LASER-DOPED METAL-PLATED BIFACIAL SILICON SOLAR CELLS

The objective of the experiments reported in this article was to develop a fabrication method for laser-doped p-type bifacial Si solar cells using self-aligned metal-plated electrical contacts to both cell polarities. A key enabler for the fabrication of these cells was the recognition that p-type Si regions can be made cathodic by forward-biasing the p-n junction of the solar cell.  Used in conjunction with LIP for metallisation of the n-type contact regions, this new plating method, which will be referred to as field-induced plating (FIP), was used to form Ni/Cu grids on both semiconductor polarity surfaces of a cell and thereby metallise bifacial solar cells.