CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES OF ELECTRON BEAM EVAPORATION IN THE PREPARATION OF POLY-SI THIN FILM SOLAR CELLS

T. Sontheimer* , C. Becker , F. Ruske , C. Klimm , U. Bloeck , S. Gall , O. Kunz , T. Young , 3 4 1 R. Egan , J. Hpkes , B. Rech Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fr Materialien und Energie, Kekulstr. 5, 12489 Berlin, Germany Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fr Materialien und Energie, Hahn-Meitner Platz 1, 14109 Berlin, Germany 3 CSG Solar Pty Ltd, 82 Bay St., Botany, NSW 2019, Australia 4 Institute of Energy Research Photovoltaics (IEF-5), Forschungszentrum Jlich GmbH, 52425 Jlich, Germany
2 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 3 3

* Phone/Fax: +49-30-8062-1334/1333, E-mail: tobias.sontheimer@helmholtz-berlin.de ABSTRACT Electron-beam (e-beam) evaporation provides both exciting opportunities and challenges for the preparation of poly-crystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin film solar cells. A conversion efficiency of 6.7% was recently achieved for solid phase crystallized poly-Si mini-modules on planar SiN-coated glass deposited at a deposition rate of 600 nm/min, demonstrating the excellent electronic quality of e-beam evaporated silicon. Even at significantly increased -6 background pressures of 5x10 mbar, the photovoltaic performance of the mini-modules was considerably high, showing a decline in open circuit voltage of 17 mV per cell. The implementation of light trapping structures into the device led to an efficiency increase of 1.1%, yielding module efficiencies of 7.8%. By systematically studying the implementation of ZnO:Al as a front contact layer into the poly-Si solar cell device structure, we unraveled novel features that prove the supreme suitability of ZnO:Al for poly-Si thin film solar cells. Not only can etched ZnO:Al be utilized as a front side texture, but its electrical properties can also improve during the crystallization process of the Si layer, showing a record charge carrier mobility of 67 2 cm /Vs after thermal annealing. In addition, ZnO:Al drastically modifies the crystallization kinetics of the Si on ZnO:Al, enabling us to control the crystallization process by adjusting the deposition temperature. The nucleation process of Si on ZnO:Al was found to be influenced by a variation of the deposition temperature of the amorphous Si in a critical temperature regime of 200 C to 300 C. The nucleation rate decreased significantly with decreasing deposition temperature, while the activation energy for nucleation increased from 2.9 eV at a deposition temperature of 300 C to 5.1 eV at 200 C, resulting in poly-Si which comprised grains with features sizes of several m. INTRODUCTION A major challenge for the low-cost thin film Si solar cell production is the fast and effective deposition of Si films with excellent electronic quality which are embedded in a smart contacting scheme and efficient light trapping structure. The preparation of Si thin film solar cells with high electronic quality has been investigated using numerous poly-crystalline Si (poly-Si) approaches. One poly-Si concept is based on the crystallization of deposited amorphous Si by thermal annealing in a solid phase crystallization (SPC) process [1, 2, 3, 4]. With plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) used for the deposition of Si at deposition rates of 30 nm/min, a conversion efficiency of 10.5% has been achieved in an optimized light trapping structure [5, 6, 7]. Nonetheless, to reduce fabrication costs, improve throughput and to increase the competitiveness of this concept in a growing Si thin film market, a faster and simpler deposition process, with considerably higher deposition rates is of significant importance. Unlike a-Si/c-Si technologies that rely on PECVD for the presence of H, poly-Si solar cells formed by SPC can look to high-rate electron beam (ebeam) evaporation as an alternative to PECVD [8]. At deposition rates of 1 m/min or higher, e-beam evaporation potentially might allow for the fabrication of poly-Si films of equivalent quality to PECVD material in a drastically reduced time span. In addition, this physical vapor deposition process can be performed in non-ultra high vacuum condition and does not involve toxic gases. The deposition on large areas is also possible with this method. The additional implementation of the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) ZnO:Al as a front-contact layer into the superstrate concept allows for the incorporation of light trapping structures and a realization of a smart contacting scheme. ZnO:Al is characterized by its high electrical conductivity combined with its optical transparency. In addition, by applying chemical etch process the surface texture of ZnO:Al can be improved, resulting in a light trapping texture which contributes to an substantial improvement of Si solar cell efficiencies [9]. This paper discusses the opportunities and challenges of e-beam evaporation for the preparation of poly-Si solar cells and presents a systematic study of the possibilities and crucial parameters for a successful implementation of ZnO:Al into the solar cell structure. The first section presents an overview of the achieved solar cell results followed by a detailed analysis of the influence of the background pressure on the performance of the fabricated modules. The latter aspect is of utmost importance for an evaluation of the deposition process scalability. The second section addresses the compatibility

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of ZnO:Al with the fabrication processes by investigating the change of the electrical properties of ZnO:Al during the crystallization process of the Si. The unique crystallization kinetics of Si on ZnO:Al-coated glass is presented and subsequently compared to the phase transition of Si on SiN-coated glass. Finally the potential of wet chemical etched ZnO:Al as a front side light trapping structure is evaluated. POLY-SI MINI-MODULE FABRICATION The investigated cell structure comprises a PECVD+ deposited n -type Si emitter layer and a p-type base and + p layer deposited by e-beam evaporation. Samples consisting of a PECVD-deposited SiN, which acts as an antireflection coating and diffusion barrier, and + an amorphous n -type Si emitter layer on Schott Borofloat 33 (size 98 mm x 98 mm x 3.3 mm) glass substrates were supplied by CSG Solar. The SiN layer had a thickness of + 100 nm, whereas the n -type emitter with a doping 20 -3 concentration of 1x10 cm was 35 nm thick. To remove the oxide layer on the amorphous Si that formed while being exposed to air, the sample surfaces were treated with hydrofluoric acid with a concentration of 1% directly prior to loading for deposition. The deposition of the ebeam evaporated amorphous boron doped Si layers was carried out at Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (HZB). The 1.7 m + thick p -type base layer and the 60 nm thick p -type layer 19 -3 with a doping concentration of 1x10 cm were deposited consecutively without breaking vacuum at a background -7 pressure of 1x10 mbar. Figure 1 illustrates the deposited structure.

grooves in the Si layer to define individual cells, spin coating a white resin layer, ink-jet printing to form the contact vias, etching the vias to expose the front and rear contact layers and sputtering Al. The device was finalized by scribing Al to create the cell interconnection pattern [5]. MINI-MODULE PERFORMANCE The performance of the mini-modules on planar glass was successively optimized in a series of experimental runs, each of which focusing on a variation of essential deposition parameters. An adjustment of the base doping level was essential step in the optimization process of the mini-module performance. The optimal base doping level 16 -3 was found to be in the range of ~1x10 cm . The doping level was controlled by adjusting the calibrated boron effusion cell temperature. The deposition rates were chosen to be 300 nm/min and 600 nm/min for the deposition of the p- base layer, with both deposition rates leading to similar results [11, 12]. Since a variation of the deposition temperature in the range of 150 C to 300 C was found to have a negligible effect on the performance of the mini-module, a deposition temperature of 300 C was used as a standard temperature. With a base thickness of 1.7 m, the best mini-module prepared at 600 nm/min has an efficiency of 6.7%, which is characterized by a short circuit current 2 density Jsc of 20.3 mA/cm , a fill factor of 69.8% and an average open circuit voltage of 475 mV per cell. At a deposition rate of 300 nm/min an equivalent result was 2 achieved, with a short circuit density Jsc of 19.5 mA/cm , FF of 71.4% and a slightly higher Voc of 483 mV per cell. The reproducibility of the results was demonstrated in numerous experimental runs, with mini-modules always exceeding an efficiency of 6% [11]. In order to increase the efficiency, a light trapping structure was implemented into the device by applying a surface texture etch process + to the silicon. An 1.6 m thick p-type Si /500 nm thick p type Si stack was deposited on the planar + + glass/SiN/n Si(PECVD) structure. The thick p -layer was etched in a proprietary chemical etch process after the crystallization process was carried out. The created random surface texture of the remaining p+-layer contributed to light trapping and finally resulted in an increase of the current. Subsequent improvement of the etch process led to an increase of the mini-module performances. Figure 2 illustrates the rough surface texture of the poly-Si layer after applying the etch process. Our current record mini-module showed a 12% higher current than the untextured device leading to a Jsc of 22.8 2 mA/cm . With a Voc of 485 mV per cell and FF of 70.3% the fabricated mini-module had an efficiency of 7.8%. Figure 3 shows the J-V characteristics of the textured module in comparison to the untextured mini-module. Table 1 lists their characteristics in comparison to a reference module based on PECVD material.

Figure 1 The as-deposited hybrid solar cell structure is shown. The p-type Si absorber layer (1.7 m) and + p -type layer (60 nm) were deposited by e-beam + evaporation. The n -type a-Si emitter layer was deposited by PECVD. The deposited samples were subsequently annealed at 600C for more than 24 h to take the material from the amorphous to the crystalline phase. The crystallization of the samples, as well as all following post-deposition treatments, were carried out by CSG Solar. After crystallization, two essential post-deposition treatments contributed to an improvement of the material quality. Rapid thermal annealing (RTA) at 930 C was applied for several minutes to activate dopants and enhance point defect healing. A subsequent hydrogen passivation process then saturated remaining dangling bonds [10]. Mini-modules consisting of 12 cells, each of which having 2 a size of 2.886 cm , were fabricated by laser scribing

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Figure 2 An atomic force microscopy (AFM) image depicts the surface texture of the etched back Si surface.

influence of the background pressure during deposition on the photovoltaic performance of mini-modules. The background pressure was accurately adjusted by controlling the air flow through a valve into the main chamber. The background pressures at which the -7 depositions were carried were chosen to be 1x10 mbar, -7 -6 -6 5x10 mbar, 1x10 mbar and 5x10 mbar. Figure 4 illustrates the Voc per cell and the Jsc as a function of the background pressure. We observed a slight decline of the -7 -6 voltage from 471 mV at 1x10 mbar to 454 mV at 5x10 mbar, while the Jsc did not change upon increasing the background pressure by a factor of 50. The decreasing voltage at increasing pressure caused the efficiency to drop. However, even at a drastically elevated background -6 pressure of 5x10 mbar the mini-module still exhibited an -7 efficiency of 5.7%, declining by 0.4% from 6.1% at 1x10 mbar. In an additional experiment, nitrogen was -5 introduced into the chamber until a pressure of 1x10 mbar could be established. With a Voc of 463 mV and a Jsc 2 of 20.4 mA/cm , the module deposited in N2 ambient showed marginally worse characteristics than the sample -7 deposited at 1x10 mbar. Table 2 summarizes the achieved results, with denoting the conversion efficiency and Gsh and Rs respectively representing the shunt conductivity and series resistance. Unfortunately, Gsh and Rs were considerably high and dissimilar, affecting the efficiency of the individual mini-modules.

Figure 3 The J-V characteristics of mini-modules on planar glass (black) and with an implemented rear side texture (blue) are illustrated.

Sample

D (m) 1.7 1.6 1.6

(%)

E-beam (planar) E-beam (textured) PEVCD (planar)

6.7 7.8 6.5

Voc /cell (mV) 475 485 485

Jsc (mA/ cm2) 20.3 22.8 18.2

FF (%)

69.8 70.8 72.8

Figure 4 The open circuit voltage Voc and the short circuit current Jsc of the mini-modules prepared at different background pressures are illustrated.

Table 1 Parameter of planar and textured record minimodules based on e-beam and PECVD Si BACKGROUND PRESSURE In order to evaluate a fundamental aspect of the deposition process scalability we investigated the

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p (10-7 mbar)

(%)

Voc/ cell (mV) 471 461 457 454 463

Jsc (mA/cm2)

FF (%)

Gsh (mS/ cm2) 1.37 3.81 4.97 1.77 2.48

Rs ( cm2) 1.54 1.59 1,47 1.36 1.53

1 5 10 50 100 (N2)

6.09 5.55 5.26 5.85 5.60

20.32 20.88 20.01 20.5 20.43

63.5 57.6 57.5 62.8 59.2

Table 2 Characteristic parameters of mini-modules prepared at different background pressures p are listed. denotes the conversion efficiency and Gsh and Rs respectively represent the shunt conductivity and series resistance. COMPARISON TO PECVD MATERIAL With an efficiency of 6.7% and a fill factor of 69.8%, the fabricated mini-module characteristics on planar glass deposited at 600 nm/min are equivalent to results achieved on standard PECVD poly-Si modules of the same structure and on planar substrates but at much lower deposition rates (Table 1). Moreover, the short 2 circuit current density of 20 mA/cm on planar glass is remarkable, considering that the white resin back reflector provides only modest light-trapping. The implementation of a rear side texture led to a further increase of the current and to an efficiency of 7.8%. It is striking that a significantly increased background pressure did not have a significant detrimental effect on the electronic quality of the Si. These results clearly demonstrate that e-beam evaporation is an deposition method suitable for the production of poly-Si solar cells in non-ultra high vacuum at rates that exceed commonly used deposition rates by a factor of 20 and presents a potential replacement for the established PECVD technique. ZNO:AL AS A FRONT CONTACT LAYER The implementation of ZnO:Al as a front contact layer into the device structure features potential for improving the efficiency of poly-Si cells via a textured front side and allows for incorporating a simple and smart contacting structure via a monolithic series connection. ZnO:Al films (thickness 850 nm) were deposited on SiN-coated Schott Borofloat 33 glass with a nonreactive rf sputter technique at 300 C. The used ceramic target contained 1 wt. % Al2O3 [9]. One key challenge is the realization of ZnO:Al with excellent electric properties which withstand the high temperature treatments occurring in the fabrication process. Thermal treatment is known to initiate a degradation process in directly exposed ZnO:Al layers, resulting in a decreased charge carrier concentration and mobility. We investigated the electrical properties of + ZnO:Al which was capped with a 50 nm thin n -type doped a-Si(PECVD) layer and studied its change of charge carrier concentration and charge carrier mobility

systematically as function of annealing temperature and annealing time. Contrary to the expected behavior of uncapped ZnO:Al, Si-capped ZnO:Al showed enhanced electrical properties, with a resistivity dropping from 2.710 4 -4 cm to 1.510 cm during a 20 h anneal at 600 C [13, 14]. Even when the capped layer stack was exposed to 950 C for 60 sec the resistivity did not increase, but -4 dropped further to 1.310 cm. Most remarkably, the charge carrier mobility was boosted from the initial value 2 2 of 40 cm /Vs to 67 cm /Vs by thermal treatment at 650 C, setting a mobility benchmark for sputtered polycrystalline ZnO:Al [14]. Even after RTA treatment, the ZnO:Al films consistently exhibited a charge carrier mobility of more 2 than 60 cm /Vs [15]. An enhancement of the electrical properties of ZnO:Al during thermal treatment underscore the suitability of the ZnO:Al as front contact layer in a poly-Si solar cell device structure [16]. CRYSTALLIZATION KINETICS IN SI ON ZNO:AL The amorphous-to-crystalline phase transformation represents a very crucial process in the fabrication of the poly-Si solar cell since its kinetics governs the grain size of the poly-Si films and consequently influences the quality of the complete solar cell device. Hence, a systematic analysis of the crystallization kinetics and the microstructure of Si on ZnO:Al-coated glass is fundamental step in gaining a deeper understanding of the poly-Si concept and ultimately gives rise to the development of a tailor-made Si microstructure. The 16 -3 crystallization process of 1 m thick 2 x 10 cm boron doped a-Si films deposited at three different substrate temperatures ranging from 200 C to 300 C was analyzed by applying a combination of two ex-situ characterization techniques and subsequently compared to the phase transition of Si on SiN-coated glass. First, the analysis of the phase transition in multiple consecutive annealing steps and at various annealing temperatures by employing optical microscopy allowed for the individual determination of the three crucial parameters that govern the crystallization process, namely the steady state nucleation rate Iss, time-lag and the crystal growth velocity v. The determination of these parameters was carried out in conformity with classical nucleation theory and is presented in detail in [4, 17]. Second, employing electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) revealed essential information about the grain size and grain orientation of the fully crystallized samples. While the time-independent crystal growth velocities v for Si on ZnO:Al and Si on SiN were found to be identical with respective activation barriers Ev=(2.50.2) eV and Ev =(2.60.2) eV, the nucleation rate differed significantly [17]. At a deposition temperature of 300 C, the steady state nucleation rate of Si on ZnO:Al was found to be two orders of magnitude higher than on SiN and the time-lag is significantly shorter, resulting in a faster crystallization process. In addition, the temperature dependence differed drastically in the investigated temperature regime of 560 C to 610 C, with activation energies for the steady state

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nucleation rate EIss of Si on ZnO:Al and Si on SiN being 12 -2 -1 (2.90.4) eV (I0= 10 m sec ) and (5.00.6) eV (I0= 23 -2 -1 10 m sec ), respectively (Figure 5) [17]. I0 denotes the pre-factor of the fitting function of the Arrhenius plot [17]. The nucleation process in Si on ZnO:Al showed a unique dependence on the deposition temperature. We obtained a significantly smaller Iss by reducing the deposition temperature to 250 C for Si on ZnO:Al, which was accompanied by an increase of EIss to (3.60.2) eV (I0= 16 -2 -1 10 m sec ). In addition, the time-lag increased, -21 resulting in an increase of the pre-factor from 0=10 sec -18 for Si deposited at 300 C to 0=10 sec for Si deposited at 250 C at similar activation energies of E=(3.80.2) eV and (3.60.1) eV. By reducing the temperature to 200 C, the nucleation rate declined even further. With a very low 23 -2 Iss and an increased EIss of (5.10.7) eV (I0= 10 m sec 1 ), the material exhibited a nucleation behavior similar to Si on SiN. The crystallization process showed an even larger -16 time-lag, leading to a 0 = 10 sec at an activation energy of E= (3.40.6) eV. For deposition temperatures of 150 C and below the nucleation rate was found to be identical to the nucleation rate at Tdep=200 C [18]. Figure 5 illustrates the steady state nucleation rates Iss as a function of annealing temperature for Si on ZnO:Al and SiN deposited at Tdep = 300 C and displays the temperature dependent Iss for Si on ZnO:Al samples for various deposition temperatures. These findings demonstrate that a variation of the deposition temperature between 200 to 300 C has a crucial impact on the crystallization behavior and the final microstructure of the poly-Si.

Si on SiN. However, a gradual decrease of the temperature from 300 C and 200 C not only resulted in a peculiar decrease of Iss and the formation of large grains, but also led to a remarkable increase of EIss and W c. W c incrementally increased from below 1 eV at Tdep= 300 C to the characteristic W c of 2.4 eV at Tdep=200 C. The work to form a critical nucleus W c is directly influenced by the fundamental mechanism that controls cluster formation in amorphous Si. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed that nucleation in Si on ZnO:Al did not start at a preferential interface and ruled out that the low Wc is only ascribed to heterogeneous nucleation at the ZnO:Al/p-Si interface [17]. At a constant crystal growth velocity, the nucleation rate dominates the crystallization process and controls the microstructure of the fully crystallized Si film. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) was employed for the quantitative analysis of the size of surface features and the observation of crystal orientation contrast. Figure 6 depicts an EBSD inverse pole figure map of Si on SiN deposited at Tdep= 300 C. The feature size of the grains evidently exceeded several m in diameter. In contrast, poly-Si on ZnO:Al deposited at identical deposition parameters exhibited significantly smaller grains (Figure 6(b)). Figure 6(c) illustrates an EBSD image of poly-Si on ZnO:Al deposited at 200 C. Figures 6(b) and 6(c) clearly show a correlation between the microstructure and deposition temperature of the amorphous Si on ZnO:Al [18]. The very high nucleation rate of Si on ZnO:Al at Tdep=300 C is directly linked to a microstructure with small grains, while a lower nucleation rate translates into the formation of large grained Si with grain sizes similar to those of Si on SiN. In addition, the images reveal that the crystals do not have a preferential orientation at either deposition temperature or substrate.

Figure 5 The temperature dependence of the steady state nucleation rate Iss is depicted for Si on ZnO:Al prepared at deposition temperatures 200 C, 250 C and 300 C. For comparison, Iss of Si on SiN is shown. Kster reported an activation energy for the steady state nucleation rate of EIss= 4.9 eV [19]. This value is in perfect accordance to the determined value for Si on SiN [17]. The work to form a critical nucleus W c = EIss - Ev=(2.40.6) eV resembles a value which has been reported in previous studies on amorphous Si [4]. In contrast, W c for Si on ZnO:Al is well below 1 eV and differs drastically from W c of

Figure 6 EBSD inverse pole figure maps of Si on SiN (a) and Si on ZnO:Al deposited at 300 C (b) and 200 C (c) are shown. SI GROWTH ON TEXTURE-ETCHED ZNO:AL In contrast to the omni-directional flux provided by PECVD that deposits a conformal coating on textured surfaces, ebeam evaporation provides a direct flux of silicon atoms from a source of molten Si. Our studies showed that the

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deposition of e-beam evaporated Si on rough surface textures did not lead to a fully conformal coating of Si [12]. At steep edges the Si tended to grow in columnar bands in a rather porous structure, causing the electronic quality of the material to degrade. We investigated the compatibility wet chemical etched ZnO:Al with e-beam evaporated Si. The 850 nm thick ZnO:Al was etched in 0.5 vol. % HCl for 15 sec prior to the deposition of a-Si and the crystallization process. Figure 7 illustrates a cross-sectional TEM micrograph of a 1 m thick poly-Si layer on etched ZnO:Al and demonstrates that the Si adapts the texture of the ZnO:Al, leading to a conformally grown Si layer. The TEM analysis confirmed that even at the steepest edges the deposited material remained polycrystalline. This result underlines that the light trapping features of ZnO:Al can be utilized by implementing it as front contact layer into the poly-Si solar cell device.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The authors are very grateful to all colleagues at HZB, FZJ and CSG for their contribution to this work, in particular Stefan Common (HZB) for his assistance with the e-beam deposition and Scott Partlin (CSG) for fabricating the minimodules and measuring the I-V characteristics. T. Sontheimer acknowledges SCHOTT AG for financial support. REFERENCES [1] M.A. Green et al, Solar Energy 77 (2004) 857. [2] T. Matsuyama et al, Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. Part 1, 29, 2327 (1990). [3] T. Matsuyama et al, Non-Cryst. Solids, 198-200, 940 (1996). [4] C. Spinella, S. Lombardo and F. Priolo, J. Appl. Phys. 84, 10 (1998). [5] M.J. Keevers, T.L. Young, U. Schubert, M.A. Green in: Proc. of the 22nd European Photovoltaics Solar Energy Conference, Milan, Italy (2007), p.1783. st [6] R.J. Egan et al, 21 European Photovoltaics Solar Energy Conference, Dresden (2006). [7] M.A. Green, K. Emery, Y. Hishikawa, W. Warta, Prog. Photovolt: Res. Appl. 2009; 17:85-94 [8] D. Song et al, Thin Solid Films 2006, 513: 356-363. [9] M. Berginski J. Hpkes, M. Schulte, G. Schpe, H. Stiebig, B. Rech, M. Wuttig, J. Appl. Phys 101, 074903 (2007). th [10] M.J. Keevers et al, 20 European Photovoltaics Solar Energy Conference, Barcelona (2005). [11] T. Sontheimer, P. Dogan, C. Becker, S. Gall, B. Rech, U. Schubert, T. Young, S. Partlin, M. Keevers, R. J. Egan in: Proc. of the 24th European Photovoltaics Solar Energy Conference, Hamburg, (2009), p.2478. [12] R. Egan, M. Keevers, U. Schubert, T. Young, R. Evans, S. Partlin, M. Wolf, J. Schneider, D. Hogg, B. Eggleston, M. Green, F. Falk, A. Gawlik, G. Andr, M. Werner, C. Hagendorf, P. Dogan, T. Sontheimer, S. Gall in: Proc. of 24th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, Hamburg, (2009) 2280 -2285 [13] K. Y. Lee, C. Becker, M. Muske, F. Ruske, S. Gall, B. Rech, M. Berginski, J. Hpkes, J. Appl. Phys. 91, 241911 (2007). [14] F. Ruske, M. Roczen, K. Lee, M. Wimmer, S. Gall, J. Hpkes, D. Hrunski, B. Rech, J. Appl. Phys.107, 013708 (2010). [15] F. Ruske, M. Roczen et al. in: Proc. of 24th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, Hamburg, (2009) 2353-2356. [16] C. Becker, F. Ruske, T. Sontheimer, B. Gorka, U. Bloeck, S. Gall, B. Rech, J. Appl. Phys. 106, 084506 (2009). [17] T. Sontheimer, C. Becker, U. Bloeck, S. Gall, B. Rech, Appl. Phys. Lett. 95, 101902 (2009). [18] T. Sontheimer, C. Becker, C. Klimm, S. Gall, B. Rech in: Proc. of MRS Spring Meeting, 2010. [19] U. Kster, Phys. Stat. Sol. (a), 48, 313 (1978).

Figure 7 Cross-sectional transmission electron micrograph of a poly-Si layer on a wet chemical etched ZnO:Al film. CONCLUSION In conclusion, we demonstrated that e-beam evaporation is an deposition technique suitable for the fabrication of poly-Si solar cells. Mini-modules prepared with a deposition rate of 600 nm/min as a hybrid device structure + + consisting of planar glass/SiN/n -(PECVD)/p-(e-beam)/p (e-beam) structure yield an efficiency of 6.7% and Jsc of 20 2 mA/cm , equivalent to results for the same device based on PECVD material. The efficiency could be increased up to 7.8% by implementing a silicon surface texture on the rear side. Even at elevated background pressures, the electronic quality of Si did not decrease significantly, confirming that the deposition process can be carried out in non-UHV conditions. We demonstrated that the light trapping features of etched ZnO:Al layers can be implemented into the device as an e-beam compatible front-side light trapping structure. The ZnO:Al layer showed significant improvement in its charge carrier mobility and conductivity upon thermal annealing, while the unique crystallization kinetics of Si on ZnO:Al can be controlled by adjusting the deposition temperature of the a-Si evaporation process. The novel features of the incorporated ZnO:Al layer in conjunction with the high quality e-beam evaporated Si offer unprecedented solar cell design possibilities. Exciting challenges are the optimization of the electronic quality of the poly-Si solar cell with implemented ZnO:Al and the modelling of the optical design of the device.

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