Photoluminescence lifetime in heterojunctions

It is desirable to obtain minority carrier lifetimes on real photovoltaic structures. However, the photoluminescence (PL) lifetime in such devices is less than the real bulk lifetime because of collection of carriers at the p-n junction. A transient analysis of the PL decay produces lifetime as a pa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inSolar cells Vol. 24; no. 3; pp. 339 - 352
Main Authors Ahrenkiel, R.K., Dunlavy, D.J., Hanak, T.
Format Journal Article Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published Lausanne Elsevier B.V 01.07.1988
Elsevier Sequoia
Subjects
Applied sciences
Energy
Exact sciences and technology
Natural energy
Solar energy
Solar thermal conversion
Solar cell
Measurement
Lifetime
Minority carrier
Electronic properties
Theoretical model
Device
Photoluminescence
Yield
Heterojunction
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Summary:It is desirable to obtain minority carrier lifetimes on real photovoltaic structures. However, the photoluminescence (PL) lifetime in such devices is less than the real bulk lifetime because of collection of carriers at the p-n junction. A transient analysis of the PL decay produces lifetime as a parameter. By fitting the data to the model, we can estimate the bulk lifetime in window-absorber heterojunction structures. For ITO/InP devices, there was a strong correlation between such lifetime values and the device efficiency. Similar results were found for n-Al 0.9Ga 0.1As/p-Al 0.37Ga 0.63As heterostructures.
ISSN:0379-6787
1878-2655
DOI:10.1016/0379-6787(88)90086-5