Preparation of Low Resistance Contact Electrode in Screen Printed CdS/CdTe Solar Cell

Abstract

Heating conditions of carbon electrodes for CdTe and the effect of impurities in the carbon paste on the characteristics of solar cells are investigated. The series resistance ( R s ) and the conversion efficiency (η i ) of solar cells exhibit strong dependence on O 2 concentration in the heating atmosphere. Addition of Cu to the carbon paste causes R s and diode factor ( n ) to decrease, resulting in a remarkable improvement in η i . As a result of preparation of low resistance contact electrode for CdTe, a cell with 0.78 cm 2 active area which was made from 50 ppm Cu-added carbon paste showed V oc =0.754 V, I sc =0.022 A, F F =0.606 and η i =12.8%.