Abstract
The SLIM-Cut process is a kerf-free wafering technique to obtain silicon substrates as thin as 50μm. The quality of the resulting material must be assessed to ensure that this innovative Si-foil approach does not jeopardize the potential efficiency of the final solar cell in terms of electronic activity, defect density and location. For that reason, we performed Microwave-Detected Photoconductance Decay (MW-PCD), Deep-Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS) and optical inspections after defect etching of the foils surface. Analyses indicate that SLIM-Cut generates crystallographic defects which create deep level traps that have a negative impact on the lifetime of the silicon foil. Nonetheless, a decrease of the thermal budget will lead to a reduction of plasticity and hence lower the amount of defects and increase the foil quality.
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Masolin, A., Vaes, J., Dross, F. et al. Evidence and Characterization of Crystallographic Defect and Material Quality after SLIM-Cut Process. MRS Online Proceedings Library 1323, 405 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2011.984
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2011.984