This book, a continuation of the series “Advances in Materials Research,” is intended to provide the general basis of the science and technology of crystal growth of silicon for solar cells. In the face of the destruction of the global environment,the degradationofworld-widenaturalresourcesandtheexha- tion of energy sources in the twenty-?rst century, we all have a sincere desire for a better/safer world in the future. In these days, we strongly believe that it is important for us to rapidly developanewenvironment-friendlycleanenergyconversionsystemusingsolar energyastheultimatenaturalenergysource. Forinstance,mostofournatural resources and energy sources will be exhausted within the next 100 years. Speci?cally, the consumption of oil, natural gas, and uranium is a serious problem. Solar energy is the only ultimate natural energy source. Although 30% of total solar energy is re?ected at the earth’s surface, 70% of total solar energy can be available for us to utilize. The available solar energy amounts to severalthousand times larger than the world’s energy consumption in 2000 of about 9,000 Mtoe (M ton oil equivalent). To manage 10% of the world’s energy consumption at 2050 by solar energy, we must manufacture 40 GW solar cells per year continuously for 40 years. The required silicon feedstock is about 400,000 ton per year. We believe that this is an attainable target, since it can be realized by increasing the world production of silicon feedstock by 12times asmuchasthe presentproductionat2005.

The utilization of sun light is one of the hottest topics in sustainable energy research. To efficiently convert sun power into a reliable energy – electricity – for consumption and storage, silicon and its derivatives have been widely studied and applied in solar cell systems. This handbook covers the photovoltaics of silicon materials and devices, providing a comprehensive summary of the state of the art of photovoltaic silicon sciences and technologies. This work is divided into various areas including but not limited to fundamental principles, design methodologies, wafering techniques/fabrications, characterizations, applications, current research trends and challenges. It offers the most updated and self-explanatory reference to all levels of students and acts as a quick reference to the experts from the fields of chemistry, material science, physics, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, solar energy, etc..

Silicon, as a single-crystal semiconductor, has sparked a revolution in the field of electronics and touched nearly every field of science and technology. Though available abundantly as silica and in various other forms in nature, silicon is difficult to separate from its chemical compounds because of its reactivity. As a solid, silicon is chemically inert and stable, but growing it as a single crystal creates many technological challenges. Crystal Growth and Evaluation of Silicon for VLSI and ULSI is one of the first books to cover the systematic growth of silicon single crystals and the complete evaluation of silicon, from sand to useful wafers for device fabrication. Written for engineers and researchers working in semiconductor fabrication industries, this practical text: Describes different techniques used to grow silicon single crystals Explains how grown single-crystal ingots become a complete silicon wafer for integrated-circuit fabrication Reviews different methods to evaluate silicon wafers to determine suitability for device applications Analyzes silicon wafers in terms of resistivity and impurity concentration mapping Examines the effect of intentional and unintentional impurities Explores the defects found in regular silicon-crystal lattice Discusses silicon wafer preparation for VLSI and ULSI processing Crystal Growth and Evaluation of Silicon for VLSI and ULSI is an essential reference for different approaches to the selection of the basic silicon-containing compound, separation of silicon as metallurgical-grade pure silicon, subsequent purification, single-crystal growth, and defects and evaluation of the deviations within the grown crystals.

The most comprehensive, authoritative and widely cited reference on photovoltaic solar energy Fully revised and updated, the Handbook of Photovoltaic Science and Engineering, Second Edition incorporates the substantial technological advances and research developments in photovoltaics since its previous release. All topics relating to the photovoltaic (PV) industry are discussed with contributions by distinguished international experts in the field. Significant new coverage includes: three completely new chapters and six chapters with new authors device structures, processing, and manufacturing options for the three major thin film PV technologies high performance approaches for multijunction, concentrator, and space applications new types of organic polymer and dye-sensitized solar cells economic analysis of various policy options to stimulate PV growth including effect of public and private investment Detailed treatment covers: scientific basis of the photovoltaic effect and solar cell operation the production of solar silicon and of silicon-based solar cells and modules how choice of semiconductor materials and their production influence costs and performance making measurements on solar cells and modules and how to relate results under standardised test conditions to real outdoor performance photovoltaic system installation and operation of components such as inverters and batteries. architectural applications of building-integrated PV Each chapter is structured to be partially accessible to beginners while providing detailed information of the physics and technology for experts. Encompassing a review of past work and the fundamentals in solar electric science, this is a leading reference and invaluable resource for all practitioners, consultants, researchers and students in the PV industry.

The status of silicon sheet development for photovoltaic applications is critically reviewed. Silicon sheet growth processes are classified according to their linear growth rates. The "fast" growth processes, which include edge-defined film-fed growth, silicon on ceramic, dendritic-web growth, and ribbon-to-ribbon growth, are comparatively ranked subject to criteria involving growth stability, sheet productivity, impurity effects, crystallinity, and solar cell results. The status of more rapid silicon ribbon growth techniques, such as horizontal ribbon growth and melt quenching, is also reviewed. The emphasis of the discussions is on examining the viability of these sheet materials as solar cell substrates for low-cost silicon photovoltaic systems.

Crystal Growth of Si Ingots for Solar Cells Using Cast Furnaces is the first book written to both comprehensively describe these concepts and technologies and compare the strengths and weaknesses of various techniques. Readers will learn about the basic growth and characterization of Si crystals, including sections on the history of cast methods for Si ingots for solar cells. Methods discussed include the dendrite cast method, as well as other significant technologies, including the high-performance (HP) cast and mono-like cast methods. These concepts, growth mechanisms, growth technologies, and the problems that still need to be solved are all included in this comprehensive volume. - Covers the concept of crystal growth, providing an understanding of each growth method - Discusses the quality of Si ingot, mainly from the viewpoint of crystal defects and their control - Reviews fundamental characterization concepts to discern the quality of ingots and wafers - Discusses concepts and technologies to establish a low-temperature region in a Si melt using the NOC method in order to obtain a uniform and large Si single ingot with low stress

Today’s solar cell multi-GW market is dominated by crystalline silicon (c-Si) wafer technology, however new cell concepts are entering the market. One very promising solar cell design to answer these needs is the silicon hetero-junction solar cell, of which the emitter and back surface field are basically produced by a low temperature growth of ultra-thin layers of amorphous silicon. In this design, amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) constitutes both „emitter“ and „base-contact/back surface field“ on both sides of a thin crystalline silicon wafer-base (c-Si) where the electrons and holes are photogenerated; at the same time, a-Si:H passivates the c-Si surface. Recently, cell efficiencies above 23% have been demonstrated for such solar cells. In this book, the editors present an overview of the state-of-the-art in physics and technology of amorphous-crystalline heterostructure silicon solar cells. The heterojunction concept is introduced, processes and resulting properties of the materials used in the cell and their heterointerfaces are discussed and characterization techniques and simulation tools are presented.

Over the years, many successful attempts have been chapters in this part describe the well-known processes made to describe the art and science of crystal growth, such as Czochralski, Kyropoulos, Bridgman, and o- and many review articles, monographs, symposium v- ing zone, and focus speci cally on recent advances in umes, and handbooks have been published to present improving these methodologies such as application of comprehensive reviews of the advances made in this magnetic elds, orientation of the growth axis, intro- eld. These publications are testament to the grow- duction of a pedestal, and shaped growth. They also ing interest in both bulk and thin- lm crystals because cover a wide range of materials from silicon and III–V of their electronic, optical, mechanical, microstructural, compounds to oxides and uorides. and other properties, and their diverse scienti c and The third part, Part C of the book, focuses on - technological applications. Indeed, most modern ad- lution growth. The various aspects of hydrothermal vances in semiconductor and optical devices would growth are discussed in two chapters, while three other not have been possible without the development of chapters present an overview of the nonlinear and laser many elemental, binary, ternary, and other compound crystals, KTP and KDP. The knowledge on the effect of crystals of varying properties and large sizes. The gravity on solution growth is presented through a c- literature devoted to basic understanding of growth parison of growth on Earth versus in a microgravity mechanisms, defect formation, and growth processes environment.

Photovoltaic technology has now developed to the extent that it is close to fulfilling the vision of a "solar-energy world," as devices based on this technology are becoming efficient, low-cost and durable. This book provides a comprehensive treatment of thin-film silicon, a prevalent PV material, in terms of its semiconductor nature, starting out with the physical properties, but concentrating on device applications. A special emphasis is given to amorphous silicon and microcrystalline silicon as photovoltaic materials, along with a model that allows these systems to be physically described in the simplest manner possible, thus allowing the student or scientist/engineer entering the field of thin-film electronics to master a few basic concepts that are distinct from those in the field of conventional semiconductors. The main part of the book deals with solar cells and modules by illustrating the basic functioning of these devices, along with their limitations, design optimization, testing and fabrication methods. Among the manufacturing processes discussed are plasma-assisted and hot-wire deposition, sputtering, and structuring techniques.

Solar PV Power: Design, Manufacturing and Applications from Sand to Systems details developments in the solar cell manufacturing process, including information from system design straight through to the entire value chain of Solar PV Manufacturing. In addition, the book includes aspects of ground mounted grid connected solar PV systems and optimization for solar PV plants, economic analyses, and reliability and performance. The advances and processes of solar product technology and reliability, along with the performance of solar PV plants and operational and maintenance aspects with advance diagnostic techniques are also presented, making this an ideal resource. With rapid change in the manufacturing process, it is crucial for solar cells and solar PV modules to adapt to new developments in solar products, especially with regard to reliability, financial aspects and performance. - Includes detailed solar panel module assembly and analysis - Offers new concepts for solar PV system design that are presented alongside field related issues and examples - Saves time and resources by collecting all pieces of information needed by engineers in the same text