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Experiment study on micro-structure on different crystallographic planes of mc-Si etched in alkaline solution

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Abstract

The investigation of multi-crystalline silicon (mc-Si) surface etching technology is a key point in solar cell research. In this paper, mc-Si surface was etched in the common alkaline solution modified by an additive for 20 minutes at 78–80°C. Samples’ surface morphology was observed by scanning electron microscope (SEM). It is firstly found that the etched mc-Si surface has the uniform distribution of trap pits although the morphologies of trap pits are slightly different on different crystallographic planes. Si (100) plane was covered with many small Si-mountain ranges or long V-shape channels arranged in a crisscross pattern. For (110) plane and (111) plane, they were full of a lot of triangle pit-traps (or quadrilateral holes) and twisted earthworm trap pits, respectively. The measured reflectance of the sample was 20.5% at wavelength range of 400–900 nm. These results illustrate that alkaline solution modified by an additive can effectively etch out trap pits with a good trapping light effect on mc-Si surfaces. This method should be very valuable for mc-Si solar cells.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China

    KunXia Wang, ShiMeng Feng, HuaTian Xu & JiaTong Tian

  2. Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, Shanghai, 200235, China

    ShuQuan Yang

  3. Solarfun Power Holdings Solarfun Solar Shanghai Jiao Tong University R & D Center, Shanghai, 201109, China

    JianHua Huang

  4. Shanghai Shenzhou New Energy Source Development Co. Ltd, Shanghai, 20112, China

    Jun Pei

Authors
  1. KunXia Wang
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  2. ShiMeng Feng
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  3. HuaTian Xu
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  4. JiaTong Tian
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  5. ShuQuan Yang
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  7. Jun Pei
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Correspondence to ShiMeng Feng.

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Wang, K., Feng, S., Xu, H. et al. Experiment study on micro-structure on different crystallographic planes of mc-Si etched in alkaline solution. Sci. China Technol. Sci. 55, 1509–1514 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11431-012-4807-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11431-012-4807-8

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