Local photocurrent mapping and cell performance behaviour on a nanometre scale for monolithically interconnected Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

Summary The local efficiency of lamellar shaped Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells has been investigated using scanning near‐field optical microscopy (SNOM). Topographic and photocurrent measurements have been performed simultaneously with a 100 nm tip aperture. The lamellar shaped solar cell with monolithic interconnects (P scribe) has been investigated on a nanometre scale for the first time at different regions using SNOM. It was found that, the cell region between P1 and P2 significantly contributes to the solar cells overall photocurrent generation. The photocurrent produced depends locally on the sample topography and it is concluded that it is mainly due to roughness changes of the ZnO:Al/i‐ZnO top electrode. Regions lying under large grains of ZnO produce significantly less current than regions under small granules. The observed photocurrent features were allocated primarily to the ZnO:Al/i‐ZnO top electrode. They were found to be independent of the wavelength of the light used (532 nm and 633 nm). Lay description Copper–indium–gallium–selenide (CIGSe for short) is one of the most interesting materials in solar technology. CIGSe based solar cells are made of thin films of CIGSe deposited on a surface made of glass. The CIGSe film is inserted between two layers of conductive materials, called electrodes, which are used to extract the electricity produced by the cell. We investigated the behaviour of the photogenerated current in a nanometre scale for the first time ...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: Tags: Original Article Source Type: research