n-Type Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaics: Technology, applications and economics

Cover
Contents
About the editors
List of contributors
Acknowledgements
1 Introduction
1.1 PV 2022 – history, present, and future
1.1.1 How PV became the most cost effective electricity source
1.1.2 What PV technology will win?
1.2 nPV 2022 – history, present and future
1.2.1 Short low-cost nPV history
1.2.2 nPV status
1.2.3 nPV future
1.3 nPV book 2022
1.3.1 Latest nPV publications and presentations
1.3.2 Chapters of nPV book
1.3.3 Summary
References
2 n-type silicon material
2.1 Introduction
2.2 n-type silicon feedstock
2.2.1 Introduction
2.2.2 Polysilicon
2.2.3 Alternative silicon sources
2.2.4 Charging silicon
2.2.5 Impurities
2.2.6 Challenges
2.2.7 Cost structure
2.3 n-type ingot pulling technology
2.3.1 Origin of Cz-growth technology
2.3.2 Technical principle and application
2.3.3 Status of ingot pulling technology (RCz)
2.3.4 Development of continuous crystal pulling technology (CCz)
2.4 n-type mono-wafer slicing technology
2.5 Impact of impurities on n-type solar cells
2.5.1 Metallic impurities
2.5.2 Oxide precipitates
2.5.3 Light elements and intrinsic defects
2.6 Thermal Donors in n-type silicon solar cells
2.6.1 Introduction
2.6.2 Main features of Thermal Donors
2.6.3 Influence on carrier lifetime and silicon solar cell efficiency
2.6.4 Signature of Thermal Donor formation in Cz ingots and strategies for their avoidance
2.7 Gettering in n-type silicon solar cells
2.7.1 n-type PERT
2.7.2 Polysilicon/oxide passivating contact solar cells
2.7.3 Interdigitated Back Contact (IBC)
2.7.4 Heterojunction solar cells
2.7.5 Gettering in cast-grown silicon
2.7.6 Summary
2.8 Cost of ownership
2.8.1 Costs in ingot production
2.8.2 Yield
2.8.3 Throughput
2.8.4 Recharge Cz
2.8.5 Continuous Cz
2.8.6 Wafering
2.9 Summary and outlook for n-type silicon ingots and wafers
References
3 n-type silicon solar cells
3.1 Industrial p-type solar cells
3.1.1 Al-BSF solar cells
3.1.2 PERC solar cells
3.1.3 Conclusions
3.2 Double-side contacted n-type homojunction devices
3.2.1 Rear-junction structures
3.2.2 Front-junction structures
3.2.3 Conclusion
3.3 Polysilicon on oxide-passivated contacts solar cells
3.3.1 Introduction
3.3.2 Historical review
3.3.3 Working principle of the poly-Si-passivated contact
3.3.4 Fabrication processes of poly-Si-passivated contacts
3.3.5 Integration of poly-Si contacts into screen-printed or large area solar cells
3.3.6 Toward the double-side integration of poly-Si contacts
3.3.7 Conclusion
3.4 Silicon heterojunction solar cells
3.4.1 Introduction
3.4.2 From birth to adulthood
3.4.3 Cell design, fabrication steps, and record efficiencies
3.4.4 Hetero-interface properties and electronic transport for HJT engineering
3.4.5 Possible new process routes for HJT mass production and next-generation PV
3.5 Back-contacted crystalline silicon solar cells
3.5.1 Rear-junction structures
3.5.2 Technology of IBC devices
3.5.3 Processing of IBC solar cells
3.5.4 Conclusion & outlook
3.6 Silver usage reduction in n-type solar cells
3.6.1 Fine line screen-printing
3.6.2 Copper metallization
3.7 General conclusions
References
4 n-type silicon modules
4.1 General module requirements
4.1.1 Potential energy generation increase
4.1.2 State of the art
4.2 Characterization and performance monitoring
4.2.1 Electrical characterization
4.2.2 Relevant module characterization in the field
4.2.3 Performance monitoring
4.3 Standards and quality measures
4.3.1 Why do we need standards
4.3.2 Standards—seen from international to national level
4.3.3 Overview on existing standards for type approval and advanced testing
4.3.4 Overview on existing measurement standards
4.3.5 Major milestone in standardization
4.3.6 What makes current standards problematic
4.3.7 Standard requirements for advanced module concepts including bifacial solar modules
4.3.8 A step in the right direction
4.4 Advanced n-type module technologies
4.4.1 Introduction
4.4.2 Advanced interconnection technologies
4.4.3 Advanced module materials
4.4.4 Integration of module level electronics
4.5 The end of the operational life of photovoltaic panels
Thermodynamic implications of a closed material flow system
4.6 Summary
References
5 n-type silicon systems
5.1 General description of PV systems
5.2 PV inverters
5.3 Overview of PV systems’ types and recent evolution
5.4 Integration of high-efficiency modules in systems
5.5 Field performance of p-type and n-type bifacial systems
5.6 Conclusions
References
6 Cost of ownership of n-type silicon solar cells and modules and life cycle analysis
6.1 Cost of ownership of n-type solar cells & modules
6.1.1 COO definition and assumptions
6.1.2 COO results for TOPCon, ZEBRA-IBC, and SHJ compared to PERC
6.2 LCOE
6.2.1 LCOE definition
6.2.2 Assumptions for LCOE calculations for TOPCon, ZEBRA-IBC, and SHJ compared to p-type PERC
6.2.3 LCOE results for TOPCon, ZEBRA-IBC, and SHJ compared to PERC
6.3 Environmental impact analysis
6.3.1 Methodology of LCA
6.3.2 LCA of PV technologies at the module level
6.3.3 LCA of PV technologies at the system level
6.3.4 Sensitivity analysis
6.4 Conclusions
References
7 Future of n-type PV
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Carrier-selective passivated contacts
7.2.1 Silicon heterojunction solar cells
7.2.2 TOPCon/POLO
7.2.3 Bifacial cells
7.3 Ultimate efficiency in c-Si PV
7.4 Alternative carrier-selective contacts
7.4.1 Metal oxide and alkali metal–halogen compounds
7.4.2 Organic carrier selective contacts
7.5 Silicon-based tandem cells
7.5.1 Perovskite-silicon tandems
7.5.2 III–V/Silicon tandems
7.6 Projections
7.7 Summary
References
8 Summary
8.1 Technological lessons learned from this book
8.2 Impact of n-type PV
8.3 What’s coming next for PV and n-type
8.3.1 Environmental framework & circular economy of PV
8.3.2 Social and market acceptance
8.3.3 Integration & landscape
8.4 Conclusion
References
Index
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