The next generation of industrial silicon solar cells aims at efficiencies of 21% and above. To achieve this goal using high bulk lifetime silicon wafers, a highly effective surface passivation of the cell (front and/or rear) is required. Al2O3 is well known in the PV community for its excellent surface passivation properties and applying ALD, Al2O3 will be deposited layer by layer, resulting in a very dense and uniform layer. This opens also the way to develop newest advanced solar cell concepts like PERC, n-PERT, IBC or Topcon structures.
Most research institutes that are first in class of these new developments need ALD as the right passivation technique. As the research and development requires low volumes, the InPassion LAB is viewed as the best option for this task. This tool enables a wide DOE of experiments to be defined to find the right recipe, layer thickness and so on for the Al2O3 layer. After identifying the right recipe, a pilot production run can be the next phase before transferring the complete new cell to mass production.