SBIR Phase I: Fabrication of low-bandgap nano-crystalline SiGeC thin films using the Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) technique

SBIR 第一阶段：使用等离子体增强化学气相沉积 (PECVD) 技术制造低带隙纳米晶 SiGeC 薄膜

• 批准号: 0740359
• 负责人: Jian Hu
• 金额: $ 9.96万
• 依托单位: M V SYSTEMS, INC
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-01-01 至 2008-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0740359&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Fabrication; low; bandgap

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will develop nanocrystalline SiGeC thin films with an optical bandgap (Eg) in the range of 1.6-1.8 eV, and enhanced absorption characteristics, leading to low-cost, high-efficiency (20%) photovoltaic devices. Previous attempts at improving the photovoltaic efficiency have not been consistent and successful. The proposed approach uses plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) technique to deposit these films, which allows greater control of the process by being able to manipulate the plasma and electron temperatures to control the ion density in the plasma, with an independent control of the process parameters. This flexibility does not exist in the currently used techniques. With the proposed technique, stable and consistent films of SiGeC can be deposited on the desired substrate at moderate temperatures. If successfully developed, this technique could provide higher efficiency solar cells for the alternative energy market. The goal of highly stable films, high deposition efficiency and process scalability for large-scale manufacturing can only be achieved if the basic process can be proven.The broader impacts of this research will be in the low-cost photovoltaic (PV) devices for power generation market. If successfully completed, this research could lead to a strong partnership between solar cell manufacturers and equipment manufacturers, leading to a potentially lucrative photovoltaics market. Currently, electricity generated with available PV devices is 3-4 times more expensive as the conventional electricity. The selected materials (Si, Ge and C) for the thin film are abundantly available, which can significantly reduce the raw materials costs. A large body of basic knowledge of the requirements of solar electricity for the competitive market already exists, which makes the development of the process with a realistic performance target easy to achieve. The main challenge for achieving this goal lies in being able to control the deposition process to assure a stable and robust process, as the previous work has not been able to achieve consistent results. The initial target of producing a triple-junction thin-film solar cell is a worthy first product demonstration, which will prove the efficacy of the proposed technique, and attract third-party funding with little difficulty.

该小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将开发光学带隙（Eg）在1.6-1.8 eV范围内的纳米晶SiGeC薄膜，并增强吸收特性，从而实现低成本，高效率（20%）的光伏器件。先前在提高光伏效率方面的尝试并不一致和成功。所提出的方法使用等离子体增强化学气相沉积（PECVD）技术来存款这些膜，这允许通过能够操纵等离子体和电子温度来控制等离子体中的离子密度，从而对工艺参数进行独立控制来更好地控制工艺。这种灵活性在目前使用的技术中不存在。与所提出的技术，稳定和一致的薄膜的SiGeC可以在所需的衬底上在中等温度下沉积。如果成功开发，这项技术可以为替代能源市场提供更高效率的太阳能电池。高稳定性薄膜、高沉积效率和大规模生产工艺可扩展性的目标只有在基本工艺得到验证的情况下才能实现。这项研究的更广泛影响将在低成本光伏（PV）发电设备市场。如果成功完成，这项研究可能会导致太阳能电池制造商和设备制造商之间建立强大的合作伙伴关系，从而带来潜在的利润丰厚的光化学市场。目前，可用的PV设备产生的电力比传统电力贵3-4倍。用于薄膜的所选材料（Si、Ge和C）是丰富的，这可以显著降低原材料成本。关于竞争市场对太阳能发电的要求，已经有了大量的基本知识，这使得开发具有现实性能目标的工艺变得容易实现。实现这一目标的主要挑战在于能够控制沉积过程以确保稳定和稳健的过程，因为以前的工作无法实现一致的结果。生产三结薄膜太阳能电池的最初目标是一个有价值的第一个产品演示，这将证明所提出的技术的有效性，并吸引第三方资金几乎没有困难。