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Current Applied Physics, Vol.11, No.1, S21-S24, 2011
Influence of CH4 flow rate on properties of HF-PECVD a-SiC films and solar cell application
The hydrogenated amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC: H) alloy is one of the more intensively studied as it has importance as an active layer in photovoltaic cells (as p-type windowlayer). In this present, a wide band gap and highly conductive p-type a-SiC: H thin films have been deposited by high-frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition at low substrate temperature of 150 degrees C. This material as a window layer application for amorphous silicon solar cells has carry out. The a-SiC: H thin films were deposited at a plasma excitation frequency of 27.13 MHz by varying the dilution of CH4 vertical bar H-2 mixture in the reaction chamber. The effects of deposited parameters on the characteristics of a-SiC: H have been investigated by UVeVIS spectroscopy, dark-and photoconductivity measurement, scanning electron microscopy and second ion mass spectroscopy, respectively. The results show the properties of a-SiC: H films as a function of carbon content. It was found that a-SiC: H film deposited at CH4 flow rate of 40 sccm and H-2 flow rate of 50 sccm is better suited for thin film solar cell application and the solar cell with conversion efficiency of 10.11% was obtained. (C) 2010 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.