Abstract
This chapter gives an account of the evolution of the harmonically modulated luminescence experimental setup in the course of this work. An account of the state-of-the-art experimental setup is followed by the description of key innovations of the experimental setup.
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Notes
- 1.
Modulated electroluminescence is covered in Sect. 7.4.
- 2.
QSSL Lifetime is written in the Python programming language.
- 3.
Signal amplitudes are recorded as net photocurrents, i.e. an individually measured dark photocurrent is subtracted from net amplitudes \(\Phi (t_i)\) and \(G(t_i)\), respectively.
- 4.
The physical distance between substrate and luminescence detector in the default measurement configuration amounts to \(z=95\,\mathrm {mm}\).
- 5.
The room temperature (\(298\,\mathrm {K}\)) thermal noise of the photodiodes was found not to be the dominant source of noise for modulated luminescence experiments.
- 6.
The irradiance detector is planned to capture light directly branching off the fiber to connect the light source to its shaping optics in a final setup configuration. That way, the captured light intensity is independent of backscattering of light from the substrate, leading to a substantial simplification of the calibration of the substrate’s excess carrier generation rate \(G(t)\).
- 7.
The account given in this section is adapted from the corresponding original publication [5].
- 8.
Note that the previous experimental setup—as used for the experiment described herein—featured silicon photodiodes, which were relatively thick compared to typical wafer thicknesses (\(d_{PD}\gtrsim 400\,\upmu \mathrm {m}\)).
- 9.
Further assuming negligible back surface recombination velocity of the photodiode (\(S_{PD,d}=0\)).
- 10.
Also considering the reabsorption of luminescence and the photon energy dependence of the test wafer interface reflectivity. Other than indicated in Eq. 7.5, one reflection of luminescent radiation at the photodiode’s back surface was also considered in the calculation of \(g_{\Phi }(z)\).
- 11.
The essential condition for this transformation to accurately account for phase artifacts induced by signal detection and amplification is again a quasi-steady-state condition: it is \(\Delta t^{\prime }\ll \mathcal {T}\), and it ensures that the total finite response times (here assumed to range within the same order of magnitude as the difference of response times \(\Delta t^{\prime }\)) cannot substantially deform measured signals.
- 12.
Shot noise of luminescent radiation, fluctuation noise induced through detection and processing of signals, and interferences with the surrounding electronics may give rise to this uncertainty.
- 13.
Wafer filters feature no surface passivation and negligible luminescence—as they are only very weakly illuminated compared to the substrate under investigation.
- 14.
The account given in this section is adapted from the corresponding original publication [11].
- 15.
As compared to the transmissive measurement configuration sketched e.g. in Fig. 7.1
- 16.
Note that alternative filtering approaches on the basis of direct compound semiconductor filter hardware have been suggested elsewhere [1]. The use of such filters has not yet been evaluated or implemented in the current harmonically modulated luminescence experimental setup at Fraunhofer ISE.
- 17.
Note that the radial symmetry of the local sensitivity function \(\mathcal {S}\) with respect to the optical axis of irradiation (cf. Sect. 7.1.3) is violated in the reflective measurement configuration due to apparent topological constraints.
- 18.
In the present experimental setup, for substrate active areas greater than the greatest aperture available, the above specified lateral homogeneity of irradiance (with a variance \({<}2\,\%\)) is not valid anymore. Rather, irradiance steadily decreases upon further departure from the optical axis.
- 19.
Solar cell lifetime results obtained in a reflective measurement configuration are shown and validated in Sect. 8.3.
- 20.
The account given in this section is adapted from the corresponding original publication [23].
- 21.
i.e. self-consistently or according to any of the phase-sensitive approaches outlined in Sect. 8.1
- 22.
Conditions for equivalent dynamic lifetime analyses between optical and electrical carrier injection are sketched in Sect. 3.2.1.
- 23.
Note that the lateral homogeneity of this injection rate depends on the series resistance (particularly, the emitter sheet resistance) of the solar cell. The higher the injected current at a given sheet resistance, the closer is the current confined to the immediate surroundings of metal contacts. Lateral uniformity of carrier injection can be validated via electroluminescence imaging.
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Giesecke, J. (2014). Evolution of the Experimental Setup. In: Quantitative Recombination and Transport Properties in Silicon from Dynamic Luminescence. Springer Theses. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06157-3_7
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