Kinetic studies of the annealing behavior of <i>a</i>-Si:H <i>p</i>-<i>i</i>-<i>n</i> solar cells

Abstract

Results of measurements of the annealing of photodegraded amorphous silicon p-i-n solar cells are presented. The annealing process can be characterized by a relatively fast initial stage followed by a much slower second stage. Although the annealing behavior cannot be described by simple exponential kinetics, it can be characterized by a single activation energy of 1.2 eV. The degradation temperature and the duration of the light soaking do not affect this activation energy, although the ratio of the ‘‘fast’’ to the ‘‘slow’’ portions of the recovery change as these experimental parameters are varied. We have explained these phenomena in terms of hydrogen motion in the material.