Fabrication of Black Silicon via Metal-Assisted Chemical Etching—A Review

Mohammad Yasir Arafat, Mohammad Aminul Islam, Ahmad Wafi Bin Mahmood, Fairuz Abdullah, Mohammad Nur-E-Alam, Tiong Sieh Kiong and Nowshad Amin
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Mohammad Yasir Arafat: Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering, College of Engineering, University Tenaga Nasional, Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
Mohammad Aminul Islam: Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Selangor, Malaysia
Ahmad Wafi Bin Mahmood: Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering, College of Engineering, University Tenaga Nasional, Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
Fairuz Abdullah: Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering, College of Engineering, University Tenaga Nasional, Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
Mohammad Nur-E-Alam: School of Science, Edith Cowan University, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup, WA 6027, Australia
Tiong Sieh Kiong: Institute of Sustainable Energy, Universiti Tenaga Nasional, Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia
Nowshad Amin: Institute of Sustainable Energy, Universiti Tenaga Nasional, Jalan IKRAM-UNITEN, Kajang 43000, Selangor, Malaysia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 19, 1-18

Abstract: The metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) technique is commonly employed for texturing the wafer surfaces when fabricating black silicon (BSi) solar cells and is considered to be a potential technique to improve the efficiency of traditional Si-based solar cells. This article aims to review the MACE technique along with its mechanism for Ag-, Cu- and Ni-assisted etching. Primarily, several essential aspects of the fabrication of BSi are discussed, including chemical reaction, etching direction, mass transfer, and the overall etching process of the MACE method. Thereafter, three metal catalysts (Ag, Cu, and Ni) are critically analyzed to identify their roles in producing cost-effective and sustainable BSi solar cells with higher quality and efficiency. The conducted study revealed that Ag-etched BSi wafers are more suitable for the growth of higher quality and efficiency Si solar cells compared to Cu- and Ni-etched BSi wafers. However, both Cu and Ni seem to be more cost-effective and more appropriate for the mass production of BSi solar cells than Ag-etched wafers. Meanwhile, the Ni-assisted chemical etching process takes a longer time than Cu but the Ni-etched BSi solar cells possess enhanced light absorption capacity and lower activity in terms of the dissolution and oxidation process than Cu-etched BSi solar cells.

Keywords: black silicon; MACE technique; mass transfer; etching direction; SEM; nanowire (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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