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Bromine Etch rates of P type solar cell absorbers and SEM, SEM edax studies on the etched material


EMSL Project ID
2253

Abstract

To understand diffusion from the top conducting oxide (TCO) into the solar cell absorber material accurate etch rates of the absorber via Bromine etch are necessary so that surface science tools, XPS and Auger can be more certain. N type dopants (Aluminum) are thought to diffuse from the top conducting oxide into the P type absorber material. Ion beam etching of the absorber material can selectively remove the selenium therefore disturbing the result. Another problem with XPS and SIMS profiles deals with rough surfaces. We would like to study the etch rates of Bromine on the absorber material so we can confirm the etch rate and also see if the Bromine etch is leaving an atomically flat material that yields less ambigous XPS and SIMS profiles.

Project Details

Project type
Exploratory Research
Start Date
2001-04-20
End Date
2003-03-10
Status
Closed

Team

Principal Investigator

Peter Eschbach
Institution
Washington State University