High-rate (∼50-Å/s) deposition of ZnO films for amorphous silicon alloy solar-cell back-reflector application

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Abstract
Back reflectors have been fabricated by the deposition of ZnO films on textured Ag films. High deposition rates of ∼50 Å/s have been achieved by the dc magnetron sputtering technique. The ZnO target used has been prepared in our laboratory. Amorphous silicon alloy solar cells have been deposited on the ZnO/textured Ag back reflector. Control samples have been prepared by the deposition of identical cells on the same back reflector, but in which the ZnO films have been prepared by a low-rate ∼5-Å/s rf sputtering process. The short-circuit current density, which has been used as the primary test parameter for evaluating the back reflectors, is slightly superior in the case of the high-rate ZnO back reflector. The high-rate deposition process is, therefore, attractive for large-volume production application.