Investigation of DS Furnace Heat Exchange Block Thickness for the Improvement mc-Si Ingot Quality

• Published in: SILICON Vol. 15; no. 5; pp. 2185 - 2197
• Main Authors: Gopalakrishnan, Anbu, Madhu, Thiyagarajan, Gurusamy, Aravindan, Manickam, Srinivasan, Perumalsamy, Ramasamy
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.04.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Axial stress; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Directional solidification; Dislocation density; Environmental Chemistry; Heat exchange; Heat exchangers; Ingots; Inorganic Chemistry; Lasers; Materials Science; Optical Devices; Optics; Original Paper; Photonics; Polymer Sciences; Shear stress; Silicon; Stress distribution; Temperature distribution; Thickness; Thermal stress; Silicon solar cell; Computer simulation; Directional solidification; Heat exchanger block thickness
• ISSN: 1876-990X; 1876-9918
• DOI: 10.1007/s12633-022-02162-z

Numerical investigation was performed for analyzing the distribution of von Mises stress in the growing multi-crystalline silicon ingot during the directional solidification process. In order to minimize the generation of the dislocation density, it is important to grow the mc-Si ingot with lower von Mises stress by maintaining 600 mbr pressure and Ar gas is inlet 20 LPM throughout the growth process. The important features for the generation of von Mises stress in the growing mc-Si ingot is axial and radial temperature gradient. The axial and radial temperature distributions play vital role for the generation of von Mises stress. By varying the thickness of the heat exchanger block the axial temperature distribution got altered. Directional Solidification furnace with various thickness of heat exchanger block (50 mm—250 mm) has been simulated and their response to solidification process has been analyzed. The distribution of axial and radial temperature, maximum principal stress and shear stress studies have been carried out for analyzing the distribution of von Mises stress in the mc-Si ingot. The growth rate of the mc-Si ingot has been altered by varying the thickness of the heat exchanger block. Since we maintained the growth rate within the optimal range, the optimal stress distribution has been observed for all the cases due to the lower growth rate. The recommended thickness of the heat exchanger block thickness is 250 mm.