Mapping the Local Photo-Electronic Properties of Polycrystalline Solar Cells through High Resolution Laser-Beam-Induced Current Microscopy

Published

January 1, 2014

Author(s)

Marina S. Leite, Maxim Abashin, Henri J. Lezec, Anthony G. Gianfrancesco, Albert A. Talin, Nikolai B. Zhitenev

Abstract

To boost the efficiency of thin film polycrystalline solar cells that are microscopically inhomogeneous, it is imperative to understand how the grain cores (GCs) and grain boundaries (GBs) within these materials affect its overall electronic properties. By using an apertured near-field scanning optical microscope in an illumination mode we determined the local photocurrent generated within the GCs and at the GBs with nanoscale resolution, and correlate the results with surface morphology and composition.

Citation

IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics

Volume

4

Issue

1

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

Cadmium compounds, Current measurement, Grain boundaries, Photovoltaic cells, Scanning probe microscopy, Thin film devices, Wavelength measurement.

Citation

Leite, M. , abashin, M. , Lezec, H. , Gianfrancesco, A. , Talin, A. and Zhitenev, N. (2014), Mapping the Local Photo-Electronic Properties of Polycrystalline Solar Cells through High Resolution Laser-Beam-Induced Current Microscopy, IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=914091 (Accessed January 15, 2025)