Silicon Solar Cell Metallization and Module Technology

In solar cell production, metallization is the manufacturing of metal  contacts at the surfaces of solar cells in order to collect the  photo-generated current for use. Being one of the most expensive steps  in solar cell fabrication, it plays both an electrical and an optical  role, because the contacts contribute to shading, and to the series  resistance of solar cells. In addition, metal contacts may reduce the  solar cells voltage due to charge carrier recombination at the metal /  silicon interface. Addressing these challenges could increase solar cell  conversion efficiency while cutting their production costs.

This  work presents state of the art methods for the metallization of  crystalline Si solar cells for industrial production as well as for  research and development. Different metallization technologies are  compared, and ongoing R&D activities for the most relevant silicon  solar cell metallization technologies are described in detail. Chapters  cover fundamentals of metallization and metallization approaches,  evaporated, plated and screen-printed contacts, alternative printing  technologies, metallization of specific solar cell types, module  interconnection technologies, and also address module technology.

Written  by a selection of world-renowned experts, the book provides researchers  in academia and industry, solar cell manufacturing experts and advanced  students with a thorough and systematic guide to advanced metallization  of solar cells.