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The Optoelectronic Properties of a-Si, Ge:H(F) Alloys*)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

S. Wagner
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
V. Chu
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
D. S. Shen
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
J. P. Conde
Affiliation:
IBM Graduate Fellow.
S. Aljishi
Affiliation:
Present address: Max-Planck Institut für Festkörperforschung, Stuttgart, W. Germany.
Z E. Smith
Affiliation:
Present address: Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, Palo Alto, California.
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Abstract

We survey experimental evidence, obtained by optoelectronic measurements, and theoretical models for the density of gap states in a-Si,Ge:H(F) alloys. This survey shows that increasingly reproducible densities are obtained in the various segments of the energy gap. The results are becoming understood quantitatively. It is not yet clear if the reproducibility signals that the best material has been reached. The electron transport properties of low-gap (1.2 eV < Eopt < 1.4 eV) alloys are adequate for solar cells. Improvement of the hole transport properties, particularly (μr) which is set by the valence band tail width and the density of deep defects, is achieved through a reduction of the Urbach energy.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1988

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Footnotes

*

Work supported by the Electric Power Research Institute.

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