Numerical study of mono-crystalline silicon solar cells with passivated emitter and rear contact configuration for the efficiency beyond 24% based on mass production technology

Mono-crystalline silicon solar cells with a passivated emitter rear contact (PERC) configuration have attracted extensive attention from both industry and scientific communities. A record efficiency of 24.06% on p-type silicon wafer and mass production efficiency around 22% have been demonstrated, mainly due to its superior rear side passivation. In this work, the PERC solar cells with a p-type silicon wafer were numerically studied in terms of the surface passivation, quality of silicon wafer and metal electrodes. A rational way to achieve a 24% mass-production efficiency was proposed. Free energy loss analyses were adopted to address the loss sources with respect to the limit efficiency of 29%, which provides a guideline for the design and manufacture of a high-efficiency PERC solar cell. (paper)