Current-Voltage Comparison of the Record CdTe-Based Solar Cells |
Ishwor Khatri& James R. Sites Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States |
In this work, we compare current-voltage and external quantum efficiency curves of the 22.3% record CdTe-based solar cell to a previous record cell at 21.1% and analyze the advancement. The breakthrough is due to the increased VOC and JSC, which benefited from selenium and arsenic optimization in the absorber layer. Optical efficiency of the current state-of-the-art CdTe-based solar cell has marginally surpassed GaAs technology, but CdTe lags well behind in electrical efficiency. The potential for even higher CdTe efficiencies will likely require a combination of (1) incorporation of front-contact improvements, (2) optimization of thickness, selenium profile, doping, and grain-boundary passivation of the absorber, (3) better passivation of the rear interface, and (4) assurance of back-contact conductivity and band alignment. |