Effect of dislocations on the efficiency of thin-film GaAs solar cells on Si substrates

Abstract
Recombination loss at dislocations is the predominant loss mechanism in thin‐film GaAs solar cells on Si substrates. Cell parameters are calculated based on a simple model in which dislocations act as recombination centers. Excellent agreement is observed between theory and experiment. It is indicated that one could fabricate thin‐film GaAs solar cells with an efficiency of 17–18% on Si substrates if the dislocation density is less than 5×105 cm2.