DEPLETION-REGION RECOMBINATION IN SILICON SOLAR CELLS: WHEN DOES mDR

This paper examines the ideality factor of depletion-region recombination mDR, with a particular emphasis on its maximum value. Several theoretical models of depletion-region recombination are discussed and it is shown that the models with more assumptions tend to overestimate mDR. Numerical simulations are then used to determine the maximum value of mDR for both step-junction and di usedjunction solar cells, for the case when the trap density is uniformly distributed across the depletion region. The maximum value of mDR is found to increase with doping from 1.7 to 2 for step junctions; and to be approximately 1.8 for all practical doping levels of di used junctions.