Wet Chemical Oxidation to Improve Interfacial Properties of Al 2 O 3 /Si and Interface Analysis of Al 2 O 3 /SiO x /Si Structure Using Surface Carrier Lifetime Simulation and Capacitance–Voltage Measurement

Kwan Hong Min, Sungjin Choi, Myeong Sang Jeong, Sungeun Park, Min Gu Kang, Jeong In Lee, Yoonmook Kang, Donghwan Kim, Hae-Seok Lee and Hee-eun Song
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Kwan Hong Min: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea
Sungjin Choi: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea
Myeong Sang Jeong: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea
Sungeun Park: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea
Min Gu Kang: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea
Jeong In Lee: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea
Yoonmook Kang: Department of Energy Environment Policy and Technology, Green School (Graduate School of Korea Energy and Environment), Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
Donghwan Kim: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
Hae-Seok Lee: Department of Energy Environment Policy and Technology, Green School (Graduate School of Korea Energy and Environment), Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
Hee-eun Song: Photovoltaics Laboratory, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 34129, Korea

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 7, 1-10

Abstract: A thin silicon oxide (SiO x ) layer (thickness: 1.5–2.0 nm) formed at an Al 2 O 3 /Si interface can enhance the interface properties. However, it is challenging to control the characteristics of thin SiO x layers because SiO x forms naturally during Al 2 O 3 deposition on Si substrates. In this study, a ~1.5 nm-thick SiO x layer was inserted between Al 2 O 3 and Si substrates by wet chemical oxidation to improve the passivation properties. The acidic solutions used for wet chemical oxidation were HCl:H 2 O 2 :H 2 O, H 2 SO 4 :H 2 O 2 :H 2 O, and HNO 3 . The thicknesses of SiO x layers formed in the acidic solutions were ~1.48, ~1.32, and ~1.50 nm for SiO x-HCl , SiO x-H2SO4 , and SiO x-HNO3 , respectively. The leakage current characteristics of SiO x-HNO3 were better than those of the oxide layers formed in the other acidic solutions. After depositing a ~10 nm-thick Al 2 O 3 on an SiO x-acidic /Si structure, we measured the effective carrier lifetime using quasi steady-state photoconductance and examined the interfacial properties of Al 2 O 3 /SiO x-acidic /Si using surface carrier lifetime simulation and capacitance–voltage measurement. The effective carrier lifetime of Al 2 O 3 /SiO x-HNO3 /Si was relatively high (~400 μs), resulting from the low surface defect density (2.35–2.88 × 10 10 cm −2 eV −1 ). The oxide layer inserted between Al 2 O 3 and Si substrates by wet chemical oxidation helped improve the Al 2 O 3 /Si interface properties.

Keywords: aluminum oxide; silicon oxide; quasi steady-state photoconductance; surface passivation; crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cell; plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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