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Alkali-treated Si nanowire array for improving solar cell performance

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Abstract

The Si nanowire array (SiNWA) was achieved by metal-assisted etching. The effect of alkali-treating of SiNWA on the photovoltaic performance of solar cells was investigated. We found that the post-chemical treatment of SiNWA on solar cells could reduce (i) the surface reflection and (ii) the thickness of “dead layer” so that the short-wavelength spectral response is enhanced. As a result, a solar-spectrum-averaged reflectance of less than 3 % has been reached, a 3-fold enhancement on the spectral response of post-treated SiNWA cell at the wavelength of 400 nm has been observed, together resulting in a remarkable improvement of 45 % in the conversion efficiency.

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Acknowledgements

This work is supported by Chinese Nature Science Foundation Committee (No. 11074066) and Henan Provincial Basic and Frontier Project (No. 132300410248).

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Correspondence to Yurong Jiang or Fanggao Chang.

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Jiang, Y., Qing, R., Yang, H. et al. Alkali-treated Si nanowire array for improving solar cell performance. Appl. Phys. A 113, 13–17 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-013-7846-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-013-7846-5

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