Development of wide-band gap InGaN solar cells for high-efficiency photovoltaics

Photovoltaics;Solar cells;Wide band gap;GaN;InGaN

Jani, Omkar Kujadkumar ; Electrical and Computer Engineering

University:Georgia Institute of Technology

Department:Electrical and Computer Engineering

关键词: Photovoltaics;    Solar cells;    Wide band gap;    GaN;    InGaN;   

Others  :  https://smartech.gatech.edu/bitstream/1853/29627/1/jani_omkar_k_200808_phd.pdf

美国|英语

来源: SMARTech Repository

【 摘 要 】

Main objective of the present work is to develop wide-band gap InGaN solar cells in the 2.4 - 2.9 eV range that can be an integral component of photovoltaic devices to achieve efficiencies greater than 50%.In the present work, various challenges in the novel III-nitride technology are identified and overcome individually to build basic design blocks, and later, optimized comprehensively to develop high-performance InGaN solar cells.Due to the unavailability of a suitable modeling program for InGaN solar cells, PC1D is modified up to a source-code level to incorporate spontaneous and piezoelectric polarization in order to accurately model III-nitride solar cells.On the technological front, InGaN with indium compositions up to 30% (2.5 eV band gap) are developed for photovoltaic applications by controlling defects and phase separation using metal-organic chemical vapor deposition.InGaN with band gap of 2.5 eV is also successfully doped to achieve acceptor carrier concentration of 1e18 cm-3.A robust fabrication scheme for III-nitride solar cells is established to increase reliability and yield; various schemes including interdigitated grid contact and current spreading contacts are developed to yield low-resistance Ohmic contacts for InGaN solar cells.Preliminary solar cells are developed using a standard design to optimize the InGaN material, where the band gap of InGaN is progressively lowered.Subsequent generations of solar cell designs involve an evolutionary approach to enhance the open-circuit voltage and internal quantum efficiency of the solar cell.The suitability of p-type InGaN with band gaps as low as 2.5 eV is established by incorporating in a solar cell and measuring an open-circuit voltage of 2.1 V.Second generation InGaN solar cell design involving a 2.9 eV InGaN p-n junction sandwiched between p- and n-GaN layers yields internal quantum efficiencies as high as 50%; while sixth generation devices utilizing the novel n-GaN strained window-layer enhance the open circuit voltage of a 2.9 eV InGaN solar cell to 2 V.Finally, key aspects to further InGaN solar cell research, including integration of various designs, are recommended to improve the efficiency of InGaN solar cells.These results establish the potential of III-nitrides in ultra-high efficiency photovoltaics.