Solar cells and manufacturing method thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9997647-B2
Application number	US-201213978056-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 4, 2012
Priority date	Jan 5, 2011
Publication date	Jun 12, 2018
Grant date	Jun 12, 2018

Abstract

A solar cell and a method for manufacturing the same are disclosed. The solar cell includes a substrate, an emitter region positioned at one surface of the substrate, a first insulating layer including a lower layer positioned on the emitter region and an upper layer positioned on the lower layer, and a first electrode which is formed of a first conductive paste and is electrically connected to the emitter region. The first insulating layer includes a plurality of first contact holes, and a portion of the first electrode is filled in the plurality of first contact holes.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A solar cell comprising:
an n-type substrate having a textured front surface and a textured back surface;
an emitter region positioned on the textured front surface of the n-type substrate;
a first insulating layer including a lower layer positioned on the emitter region and an upper layer positioned on the lower layer, the lower layer being formed of aluminum oxide or yttrium oxide having negative fixed charges and the upper layer being formed of an insulating material having positive fixed charges;
a first electrode electrically connected to the emitter region, the first electrode including a plurality of front electrodes, which are separated from one another and extending in a first direction, and a plurality of front electrode current collectors extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction;
a back surface field region positioned on the textured back surface of the n-type substrate;
a second insulating layer positioned on a back surface of the back surface field region; and
a second electrode electrically connected to the back surface field region through a plurality of contact holes in the second insulating layer, the second electrode including a plurality of back electrodes, which are separated from one another and extending in the first direction, and a plurality of back electrode current collectors extending in the second direction,
wherein the first insulating layer includes a plurality of first contact holes and a plurality of second contact holes each passing through the upper and lower layers of the first insulating layer and each having a dot shape,
wherein the plurality of first contact holes are separated from one another and positioned along the first direction of the plurality of front electrodes,
wherein the plurality of second contact holes are separated from one another and positioned along the second direction of the plurality of front electrode current collectors,
wherein a size of the plurality of second contact holes under the plurality of first electrode current collectors is bigger than a size of the plurality of first contact holes under the plurality of first electrodes,
wherein portions of each of the plurality of front electrodes are filled in the plurality of first contact holes and electrically connected to the emitter region, and portions of each of the plurality of front electrode current collectors are filled in the plurality of second contact holes and electrically connected to the emitter region,
wherein the plurality of first contact holes and the plurality of second contact holes are positioned under one front electrode current collector of the plurality of front electrode current collectors along the second direction of the plurality of front electrode current collectors,
wherein each of the plurality of first contact holes and each of the plurality of second contact holes includes a first portion positioned in the upper layer of the first insulating layer and a second portion positioned in the lower layer of the first insulating layer, and
wherein a maximum width of the second portion in the first direction and the second direction is larger than a maximum width of the first portion in the first direction and the second direction.

2. The solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the insulating material includes silicon nitride (SiNx).

3. The solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the maximum width of the first portion of the plurality of first contact holes in the second direction is less than a width of the plurality of front electrodes in the second direction, and the maximum width of the first portion of the plurality of second contact holes in the first direction is less than a width of the plurality of front electrode current collectors in the first direction.

4. The solar cell of claim 1 , wherein an average width of the second portion positioned in the lower layer of the first insulating layer is greater than an average width of the first portion positioned in the upper layer of the first insulating layer.

5. The solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the first electrode including the plurality of front electrodes and the plurality of front electrode current collectors is formed of a plurality of conductive particles and a glass frit.

6. The solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of contact holes in the second insulating layer include a plurality of third and fourth contact holes each having a dot shape, and
wherein portions of each of the plurality of back electrodes are filled in the plurality of third contact holes, and portions of each of the plurality of back electrode current collectors are filled in the plurality of fourth contact holes.

7. The solar cell of claim 6 , wherein the plurality of third contact holes are separated from one another and positioned along the first direction of the plurality of back electrodes, and the plurality of fourth contact holes are separated from one another and positioned along the second direction of a back electrode current collectors.

8. The solar cell of claim 7 , wherein the n-type substrate is formed of n-type silicon wafer, on which phosphorus (P) is doped.

9. The solar cell of claim 8 , wherein the second insulating layer has the same structure as the first insulating layer.

Assignees

• Jin Yoonsil
• Shim Goohwan
• Choe Youngho
• Chang Jaewon
• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Jin Yoonsil
• Shim Goohwan
• Choe Youngho
• Chang Jaewon

Classifications

• H01L31/02167

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L31/022425 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L31/068

  Electricity · mapped topic

• Y02E10/547

  Monocrystalline silicon PV cells · CPC title

• H01L31/022433

  Electricity · mapped topic