The thickness of TiO2 film is vital to realize the optimization on photovoltaic performance of dye sensitized solar cells （DSSCs）. Herein, the process of charge separation in DSSCs was simulated by using a drift-dif...The thickness of TiO2 film is vital to realize the optimization on photovoltaic performance of dye sensitized solar cells （DSSCs）. Herein, the process of charge separation in DSSCs was simulated by using a drift-diffusion model. This model allows multiple-trapping diffu- sion of photo-generated electrons, as well as the back reaction with the electron acceptors in electrolyte, to be mimicked in both steady and non-steady states. Numerical results on current-voltage characteristics allow power conversion efficiency to be maximized by varying the thickness of TiO2 film. Charge collection efficiency is shown to decrease with film thick- ness, whereas the flux of electron injection benefits from the film thickening. The output of photocurrent is actually impacted by the two factors. Furthermore, recombination rate constant is found to affect the optimized film thickness remarkably. Thicker TiO2 film is suitable to the DSSCs in which back reaction is suppressed sufficiently. On the contrary, the DSSCs with the redox couple showing fast electron interception require thinner film to alleviate the charge loss via recombination. At open circuit, electron density is found to decrease with film thickness, which engenders not only the reduction of photovoltage but also the increase of electron lifetime.展开更多
The quantum efficiency of CZTSSe （copper zinc tin sulphur selenium） thin film solar cells is numerically simulated at different temperatures and under a set of bias conditions about the efficiency limiting factors. ...The quantum efficiency of CZTSSe （copper zinc tin sulphur selenium） thin film solar cells is numerically simulated at different temperatures and under a set of bias conditions about the efficiency limiting factors. A systematic methodology is developed and integrated into the proposed model to simulate the characteristics in the quantum efficiency. The proposed model is demonstrated with respect to an ideal device model under a set of bias conditions to selectively deactivate performance limiting parameters under light and voltage biased conditions. Under particular wavelength regions and bias conditions, a particular type of defects near the heterojunction interface significantly impact the carrier collection of devices. This deep acceptor type defect distribution is located in the band of ＋/- 0.3 eV from the midgap. These defect states influence CZTSSe spectral responses of red and IR light wavelength regions in quantum efficiency caused by affected depletion width toward the back contact. Therefore, the quantum efficiency of CZTSSe devices is altered disproportionally at biased conditions.展开更多
Because crystalline silicon thin film （CSiTF） solar cells possess the advantages of crystalline silicon solar cells such as high ef- ficiency and stable performance and those of thin film solar cells such as low cos...Because crystalline silicon thin film （CSiTF） solar cells possess the advantages of crystalline silicon solar cells such as high ef- ficiency and stable performance and those of thin film solar cells such as low cost and so on, it is regarded as the next genera- tion solar cell technology, which is most likely to replace the existing crystalline silicon solar cell technology. In this paper, we performed device simulation on the epitaxial CSiTF solar cell by using PCI D software. In order to make simulation results closer to the actual situation, we adopted a more realistic device structure and parameters. On this basis, we comprehensively and systematically investigated the effect of physical parameters of back surface field （BSF） layer, base and emitter, electrical quality of crystalline silicon active layer, situation of surface passivation, internal recombination and p-n junction leakage on the optoelectronic performance of the epitaxial CSiTF solar cell. Among various factors affecting the efficiency of the epitaxial CSiTF solar cell, we identified the three largest efficiency-affecting parameters. They are the base minority carrier diffusion length, the diode dark saturation current and the front surface recombination velocity in order. Through simulations, we found that the base is not the thicker the better, and the base minority carrier diffusion length must be taken into account when deter- mining the optimal base thickness. When the base minority carrier diffusion length is smaller, the optimal base thickness should be less than or equal to the base minority carrier diffusion length; when the base minority carrier diffusion length is larger, the base minority carrier diffusion length should be at least twice the optimal base thickness. In addition, this paper not only illustrates the simulation results but also explains their changes from the aspect of physical mechanisms. Because epitaxi- al CSiTF solar cells possess a device structure that is similar to crystalline silicon solar cells, the conclusions drawn in this pa- per are also applied to crystalline silicon solar cells to a certain extent, particularly to thin silicon solar cells which are the hot- test research topic at present.展开更多
Device modeling is constructive in finding the dependency of devices efficiency on structure parameters and material properties. For the sake of looking into the physics mechanism of organic solar cells (OSCs), as wel...Device modeling is constructive in finding the dependency of devices efficiency on structure parameters and material properties. For the sake of looking into the physics mechanism of organic solar cells (OSCs), as well as predicting their maximum attainable efficiency, numerical modeling is widely utilized to simulate the behavior of OSCs. Although some indispensable parameters are neglected or hypothesized because of inexplicitness in simulation models for OSCs, numerical modeling can describe the kinetic process in OSCs intuitively. This paper summarizes the optical/electrical models in the BHJ solar cell, as well as addresses their corresponding development in recent years on the basis of device physics and its working principle. Applications of numerical modeling and comments on modeling results are summarized. Meanwhile, precision and open questions about every model are discussed.展开更多
In view of the universality of the parallel connection of solar cells and their mismatch problem, in the present paper, we select two shunt solar cells (connected in parallel) as our research object, and use the equiv...In view of the universality of the parallel connection of solar cells and their mismatch problem, in the present paper, we select two shunt solar cells (connected in parallel) as our research object, and use the equivalent one-diode circuit of the solar cell and the analysis of the two-body model. At first, the equations of current and voltage are deduced from the related electrical laws and the circuit diagram of the two solar cells connected in parallel. Then, according to the experimentally measured data of typical single-crystalline silicon solar cells (125 mm×125 mm), we select the appropriate simulation parameters. Following this, by using the photo-generated current, the shunt resistance, and the serial resistance of one of the shunt solar cells and the load resistance as independent variables, in turn, the changing characteristics of each branch current in the two shunt solar cells are numerically discussed and analyzed for these four cases for the first time. At the same time, we provide a simple physical explanation for the modeling results. Our analyses show that these parameters have different impacts on the internal currents of solar cells connected in parallel. These results provide a reference to solve the problem of connecting solar cells and to develop higher efficiency solar cells and systems. Meanwhile, the results will contribute to a better comprehension of the reasons for efficiency loss of solar cells and systems, and deepen the understanding of the electrical of solar cells behavior for high performance photovoltaic applications.展开更多
The DS(directional solidification) polycrystalline silicon ingot is the most important photovoltaic material today,and the conversion efficiency of solar cells is affected by the morphology and organization of the cry...The DS(directional solidification) polycrystalline silicon ingot is the most important photovoltaic material today,and the conversion efficiency of solar cells is affected by the morphology and organization of the crystal.Uniform grains with larger size are conducive to get high-quality wafer,so improving the cell conversion efficiency.However,grains sizes that are less than 1 mm2 can be observed frequently in the central district of mc-Si ingots,which bring negative effect to the quality of the mc-Si ingot and decrease the electrical performance of wafer.In this paper,we make an attempt to explain the formation mechanism and influence factors of microcrystal in mc-Si ingot with computer simulation technology and theory of component supercooling.It was found that:to avoid production of microcrystal,it's better to increase the value of G/V(V is the growth rate and G is the near-interface temperature gradient),strengthen the melt convection front in the solidification interface and keep a fairly flat solid/melt interface in producing mc-Si ingot.展开更多
The P+ α-Si /N+ polycrystalline solar cell is molded using the AMPS-1D device simulator to explore the new high efficiency thin film poly-silicon solar cell. In order to analyze the characteristics of this device and...The P+ α-Si /N+ polycrystalline solar cell is molded using the AMPS-1D device simulator to explore the new high efficiency thin film poly-silicon solar cell. In order to analyze the characteristics of this device and the thickness of N+ poly-silicon, we consider the impurity concentration in the N+ poly-silicon layer and the work function of transparent conductive oxide (TCO) in front contact in the calculation. The thickness of N+ poly-silicon has little impact on the device when the thickness varies from 20 μm to 300 μm. The effects of impurity concentration in polycrystalline are analyzed. The conclusion is drawn that the open-circuit voltage (Voc) of P+ α-Si /N+ polycrystalline solar cell is very high, reaching 752 mV, and the conversion efficiency reaches 9.44%. Therefore, based on the above optimum parameters the study on the device formed by P+ α-Si/N+ poly-silicon is significant in exploring the high efficiency poly-silicon solar cell.展开更多
The silicon vertical multi-junction （VMJ） solar cell has a good potential in high concentration, but it requires high quality front and back surface passivation layers to keep its high efficiency. We try to add dopa...The silicon vertical multi-junction （VMJ） solar cell has a good potential in high concentration, but it requires high quality front and back surface passivation layers to keep its high efficiency. We try to add dopants into the front and back surfaces of the VMJ cell to release this strict requirement in this work. The effects of recombination velocities, doping types and doping pro- files of front and back surfaces on the performance of the P-type VMJ cell were calculated under 1 sun and 1000 suns. The 2D numerical simulation tool TCAD software was used. The performance of the VMJ cell without front and back surface dopants was also calculated for comparison. It was found that the requirement of high quality front and back surface passivation layers could be released remarkably by adding either N-type or W-type front and back surface dopants. For the two types of front surface dopants, the highest efficiencies of the cells were got by light dopant; for the two types of back surface dopants, the doping type and profile affected little on the performance of the cell in our calculation range. It was also found that the series resistance of the VMJ cell with N-type front surface dopant was decreased by the 2D effect of front surface emitter. The VMJ cell with W-type front surface dopant had the highest efficiency under 1000 suns and the VMJ cell with N-type front surface dopant had the highest efficiency under 1 sun in our calculation range.展开更多
文摘The thickness of TiO2 film is vital to realize the optimization on photovoltaic performance of dye sensitized solar cells （DSSCs）. Herein, the process of charge separation in DSSCs was simulated by using a drift-diffusion model. This model allows multiple-trapping diffu- sion of photo-generated electrons, as well as the back reaction with the electron acceptors in electrolyte, to be mimicked in both steady and non-steady states. Numerical results on current-voltage characteristics allow power conversion efficiency to be maximized by varying the thickness of TiO2 film. Charge collection efficiency is shown to decrease with film thick- ness, whereas the flux of electron injection benefits from the film thickening. The output of photocurrent is actually impacted by the two factors. Furthermore, recombination rate constant is found to affect the optimized film thickness remarkably. Thicker TiO2 film is suitable to the DSSCs in which back reaction is suppressed sufficiently. On the contrary, the DSSCs with the redox couple showing fast electron interception require thinner film to alleviate the charge loss via recombination. At open circuit, electron density is found to decrease with film thickness, which engenders not only the reduction of photovoltage but also the increase of electron lifetime.
文摘The quantum efficiency of CZTSSe （copper zinc tin sulphur selenium） thin film solar cells is numerically simulated at different temperatures and under a set of bias conditions about the efficiency limiting factors. A systematic methodology is developed and integrated into the proposed model to simulate the characteristics in the quantum efficiency. The proposed model is demonstrated with respect to an ideal device model under a set of bias conditions to selectively deactivate performance limiting parameters under light and voltage biased conditions. Under particular wavelength regions and bias conditions, a particular type of defects near the heterojunction interface significantly impact the carrier collection of devices. This deep acceptor type defect distribution is located in the band of ＋/- 0.3 eV from the midgap. These defect states influence CZTSSe spectral responses of red and IR light wavelength regions in quantum efficiency caused by affected depletion width toward the back contact. Therefore, the quantum efficiency of CZTSSe devices is altered disproportionally at biased conditions.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 50802118)Science & Technology Research Project of Guangdong Province (Grant Nos. 2011A032304001,2010B090400020)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No. 2011300003161469)
文摘Because crystalline silicon thin film （CSiTF） solar cells possess the advantages of crystalline silicon solar cells such as high ef- ficiency and stable performance and those of thin film solar cells such as low cost and so on, it is regarded as the next genera- tion solar cell technology, which is most likely to replace the existing crystalline silicon solar cell technology. In this paper, we performed device simulation on the epitaxial CSiTF solar cell by using PCI D software. In order to make simulation results closer to the actual situation, we adopted a more realistic device structure and parameters. On this basis, we comprehensively and systematically investigated the effect of physical parameters of back surface field （BSF） layer, base and emitter, electrical quality of crystalline silicon active layer, situation of surface passivation, internal recombination and p-n junction leakage on the optoelectronic performance of the epitaxial CSiTF solar cell. Among various factors affecting the efficiency of the epitaxial CSiTF solar cell, we identified the three largest efficiency-affecting parameters. They are the base minority carrier diffusion length, the diode dark saturation current and the front surface recombination velocity in order. Through simulations, we found that the base is not the thicker the better, and the base minority carrier diffusion length must be taken into account when deter- mining the optimal base thickness. When the base minority carrier diffusion length is smaller, the optimal base thickness should be less than or equal to the base minority carrier diffusion length; when the base minority carrier diffusion length is larger, the base minority carrier diffusion length should be at least twice the optimal base thickness. In addition, this paper not only illustrates the simulation results but also explains their changes from the aspect of physical mechanisms. Because epitaxi- al CSiTF solar cells possess a device structure that is similar to crystalline silicon solar cells, the conclusions drawn in this pa- per are also applied to crystalline silicon solar cells to a certain extent, particularly to thin silicon solar cells which are the hot- test research topic at present.
基金supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2009CB930600)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 20774043 and 20974046)+1 种基金the New Century Excellent Talents funding from the Ministry of Education in China (Grant No. NCET-08-0697)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Higher Education (Grant No. 08KJB430011)
文摘Device modeling is constructive in finding the dependency of devices efficiency on structure parameters and material properties. For the sake of looking into the physics mechanism of organic solar cells (OSCs), as well as predicting their maximum attainable efficiency, numerical modeling is widely utilized to simulate the behavior of OSCs. Although some indispensable parameters are neglected or hypothesized because of inexplicitness in simulation models for OSCs, numerical modeling can describe the kinetic process in OSCs intuitively. This paper summarizes the optical/electrical models in the BHJ solar cell, as well as addresses their corresponding development in recent years on the basis of device physics and its working principle. Applications of numerical modeling and comments on modeling results are summarized. Meanwhile, precision and open questions about every model are discussed.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51561031)the Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Province (Grant No. 2015GXNSFBA139240)+1 种基金Open Foundation of Guangxi Colleges and Universities Key Laboratory of Complex System Optimization and Large Data Processing (Grant No. 2015CSOBD0102)the Highlevel Personnel Scientific Research Funds of Yulin Normal University (Grant No. G20150001)
文摘In view of the universality of the parallel connection of solar cells and their mismatch problem, in the present paper, we select two shunt solar cells (connected in parallel) as our research object, and use the equivalent one-diode circuit of the solar cell and the analysis of the two-body model. At first, the equations of current and voltage are deduced from the related electrical laws and the circuit diagram of the two solar cells connected in parallel. Then, according to the experimentally measured data of typical single-crystalline silicon solar cells (125 mm×125 mm), we select the appropriate simulation parameters. Following this, by using the photo-generated current, the shunt resistance, and the serial resistance of one of the shunt solar cells and the load resistance as independent variables, in turn, the changing characteristics of each branch current in the two shunt solar cells are numerically discussed and analyzed for these four cases for the first time. At the same time, we provide a simple physical explanation for the modeling results. Our analyses show that these parameters have different impacts on the internal currents of solar cells connected in parallel. These results provide a reference to solve the problem of connecting solar cells and to develop higher efficiency solar cells and systems. Meanwhile, the results will contribute to a better comprehension of the reasons for efficiency loss of solar cells and systems, and deepen the understanding of the electrical of solar cells behavior for high performance photovoltaic applications.
基金supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province of China (Grant No BK2008548)
文摘The DS(directional solidification) polycrystalline silicon ingot is the most important photovoltaic material today,and the conversion efficiency of solar cells is affected by the morphology and organization of the crystal.Uniform grains with larger size are conducive to get high-quality wafer,so improving the cell conversion efficiency.However,grains sizes that are less than 1 mm2 can be observed frequently in the central district of mc-Si ingots,which bring negative effect to the quality of the mc-Si ingot and decrease the electrical performance of wafer.In this paper,we make an attempt to explain the formation mechanism and influence factors of microcrystal in mc-Si ingot with computer simulation technology and theory of component supercooling.It was found that:to avoid production of microcrystal,it's better to increase the value of G/V(V is the growth rate and G is the near-interface temperature gradient),strengthen the melt convection front in the solidification interface and keep a fairly flat solid/melt interface in producing mc-Si ingot.
基金supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province of China (Grant No. A0220001)Science Research Project of Leshan Vocational & Technical College (Grant No. KY2011001)the Key Research Project in Science and Technology of Leshan (Grant No. 2011GZD050)
文摘The P+ α-Si /N+ polycrystalline solar cell is molded using the AMPS-1D device simulator to explore the new high efficiency thin film poly-silicon solar cell. In order to analyze the characteristics of this device and the thickness of N+ poly-silicon, we consider the impurity concentration in the N+ poly-silicon layer and the work function of transparent conductive oxide (TCO) in front contact in the calculation. The thickness of N+ poly-silicon has little impact on the device when the thickness varies from 20 μm to 300 μm. The effects of impurity concentration in polycrystalline are analyzed. The conclusion is drawn that the open-circuit voltage (Voc) of P+ α-Si /N+ polycrystalline solar cell is very high, reaching 752 mV, and the conversion efficiency reaches 9.44%. Therefore, based on the above optimum parameters the study on the device formed by P+ α-Si/N+ poly-silicon is significant in exploring the high efficiency poly-silicon solar cell.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.61275040,60976046,60837001,61021003)the National Basic Research Program of China("973" Project)(Grant No.2012CB934204)by Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant No.Y072051002)
文摘The silicon vertical multi-junction （VMJ） solar cell has a good potential in high concentration, but it requires high quality front and back surface passivation layers to keep its high efficiency. We try to add dopants into the front and back surfaces of the VMJ cell to release this strict requirement in this work. The effects of recombination velocities, doping types and doping pro- files of front and back surfaces on the performance of the P-type VMJ cell were calculated under 1 sun and 1000 suns. The 2D numerical simulation tool TCAD software was used. The performance of the VMJ cell without front and back surface dopants was also calculated for comparison. It was found that the requirement of high quality front and back surface passivation layers could be released remarkably by adding either N-type or W-type front and back surface dopants. For the two types of front surface dopants, the highest efficiencies of the cells were got by light dopant; for the two types of back surface dopants, the doping type and profile affected little on the performance of the cell in our calculation range. It was also found that the series resistance of the VMJ cell with N-type front surface dopant was decreased by the 2D effect of front surface emitter. The VMJ cell with W-type front surface dopant had the highest efficiency under 1000 suns and the VMJ cell with N-type front surface dopant had the highest efficiency under 1 sun in our calculation range.
