements in cell efficiency while using a thin Al2O3 material as a rear passivation layer. In addition, the impact of the backside pitch size, opening width, absorber layer do**, and thickness on cell performance is investigated to enhance the cell efficiency. To evaluate our work, the electrical characteristics of the optimized cell were compared to the fabricated cells.

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Acknowledgements

This research work is partially supported by Semiconductor Laboratory (GE01/08), Kuwait University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Electronics and Communication Engineering Department, Kuwait College of Science and Technology, Road N. 7, Doha, Kuwait

    Nour El I. Boukortt

  2. Department of Physics, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

    Amal M. AlAmri

  3. Department of Physics, College of Sciences and Humanities, Al Quwayiyah, Shaqraa University, Al Quwayiyah, Saudi Arabia

    Feriel Bouhjar

  4. Photovoltaic Laboratory, Research and Technology Centre of Energy, Borj-Cedria Science and Technology, CRTEn, Hammam-Lif, Tunisia

    Feriel Bouhjar

  5. Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural and Life Sciences, University of Mostaganem, 27000, Mostaganem, Algeria

    Kheira Bouhadiba

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  1. Nour El I. Boukortt
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Correspondence to Nour El I. Boukortt.

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Boukortt, N.E.I., AlAmri, A.M., Bouhjar, F. et al. Investigation and optimization of ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells by using silvaco-TCAD tools. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 32, 21525–21538 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-021-06661-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-021-06661-4

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