Semiconductor Junctions

❖A p-n junction fabricated in the same semiconductor material

such as c-Si is an example of an p-n homojunction.

❖There are also other types of junctions: A p-n junction that is

formed by two chemically different semiconductors is called a p-n
heterojunction.

❖In a p-i-n junctions, the region of the internal electric field is

extended by inserting an intrinsic ,i, layer between the p-type and
the n-type layers. The i-layer behaves like a capacitor and it
stretches the electric field formed by the p-n junction across itself.

❖Another type of the junction is a junction between a metal and a

semiconductor, a so-called MS junction. The Schottky barrier
formed at the metal semiconductor interface is a typical example of
the MS junction.
 Formation of a space-charge region in the p-n junction
Following figure shows schematically isolated pieces of a p-type and an
n-type semiconductor and their corresponding band diagrams. In both
isolated pieces the charge neutrality is maintained.

❖In the n-type semiconductor the

large concentration of negatively-
charged free electrons is
compensated by positively-charged
ionised donor atoms.
❖In the p-type semiconductor holes
are the majority carriers and the
positive charge of holes is
compensated by negatively-charged
ionised acceptor atoms.
Schematic representation of an isolated n-
type and p-type semiconductor and
corresponding band diagrams
❖The gradual depletion of the charge carriers gives rise to a space
charge created by the charge of the ionised donor and acceptor atoms
that is not compensated by the mobile charges any more. This region of
the space charge is called the space-charge region or depleted region

❖The space charge around the metallurgical junction results in the

formation of an internal electric field which forces the charge carriers to
move in the opposite direction than the concentration gradient.
❖The diffusion currents continue to flow until the forces acting on the
charge carriers, namely the concentration gradient and the internal
electrical field, compensate each other.
❖The driving force for the charge transport does not exist any more and
no net current flows through the p-n junction
 The p-n junction under equilibrium
❖It means that under equilibrium conditions
the Fermi level has constant position in the
band diagram of the p-n junction.
❖The distance between the Fermi level and the
valence and/or conduction bands does not
change in the quasi-neutral regions and is the
same as in the isolated n- and p-type
semiconductors.
❖Inside the space-charge region, the
conduction and valence bands are not
represented by straight horizontal lines any
more but they are curved.
❖This indicates the presence of an electric field
in this region. Due to the electric field a
difference in the electrostatic potential is
created between the boundaries of the space-
charge region. Figure: Energy-band diagram of the p-n
junction. The electrostatic potential
❖The presence of the internal electric field
profile (red curve) is also presented in
inside the pn junction means that there is an the figure.
electrostatic potential difference, ψ0, across the
space-charge region.
 The p-n junction under applied voltage
❖When an external voltage, Va, is applied
to a p-n junction the potential difference
between the n- and p-type regions will
change and the electrostatic potential
across the space-charge region will
become (ψ0 - Va).
❖The potential barrier across the junction
is increased under reverse-bias voltage,
which results in a wider space-charge
region.
❖The concentrations of electrons and
holes are described by the quasi-Fermi
energy for electrons, EFC, and the quasi-
Fermi energy for holes, EFV, respectively.

Figure 8.6: Energy band diagram and

potential profile (in red colour) of a p-n
junction under (a) reverse bias
❖When the applied external voltage is
positive with respect to the potential of
the p-type region, the applied voltage
will decrease the potential difference
across the p-n junction. We refer to this
situation as p-n junction under forward-
bias voltage
❖The potential barrier across the
junction is decreased under forward-
bias voltage and the space charge
region becomes narrower.
❖When no voltage is applied to the p-n
junction
Figure 8.6: Energy band diagram and
❖when a moderate forward-bias potential profile (in red colour) of a p-n
voltage is applied to the junction junction under (b) forward bias.

This assumption is called the Boltzmann approximation.

❖The generation current, on the other hand, is almost independent of
the potential barrier across the junction and is determined by the
availability of the thermally generated minority carriers in the doped
regions

❖The external net-current density can be expressed as

where J0 is the saturation-current density of the p-n junction, given by

 The p-n junction under illumination

❖When a p-n junction is illuminated the additional electron-hole pairs are

generated in the semiconductor.
❖The concentration of minority carriers (electrons in the p-type region
and holes in the n-type region) strongly increases.
❖This increase in the concentration of minority carriers leads to the flow
of the minority carriers across the depletion region into the quasi-neutral
regions.
❖Electrons flow from the p-type into the n-type region and holes from the
n-type into the p-type region.
❖The flow of the photo-generated carriers causes the so-called photo-
generation current, Jph, which adds to the thermal-generation current, Jgen.
❖When no external contact between the n-type and the p-type regions is
established, which means that the junction is in the open-circuit condition, no
net current can flow inside the p-n junction. It means that the current resulting
from the flux of photo-generated and thermally generated carriers has to be
balanced by the opposite recombination current.
❖The recombination current will
increase through lowering of the
electrostatic potential barrier across
the depletion region. This situation of
the illuminated p-n junction under
open-circuit condition using the band
diagram is presented in Fig. (a).
❖The electrostatic-potential barrier
across the junction is lowered by an
amount of Voc. We refer to Voc as the
open-circuit voltage.

Figure Energy band diagram and electrostatic-

potential (in red colour) of an illuminated p-n
junction under the (a) open-circuit
Under non-equilibrium conditions the concentrations of electrons and
holes are described by the quasi-Fermi energy levels.
It is illustrated in Fig. (a) that the electrochemical potential of electrons,
denoted by EFC, is higher in the n-type region than in the p-type region
by an amount of eVoc
This means that a voltmeter will measure a voltage difference of Voc
between the contacts of the p-n junction.
❖Under illumination, when the n-type
and p-type regions are short circuited,
the photo-generated current will also
flow through the external circuit. This
situation is illustrated in Fig. 8.8 (b).
❖Under the short-circuit condition the
electrostatic-potential barrier is not
changed, but from a strong variation of
the quasi-Fermi levels inside the
depletion region one can determine that
the current is flowing inside the
semiconductor.
Figure: Energy band diagram and
❖When a load is connected between the electrostatic-potential (in red colour)
electrodes of the illuminated p-n of an illuminated p-n junction under
junction, only a fraction of the photo the (b) short-circuit conditions.
generated current will flow through the
external circuit.
❖The electro-chemical potential difference
between the n-type and p-type regions will
be lowered by a voltage drop over the load.
This in turn lowers the electrostatic
potential over the depletion region which
results in an increase of the recombination
current.
❖In the superposition approximation, the
net current flowing through the load is
determined as the sum of the photo- and
thermal generation currents and the
recombination current.
Figure: Energy band diagram and
❖The voltage drop at the load can be electrostatic-potential (in red colour)
simulated by applying a forward-bias of an illuminated p-n junction under
voltage to the junction which describes the the (b) short-circuit conditions.
behaviour of the junction under applied
voltage, is included to describe the net
current of the illuminated p-n junction
 Solar Cell I-V Curve
• Effect of solar radiation on the I-V curve
I

I (diffu.)

V
I0

•A P-N junction in the dark consumes power, as it can be operated in 1st

or 3rd quadrant
• Under
illumination solar cell can be operated in the fourth quadrant
→corresponding to delivering power to the external circuit
• Currentin the illuminated solar cell is negative, flows against the
conventional direction of a forward diode
Both the dark and illuminated J-V characteristics of the p-n junction are
represented in Fig.

Figure : J-V characteristics of a p-n junction in the dark and under illumination.

Note, that in the figure the superposition principle is reflected. The

illuminated J-V characteristic of the p-n junction is the same as the dark
J-V characteristic, but it is shifted down by the photo-generated current
density Jph.
 External solar cell parameters
The main parameters that are used to characterise the performance of
solar cells are the peak power Pmax, the short-circuit current density Jsc,
the open-circuit voltage Voc, and the fill factor FF. These parameters are
determined from the illuminated J-V characteristic as illustrated in Fig..
The conversion efficiency ɳ can be determined from these parameters.

Figure J-V characteristics of a p-n junction in the dark and under illumination
 Characteristics of solar cell
❖ What is I-V characteristic of solar cells?
– The I-V characteristic is one of the most important methods of
determining and studying the parameters of solar cells

❖Open Circuit Voltage Voc ❖Fill Factor (FF)

❖Short-Circuit Current, Isc ❖The conversion efficiency (η)
 The equivalent circuit
The J-V characteristic of an illuminated solar cell that behaves as the
ideal diode is given by following Eq.

This behaviour can be described by a simple equivalent circuit,

illustrated in Fig (a), in which a diode and a current source are
connected in parallel. The diode is formed by a p-n junction.
The first term in Eq. describes the dark diode current density while the
second term describes the photo-generated current density.
• Simplest equivalent circuit for a photovoltaic cell
– Consists of diode parallel with ideal current source. Ideal
current source delivers current in proportion to solar flux to
which it is exposed.

A simple equivalent circuit for a PV cell consists of a current source

driven by sunlight in parallel with a real diode.
Voltage and current equation are: I = I SC − I 0 (e qV / kT − 1)
I = I SC − I d
When the leads from PV cell are left kT I 
VOC = In SC + 1 
open, I=0 and we can find VOC q  I0 
 Open Circuit Voltage: Voc
❖ The open-circuit voltage is the voltage at which no current flows
through the external circuit.
❖The open-circuit voltage, Voc, is the maximum voltage available from
a solar cell, and this occurs at zero current.
❖The open-circuit voltage corresponds to the amount of forward bias
on the solar cell junction due to illumination.
I I
sc
Im Pm

X
Vm
Voc
❖Since, the open circuit voltage dependence on the irradiance E is:

❖Material having larger band gap have higher Voc

kT I ph
At I=0 → V = Voc Voc = ln( + 1)
e I0
Voc depends on the photo-generated current density
The current density J have two components, the photocurrent
generated by the light excited charged carriers and the typical JV
characteristic of a diode in the dark
Under open circuit conditions the current density J=0
If we solve this equation we arrive Voc for the open circuit voltage
This equation shows that Voc depends on the saturation current (leakage
currents of diode) of the solar cell and the photo-generated current.
While Jph typically has a small variation, the key effect is the saturation
current, since this may vary by orders of magnitude. The saturation
current density, J0, depends on the recombination in the solar cell.
Therefore, Voc is a measure of the amount of recombination in the
device.

Note that the first term also contains a diode ideality factor n ,this
factor reflects to which extent the behavior of an ideal diode can
describe the JV curve for the moment we have assumed that the
recombination occurs through defect traps in the band gap, the so-
called Shockley-Read-Hall recombination and that the recombination is
limited by the minority charge carrier, in that case, the ideality factor is
equal to 1.
However, if the recombination occurs for instance at interfaces or is
limited by both charge carrier or is determined by Auger recombination,
this factor (ideality factor) differs from 1.
Auger recombination depend on the semiconductor itself, SRH
recombination is proportional to the density of traps or impurities in the
semiconductor.

The open circuit voltage depends on other factors as

▪ The band gap of the absorber material
▪The amount of doping of the doped layers
▪The quality of the material
▪The light generated current density
 Short-Circuit Current, Isc
❖The short-circuit current Isc is the current that flows through the
external circuit when the electrodes of the solar cell are short
circuited.
❖Short circuit current is the maximum current produced by a solar
cell when its terminal are circuited.
•The short-circuit current is the current through the solar cell when
the voltage across the solar cell is zero
❖The short circuit current rises with increasing temperature.
❖short circuit current will increase with decrease in the band gap.
I
X
Im Pm

Vm Voc

At V=0 → I = -Iph I = I sc (eeV / kT − 1) − I ph

The short-circuit current depends on other factors as
❖The short-circuit current of a solar cell depends on the photon flux
density incident on the solar cell, which is determined by the
spectrum of the incident light..
❖The Isc depends on the area of the solar cell. In order to remove the
dependence of the solar cell area on Isc, often the short-circuit
current density is used to describe the maximum current delivered by
a solar cell.
❖The maximum current that the solar cell can deliver strongly
depends on the optical properties of the solar cell, such as absorption
in the absorber layer and reflection.
❖In the ideal case, Jsc is equal to Jph as can be easily derived

where LN and LP is the minority-carrier-diffusion length for electrons and

holes, respectively, G, is uniform generation rate and W is the width of the
depletion region.
Power density is power per area

If the power density on the skill is negative it means that the solar cell is
generating power whereas if the power density is positive it means that
the solar cell is consuming or dissipating power
If the solar cell is an open circuit voltage, the power density is equal to
zero. If the solar cell is a short circuit, the power density is equal to zero
as well
❖If the voltage is smaller than zero volt which we call reverse bias the
illuminated solar cell does not generate power but consumes power
❖if the voltage is larger than the open circuit voltage the illuminated
solar cell is dissipating power as well and the solar cell will heat up as
well
❖The shaded area under the maximum power point in a JV plot
represents the power density generated
 Fill Factor (FF)
❖ The fill factor (FF) is the ratio between the maximum power (Pmax =
ImVm = Pmax = JmpVmp) generated by a solar cell and the maximum
power from a ideal solar cell, The FF is the parameter for evaluating
the performance of a cell. Vm I m Pmax Vmp J mp
FF = or FF = =
VOC I SC VOC J SC VOC J SC
❖It is defined as the squareness of the I-V curve
❖FF represent losses in PV cell so it is impossible for solar cell to have
a FF equal to one
Assuming that the solar cell behaves as an ideal diode the fill factor
can be expressed as a function of open circuit voltage Voc

This equation describes a maximum achievable FF. In practice the FF is

often lower due to the presence of parasitic resistive losses. is a good
approximation of the ideal value of FF for

Where
is a normalised voltage
 Conversion Efficiency: η
❖The conversion efficiency is calculated as the ratio between the
maximal generated power from the solar cell and the incident power
from the sun.
❖The conversion efficiency of solar cells

Pout Pmax Vm I m Voc I sc FF

= = = =
Pin Pin Pin Pin
Vmp J mp Voc J sc FF
= =
Pin Pin

• The efficiency is the most commonly used parameter to compare the

performance of one solar cell to another.
•Efficiency of a cell also depends on the solar spectrum, intensity of
sunlight and the temperature of the solar cell.
Example
A crystalline silicon solar cell generates a photo-current density of Jph =
35 mA/cm2. The wafer is doped with 1017 acceptor atoms per cubic
centimetre and the emitter layer is formed with a uniform concentration
of 1019 donors per cubic centimetre. The minority-carrier diffusion
length in the p-type region and n-type region is 500 . 10-6 m and 10.10-6
m , respectively. Further, the intrinsic carrier concentration in silicon at
300 K is 1.5.1010 cm-3, the mobility of electrons in the p-type region is µn
= 1000 cm2V-1s-1 and holes in the n-type region is µp = 100 cm2V-1s-1.
Assume that the solar cell behaves as an ideal diode. Calculate the built-
in voltage, the open-circuit voltage and the conversion efficiency of the
cell.
The built-in voltage of the cell can be calculated by using the following
equation

According to the assumption that the solar cell behaves as an ideal

diode, the Shockley equation describing the J-V characteristic is
applicable. The saturation-current density can be calculated by using the
following equation

The open-circuit voltage can be calculated by using the following

equation
First, we normalise Voc,

The fill factor of the cell can be calculated by using the following
equation

Finally, the conversion efficiency is determined by using the following

equation
 Open Circuit Voltage and Short-Circuit Current
Open Circuit Voltage it is the voltage developed across the electrodes when
there is no external circuit. Here I=0, R=high
Short-Circuit Current it is the maximum current from the circuit and
occurs when voltage across the device is zero. Here I=max, V=0, R=small
Photocurrent: A current source connected in parallel to the diode
completes the simple equivalent circuit of an irradiated solar cell. The
current source generates the photocurrent Iph, which depends on the
irradiance Iop and the coefficient K:
Iph=kIop
Since the photocurrent is proportional to the irradiance Iop, the short
circuit current also depends on the irradiance:
• Consider a 100-cm2 PV cell with reverse current density ,J0=10-12
A/cm2. In full sun, it produces JSC of 40mA/cm2 at 250C. Find VOC
at full sun and again for 50% sunlight. Plot the results.
Solution
• The reverse saturation current,
I0=10-12 A/cm2 x 100cm2 = 1x10-10A.
• At full sun, ISC =0.040A/cm2 x 100cm2= 4.0A.
• VOC is:
kT  I SC 
VOC = In + 1 
q  I0 
 I SC   4 
VOC = 0.0257 In + 1  = 0.0257 In −10 + 1  = 0.627V
 I0   10 

• Since short-current current is proportional solar intensity,

at half sun ISC=2A and VOC is:
 I SC   2 
VOC 
= 0.0257 In 
+ 1  = 0.0257 In −10 + 1  = 0.610V
 I0   10 
Plotting the result
 PV Generation Systems Have Major Problems
1- The conversion efficiency of electric power generation is very low 10-
20 % especially under low irradiation conditions, and the amount of
electric power generated by solar arrays changes continuously with
weather conditions.

2- The solar cell V-I characteristic is nonlinear and changes with

irradiation and temperature.
 Effect of Varying Irradiation
Irradiation (G) refers to the amount of sunlight that is incident on an
object in the form of electromagnetic radiation. It is the measure of
solar energy that is incident on an area over a period of time. It is
measured in W/m2. Solar modules go through a variation of light
intensity due to factors such as sun’s changing position and the
presence of clouds. This can affect the performance of the solar module.
The following graphs show the effect of changing irradiation on the P-V
and I-V characteristics of a module:

Figure: Effect of Varying Irradiation on the

P-V Characteristic of a Module
 Figure: Effect of Varying Irradiation on the P-V Characteristic of a Module
As can be seen in the P-V characteristics above, the maximum output
power reduces with reducing irradiance. There is also little reduction in
the VOC of the module. Similarly in the I-V characteristics curves, we can
see that there is a little increase in the VOC with increasing irradiance.
Also, the ISC increases significantly with the increasing irradiance levels.
The reduced power (MPP) of a module is due to deflection, irradiance
never remains constant, therefore the power output of a module cannot
remain constant and varies dramatically throughout the day
 Shading effect on solar panels
❖Typical problems encountered with an installation that will have an
effect on the expected I-V curve could include shading of the modules
❖The current is affected largely by a change of insolation intensity.
❖The partially shaded serial cell will produce a current mismatch
 Factors that affect the performance of solar cells: Temperature
❖As the temperature of a solar cell increases, due to
environmental changes or energy production, the open circuit
voltage (Voc) decreases directly affecting the power output of
the cell (power = I×V).
❖ Temperature also marginally increases the current as the cells
temperature increases, although this causes little change to
power. .
 Effect Of Temperature on Isc
Temperature change affects three parameters namely, the short-circuit
current (Isc), the open-circuit voltage (Voc) and the maximum power point
(Pm).
Effect of temperature on Isc
✓ Earlier, it was shown that the short-circuit current is directly
proportional to the photocurrent (ip). The photocurrent is directly
proportional to the irradiance or insolation (power/m2 of the incident
solar radiations)
✓ With increase in temperature, the photocurrent will increase. This is
because the forbidden band gap energy reduces, enabling more
electrons to jump from the valance band to the conduction band,
giving more free electrons.
✓ Therefore, the short circuit current increases as temperature
increases. That is, Isc has a positive temperature coefficient.
 Effect Of Temperature on Voc
kT I ph
Voc = ln( + 1)
e I0
This equation shows that Voc depends on the saturation current (leakage
currents of diode) of the solar cell and the photo-generated current.
kT I ph + I 0
Voc = ln( )
e I0
Since I0˂˂˂Iph, we can say I0+Iph=Iph
kT I ph
Voc = ln( )
e I0
In the above equation , the first term is a function of temperature and I0
is an exponential function of temperature. Considering these two effects
, Voc will be inversely proportional to temperature
In other word, an increase in temperature will reduce the open circuit
voltage. That is Voc has a negative temperature coefficient
 Effect Of Temperature On Pm
• Effect of temperature on Pm
• Power is a product of voltage and current. Since Voc has a negative
temperature coefficient of temperature and Isc has a positive
temperature coefficient of temperature, and considering that the
temperature coefficient of Isc is very small, the power will also have a
negative temperature coefficient of temperature.
• This means that Pm would decrease with an increase in
temperature.
Parameter Effect of temperature
Open-Circuit Negative temperature
Voltage coefficient
Short-Circuit Positive temperature
Current coefficient
Maximum Negative temperature
Power Point coefficient
Effect Of Change In Temperature

Paramet Effect of temperature

er
Open- Negative temperature
Circuit coefficient
Voltage
Short- Positive temperature
Circuit coefficient
Current
Maximu Negative temperature
m Power coefficient
Point
 The series resistance

Series resistance in a solar cell has three causes:

❖Firstly, the movement of current through the emitter and base of the
solar cell.
❖Secondly, the contact resistance between the metal contact and the
silicon (the metal-semiconductor contacts at electrodes).
❖Finally the resistance of the top and rear metal contacts (the
resistance of the diffused layer from the illuminated surface of the cell).
The main impact of series resistance is to reduce the fill factor, although
excessively high values may also reduce the short-circuit current.
   q(V + IRs )  
I = I ph − I SC  exp  
  nkT  
where: I is the cell output current, IL =Iph
is the light generated current, V is the
voltage across the cell terminals, T is the
temperature, q and k are constants, n is
Schematic of a solar cell with series resistance. the ideality factor, and RS is the cell
series resistance.
The effect of the Series Resistance RS on the I-V Characteristics of a Solar Cell
• Series resistance does not affect the
solar cell at open-circuit voltage since the Isc Medium Rs
overall current flows through the solar
cell, and therefore through the series Large Rs
I
resistance is zero. However, near the
open-circuit voltage, the IV curve is
strongly affected by the series resistance. Voc
V
•The series resistance Rs for solar cell is to find the slope of the IV curve at the
open-circuit voltage point.
 Characteristic Resistance
❖Since PV cells and modules are made up on semiconductor materials,
there is bound to be some sort of resistance in the circuit.
❖The resistance at the Maximum Power Point of the Solar Cell is called
the Characteristic Resistance (RCH):
❖It is a useful parameter in solar cell analysis, particularly when
examining the impact of parasitic loss mechanisms.
❖The characteristic resistance is shown in the figure below.

Vmp Voc
RCH = =
I mp I sc

The characteristic resistance of a solar cell is the inverse of the slope of the line
 Effect of Rs and FF
An equation for the FF as a function of series resistance can be
determined by noting that for moderate values of series
resistance, the maximum power may be approximated as the
power in the absence of series resistance minus the power lost in
the series resistance. The equation for the maximum power from a
solar cell then becomes:

Rs
we can define a normalized series resistance as; rs =
RCH
The following equation gives an approximated effect of series
resistance on the output power of a solar cell
 Effect of Rs and FF
Assuming that the open-circuit voltage and short-circuit
current are not affected by the series resistance allows the
impact of series resistance on FF to be determined;

In the above equation the fill factor which is not affected by

series resistance is denoted by FF0 and FF' is called FFS. The
equation then becomes;
 Shunt Resistance

❖Significant power losses caused by the presence of a shunt resistance,

RSH, are typically due to manufacturing defects.
❖ Low shunt resistance causes power losses in solar cells by providing
an alternate current path for the light-generated current.
❖Such a diversion reduces the amount of current flowing through the
solar cell junction and reduces the voltage from the solar cell.
 Shunt Resistance
❖The effect of a shunt resistance is particularly severe at low
light levels, since there will be less light-generated current.
❖In addition, at lower voltages where the effective resistance
of the solar cell is high, the impact of a resistance in parallel is
large.

Circuit diagram of a solar cell including

the shunt resistance. The effect of a low shunt resistance on the I-
V Characteristics of a Solar Cell.
The equation for a solar cell in presence of a shunt resistance is:
  qV   V
I = I ph − I SC  exp   −
  nkT   RSH
where: I is the cell output current, IL =Iph is the light generated current, V is the
voltage across the cell terminals, T is the temperature, q and k are constants, n
is the ideality factor, and RSH is the cell shunt resistance.
An estimate for the value of the shunt resistance of a solar cell can be
determined from the slope of the IV curve near the short-circuit current
point.
 The impact of the shunt resistance on the fill factor
The maximum power may be approximated as the power in the absence of shunt
resistance, minus the power lost in the shunt resistance. The equation for the
maximum power from a solar cell then becomes;

Defining a normalized shunt resistance as;

Assuming that the open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current are not
affected by the shunt resistance allows the impact of shunt resistance on FF to
be determined as;

In the above equation FF, the fill factor which is not affected by shunt
resistance is denoted by FF0 and FF' is called FFSH. The equation then becomes;
 Impact of Both Series and Shunt Resistance
In the presence of both series and shunt resistances, the IV curve of the
solar cell is given by;

and the circuit diagram of the solar cell is given as;

Series and shunt resistances in a solar cell circuit.

 Factors Affecting Various Parameters in Solar
Cell IV curve
• Voc: Depends on difference between the fermi energy of p and n
type semiconductor or semiconductor band gap. Ideal limit =
Egap/q
• Jsc or Isc : Absorption properties of semiconductor i.e. band gap
and recombination rate of electron-hole pairs.
• Series Resistance: Depends on ohmic losses at front contact (n
type semiconductor and metal). Ideally = 0
• Shunt Resistance: Depends on leakage current within solar cell.
Ideally = ∞
• FF (Fill Factor): Depends on values of series and shunt resistance.
Ideally = 100. i.e.
• Efficiency: Depends on Voc, Isc and Fill Factor.
 Parameters that characterize solar cell IV
curve
• Voc: Open Circuit Voltage 0.0025 Isc

• Isc : Short Circuit Current 0.0020

Current (A)
Im
• Pmax: Maximum Power Delivered 0.0015

• Vm: Voltage corresponding to Pmax

0.0010
• Im: Current corresponding to Pmax Pmax
0.0005
Vm Voc
Vm  Im
• FF (Fill Factor): FF = 100%
0.0000
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Voc  Isc
Voltage (V)
P max Voc  Jsc
• Efficiency = =  FF %
Pin Pin

• Series Resistance: (dI/dv)-1 at Voc

• Shunt Resistance: (dI/dv)-1 at Isc