Cerous Fluoride Dopant-Free Electron-Selective Contact for Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells

Dopant-free carrier-selective contacts have drawn intensive attention for efficient crystalline silicon (c-Si) photovoltaics due to the low-temperature simple process and better carrier selectivity. By incorporating a thermally evaporated dielectric film cerium fluoride (CeF3) as the electron transport layer (ETL) between a c-Si(n) and aluminum (Al) electrode, higher conversion efficiency of the crystalline silicon solar cell is obtained, which is 21.27% compared to 16.89% of a reference cell without CeF3. The insertion of an ultrathin CeF3 ETL helps in alleviating the strong Fermi-level pinning at the interface, leading to better electron transport with a low contact resistivity of 10.96 m omega cm(2). The morphology and element distribution of the interface are also investigated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The primary results demonstrate that the utilization of kinds of lanthanide fluorides, including CeF3, offers a good choice for efficient and cost-effective electron-selective contacts for optical-electrical devices.

Automated summary

Dopant-free carrier-selective contacts have attracted attention for efficient c-Si photovoltaics due to their low-temperature simple process and better carrier selectivity. With the incorporation of CeF3 as the electron transport layer, a higher conversion efficiency of 21.27% has been achieved compared to 16.89% without CeF3. Utilizing lanthanide fluorides, including CeF3, offers a good choice for efficient and cost-effective electron-selective contacts for optical-electrical devices.