Performance Study of Cadmium Telluride Solar Cell Featured with Silicon Thin Film Made by Sol-Gel Route

Abstract

Solar energy has emerged as a promising renewable solution, with cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar cells leading the way due to their high efficiency and cost-effectiveness. This study examines the performance of CdTe solar cells enhanced by incorporating silicon thin films (20-40 nm) fabricated via a sol-gel process. The resulting solar cells underwent comprehensive performance evaluations, including electrical, optical, and structural analyses. The structural behaviour of silicon/CdTe solar cells was investigated using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) techniques. SEM provides a high-resolution analysis of surface morphology with a fine grain of silicon, leads to enhanced functional performance, and XRD confirm the crystalline phase of CdTe and silicon. The study measured and compared key performance metrics, including electrical conductivity, hall coefficient, Tanu plot performance, I-V measurement, rectification ratio, and quantum efficiency with conventional CdTe solar cells. With nano SiC thin layer of 40 nm influences better electrical conductivity (10x10^-2 S/cm), limited hall coefficient (0.0044 cm³/C), with optimum bang gap of 1.45 eV, increased rectification ratio (2 at 0.8 V), and optimum I-V ranges of 1-2. The quantum efficiency of the CdTe: Si solar cell reached 89%, and the rectification ratio increased gradually due to the influence of Si doping. The experimental results show a notable enhancement in photoelectric conversion efficiency with silicon thin films, underscoring their promising potential for future photovoltaic applications.