Application of SiOx:H/bi-SiNx:H/SiOx:H stacked coatings embedded by silicon nanocrystals on crystalline silicon solar cells with nanowire texturing

In this study, a SiOx:H/bi-SiNx:H/SiOx:H quadruple-layer anti-reflective coatings embedded by silicon nanocrystals (Si-NC ARCS) was deposited on an n-type monocrystalline silicon base solar cell with nanowire texturing, by means of plasma enhancing chemical vapor deposition. The average reflection of the Si-NC ARCs on the polished silicon wafer was 4.97% (300-1000 nm). The minority carrier lifetime of the silicon wafer with nanowire texturing was boosted by nearly 39 times after the Si-NC ARCs were deposited. Moreover, the Si-NC ARCs showed a significant luminescent down shifting effect (LDS), with strong absorbing at the blue-ultraviolet region, followed by re-emitting at the red-near-infrared region, thereby modifying the sunlight spectrum before they reached the solar cell, and thus obtaining a better spectrum response. After depositing the Si-NC ARCs without a significant increase in the cell cost, the external quantum efficiencies, short circuit current density and photo-conversion efficiency of the solar cell with nanowire texturing were significantly improved. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.