Characterization of Commercial Single Crystal Si Cell Technology

Improvements in commercial single crystal Czochralski (Cz) Si module performance accrue from reducing cell-to-cell variations and improving individual cell performance. Slip dislocations in the bottom region of Cz ingots with “lost structure” impact performance yields. Total area cell efficiencies of 15.6% can be improved by increasing minority carrier lifetimes and reducing shadowing losses. Current cell processing can maintain minority carrier lifetimes above 1 msec.