The Impact of Silicon Surface Pretreatment on Interface Structure and Passivation Quality of Alox Films Deposited by Atomic Layer Deposition

Download This Paper Open PDF in Browser Add Paper to My Library Share: Permalink Using these links will ensure access to this page indefinitely Copy URL The Impact of Silicon Surface Pretreatment on Interface Structure and Passivation Quality of Alox Films Deposited by Atomic Layer Deposition 34 Pages Posted: 8 Jan 2025 See all articles by Jiahui XuJiahui Xuaffiliation not provided to SSRNWenjing Zhangaffiliation not provided to SSRNYuxuan Liaffiliation not provided to SSRNCui Liuaffiliation not provided to SSRNGeng Zhangaffiliation not provided to SSRNZhenjue Shenaffiliation not provided to SSRNPierre Verlindenaffiliation not provided to SSRNXiao Yuanaffiliation not provided to SSRN Abstract The initial state of silicon surface prior to aluminum oxide (AlOx) films by atomic layer deposition (ALD) plays a critical role in determining the passivation performance. However, the mechanisms by which the silicon surface state impacts the formation of structures that passivate dangling bonds and generate negative charge centers remain inadequately understood. In this study, various oxidative pretreatments were employed to modify the surface characteristics, followed by the deposition and annealing of AlOx films. The findings reveal that different oxidative pretreatments affect the formation of Si-O-Al and octahedral AlO6 structures at ALD AlOx/Si interface, which ultimately determine the passivation performance of ALD AlOx films. Silicon surfaces with minimal or no oxidation are found to be more favorable for the formation of interfacial Si-O-Al structures, resulting in a lower interface defect density of approximately 1 × 1011 eV−1cm−2. Additionally, silicon surfaces dominated by low-valence oxidation states promote the formation of octahedral AlO6 structures, which enhance the negative fixed charge density. Incorporating the air pretreatment prior to ALD AlOx films further reduces the J0 of TOPCon solar cells, resulting in an average open-circuit voltage gain of 3 mV. Keywords: ALD AlOx, pretreatment, surface passivation, interface structure Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation Xu, Jiahui and Zhang, Wenjing and Li, Yuxuan and Liu, Cui and Zhang, Geng and Shen, Zhenjue and Verlinden, Pierre and Yuan, Xiao, The Impact of Silicon Surface Pretreatment on Interface Structure and Passivation Quality of Alox Films Deposited by Atomic Layer Deposition. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=5087597 Jiahui Xu (Contact Author) affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Wenjing Zhang affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Yuxuan Li affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Cui Liu affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Geng Zhang affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Zhenjue Shen affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Pierre Verlinden affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Xiao Yuan affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email ) No Address Available Download This Paper Open PDF in Browser Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN? Place Job Opening Paper statistics Downloads 0 Abstract Views 1 49 References PlumX Metrics Feedback Feedback to SSRN Feedback (required) Email (required) Submit