Impedance Spectroscopy for Interface Trap Effects Evaluation in Dopant-Free Silicon Solar Cells

Ilaria Matacena, Laura Lancellotti, Eugenia Bobeico, Iurie Usatii, Marco della Noce, Elena Santoro, Pietro Scognamiglio, Lucia V. Mercaldo, Paola Delli Veneri and Santolo Daliento ()
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Ilaria Matacena: Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Napoli, Italy
Laura Lancellotti: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Eugenia Bobeico: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Iurie Usatii: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Marco della Noce: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Elena Santoro: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Pietro Scognamiglio: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Lucia V. Mercaldo: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Paola Delli Veneri: ENEA Portici Research Center, 80055 Naples, Italy
Santolo Daliento: Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, University of Naples Federico II, 80125 Napoli, Italy

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 17, 1-12

Abstract: This work investigates the effect of interface traps on the impedance spectra of dopant-free silicon solar cells. The studied device consists of a crystalline silicon absorber with an a-Si:H/MoOx/ITO stack as the front passivating hole-collecting contact and an a-Si:H/LiF/Al stack as the rear passivating electron-collecting contact. Experimental measurements, including illuminated current–voltage (I–V) characteristics and impedance spectroscopy, were performed on the fabricated devices and after a soft annealing treatment. The annealed cells exhibit an increased open-circuit voltage and a larger Nyquist plot radius. To interpret these results, a numerical model was developed in a TCAD environment. Simulations reveal that traps located at the p/i interface (MoOx/i-a-Si:H) significantly affect the impedance spectra, with higher trap concentrations leading to smaller Nyquist plot circumferences. The numerical impedance curves were aligned to the experimental data, enabling extraction of the interfacial traps concentration. The results highlight the sensitivity of impedance spectroscopy to interfacial quality and confirm that the performance improvement after soft annealing is primarily due to reduced defect density at the MoOx/i-a-Si:H interface.

Keywords: impedance spectroscopy; TCAD; annealing; Nyquist plot; dopant-free; silicon solar cells (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: 2025
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