AbstractCurrent-voltage, light I-V and internal quantum efficiency characteristics have been investigated in specular TCO/n+(a-Si:H)/i(a-Si:H)/Nickel Schottky barrier cell structures with protocrystalline intrinsic layers. The studies were carried out on structures with different thickness i layers after a degraded steady state had been reached with AMI.5 illumination at 27°C. These characteristics were modeled using the Analysis of Microelectronic and Photonic Structures(AMPS) and a gap state distribution, which includes charged defects, used in the analysis of results of detailed studies on thin films[1]. Fits are obtained to these characteristics for the different thickness cell structures using the same parameters as those used to fit the results on the corresponding intrinsic thin films. The results obtained from this study offer an approach to more reliable modeling of solar cells at their “end of life”.
