Design of a High-Throughput Plasma-Processing System

Abstract

Sandia National Laboratories has demonstrated significant performance gains in crystalline silicon solar cell technology through the use of plasma-processing for the deposition of silicon nitride by Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD), plasma-hydrogenation of the nitride layer, and reactive-ion etching of the silicon surface prior to the deposition to decrease the reflectivity of the surface. One of the major problems of implementing plasma processing into a cell production line is the batch configuration and/or low throughput of the systems currently available. This report describes the concept of a new in-line plasma processing system that could meet the industrial requirements for a high-throughput and cost effective solution for mass production of solar cells