Screen-printed multicrystalline silicon solar cells with porous silicon antireflective layer formed by electrochemical etching

The latest results on the use of porous silicon (PS) as an antireflection coating (ARC) in simplified processing for multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) solar cells are presented. A PS layer with optimal antireflection characteristics was obtained for charge density (Q) of 5.2 C/cm(2). The weighted reflectance was reduced to 4.7% in the range of wavelengths between 400 and 1000 nm. Also, the optimization of a PS selective emitter formation results in a 13.2% efficiency mc-Si cell (2x2 cm(2)) with the electroplating method. Specific attention is given to the implementation of a PS ARC into a commercially compatible screen-printed solar cell process. (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics.