SBIR Phase I: High Quality, Low Cost, Polycrystalline CdS/CdTe Photovoltaic Cells

SBIR 第一阶段：高质量、低成本、多晶 CdS/CdTe 光伏电池

• 批准号: 0539074
• 负责人: Joseph Beach
• 金额: $ 10万
• 依托单位: PrimeStar Solar Inc.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2006
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2006-01-01 至 2006-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0539074&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Quality; Low; Cost

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 1 will develop new processes for producing lower cost and higher quality thin films from the compound semiconductors CdS and CdTe. These will be used to more inexpensively produce high performance photovoltaic modules that generate electricity from sunlight. Thin film CdTe-based photovoltaics currently require a post-deposition CdCl2 treatment and anneal to achieve reasonable performance. This anneal is known to increase the grain size in some films and increase the minority carrier lifetime in all CdTe films. The minority carrier lifetime is generally correlated with device efficiency in photovoltaic cells. However, the CdCl2 anneal cannot be optimized to maximize the minority carrier lifetime because attempts to do so have caused film delamination. Film delamination occurs due to strain induced during the anneal at the interface between the film and the glass substrate. This proposal seeks to develop a film deposition process that simultaneously avoids this problem and makes better quality films. This process will foster large grain growth, defect passivation, and grain boundary passivation whileeliminating the need for a post-deposition CdCl2 treatment and anneal. This will result in higher efficiency solar cells and a streamlined production process.Commercially, solar photovoltaic modules are a silent, pollution free means to generate electricity from sunlight. Once the capital investment is made to install a photovoltaic electricity system, its operating cost is essentially zero because its "fuel", sunlight, is free. Photovoltaic electricity provides a means for homes to generate as much energy as they use over the course of a year. The production of photovoltaic modules has been increasing 20-30% annually for the past decade due to increases in efficiency and reductions in cost. However, for photovoltaics to achieve significant market penetration into mainstream electricity generation, this growth rate must be continued. This requires further increases in module efficiency and reductions in module cost. This research proposal addresses both of these issues. Successful development of this technology will ensure the marketplace success of CdTe photovoltaic modules, and pave the way for widespread stable-priced, sustainable, pollution-free electricity generation.

这项小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第1阶段将开发新的过程，从而从复合半导体CD和CDTE产生较低的成本和较高质量的薄膜。这些将用于更廉价地产生高性能光伏模块，从而从阳光中产生电。 薄膜基于CDTE的光伏目前需要进行沉积后CDCL2治疗和退火以实现合理的性能。众所周知，这种退火可以增加某些电影中的晶粒尺寸，并在所有CDTE膜中增加少数载体寿命。少数载体寿命通常与光伏细胞中的设备效率相关。但是，CDCL2退火不能优化以最大程度地提高少数载体寿命，因为尝试这样做已导致膜分层。膜分层是由于在膜和玻璃基板之间的界面上的退火期间引起的应变而发生的。该提案旨在开发电影沉积过程，该过程同时避免了这一问题并制造出更好的质量电影。该过程将促进大量的谷物生长，缺陷钝化和晶界钝化，同时对沉积后CDCL2治疗和退化的需求进行了浮力。这将导致较高的效率太阳能电池和简化的生产过程。在驻留地，太阳能光伏模块是一种无声的无污染方法，可从阳光中产生电力。一旦进行了安装光伏电力系统的资本投资，其运营成本本质上是零，因为它的“燃料”是免费的。光伏电力为房屋提供了一种与一年中使用一样多的能量的方法。由于效率提高和成本降低，在过去的十年中，光伏模块的产生每年增加20-30％。但是，要使光伏的市场渗透到主流电力产生中，必须继续这种增长率。这需要进一步提高模块效率和模块成本的降低。该研究建议涉及这两个问题。该技术的成功开发将确保CDTE光伏模块的市场成功，并为广泛稳定的价格稳定，可持续，无污染的发电铺平道路。