Abstract
We design and optimize monolithic III–V GaInP/GaAs/Ge triple-junction (TJ) solar cells by using a commercial software Silvaco ATLAS simulator to obtain the maximum short-circuit current density J sc . The maximum J sc , which is a current matching value between the GaInP top and GaAs middle subcells, can be determined by varying the base thicknesses of the GaInP top and GaAs middle subcells. From the numerical simulation results, a matched maximum J sc value of 13.92 mA/cm2 is obtained at base thicknesses of 0.57 μm and 3 μm for the GaInP top and GaAs middle subcells, respectively, under 1-sun air mass 1.5 global spectrum illumination, leading to a high power conversion efficiency of 30.72%. The open-circuit voltage and the fill factor are 2.55 V and 86.55%, respectively. For the optimized cell structure, the external quantum efficiency and the photogeneration rate distributions are also investigated. To obtain efficient antireflection coatings (ARCs), we perform optical reflectance calculations by using a rigorous coupled-wave analysis method. For this, a silicon oxide/titanium oxide double-layer is used as an ARC on the TJ solar cell.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
M. S. Leite, R. L. Woo, J. N. Munday, W. D. Hong, S. Mesropian, D. C. Law and H. A. Atwater, Appl. Phys. Lett. 102, 033901 (2013).
M. A. Green, K. Emery, Y. Hishikawa, W. Warta and E. D. Dunlop, Prog. Photovolt: Res. Appl. 21, 1 (2013).
R. R. King et al., Proceedings of the 28th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, (Anchorage, Alaska, Sep. 15–22, USA, 2000), p. 998.
Solar Junction, http://www.sj-solar.com, accessed Mar. (2013).
H. Keppner, J. Meier, P. Torres, D. Fischer and A. Shah, Appl. Phys. A 69, 169 (1999).
J. W. Leem, Y. T. Lee and J. S. Yu, Opt. Quant. Electron. 41, 605 (2009).
A. W. Bett, F. Dimroth, G. Stollwerck and O. V. Sulima, Appl. Phys. A 69, 119 (1999).
C. M. Lee, S. K. Noh, J. I. Lee, D. H. Lee, J. Y. Leem, I. K. Han, T. Mano and N. Koguchi, J. Korean Phys. Soc. 41, L579 (2002).
K. Lee, B. Jo, C. R. Lee, J. S. Kim, J. S. Kim, S. K. Noh and J. Y. Leem, J. Korean Phys. Soc. 59, 3391 (2011).
Q. A. H. Al-Naser, H. W. Hilou and A. F. Abdulkader, Proceedings of 2009 ISECS International Colloquium on Computing, Communication, Control, and Management, (August 8–9, Sanya, China, 2009), p. 373.
K. J. Singh and S. K. Sarkar, Opt. Quant. Electron. 43, 1 (2012).
S. Michael, Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 87, 771 (2005).
J. W. Leem and J. S. Yu, Opt. Express 19, A258 (2011).
S. T. Chang, M. Tang, R.Y. He, W. C. Wang, Z. Pei and C. Y. Kung, Thin Solid Films 518, S250 (2010).
J. L. Tu, Z. W. Zhang, L. X. Wang, W. Y. Chi, M. B. Chen, X. B. Xiang and X. B. Liao, Proceedings of the 31st IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, (Orlando, Florida, USA, January 3–7, 2005), p. 739.
Silvaco ATLAS User’s Manual, http://www.silvaco.com, accessed Mar. (2013).
S. I. Sato, H. Miyamoto, M. Imaizumi, K. Shimazaki, C. Morioka, K. Kawano and T. Ohshima, Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 93, 768 (2009).
E. Yoon, C. Yang, K. W. Shin, J. Kim, J. Lee, C. Z. Kim, H. K. Kang and W. K. Park, J. Korean Phys. Soc. 56, 1387 (1995).
DiffractMOD, RSoft Design Group, http://www.rsoft design.com, accessed Jan. (2013).
H. Cui, S. Pillai, P. Campbell and M. Green, Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 109, 233 (2013).
A. Braun, N. Szabó, K. Schwarzburg, T. Hannappel, E. A. Katz and J. M. Gordon, Appl. Phys. Lett. 98, 223506 (2011).
S. Michael and A. Bates, Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 87, 785 (2005).
R. R. King, D. C. Law, K. M. Edmondson, C. M. Fetzer, G. S. Kinsey, H. Yoon, R. A. Sherif and N. H. Karam, Appl. Phys. Lett. 90, 183516 (2007).
D. Shahrjerdi, S. W. Bedell, C. Ebert, C. Bayram, B. Hekmatshoar, K. Fogel, P. Lauro, M. Gaynes, T. Gokmen, J. A. Ott and D. K. Sadana, Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 053901 (2012).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Leem, J.W., Yu, J.S., Kim, J.N. et al. Theoretical modeling and optimization of III–V GaInP/GaAs/Ge monolithic triple-junction solar cells. Journal of the Korean Physical Society 64, 1561–1565 (2014). https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.64.1561
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.64.1561