Silicon dioxide thin films prepared by spin coating for the application of solar cells

In this study, Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) thin films processed by the spin coating method was studied with prepared solutions. Antireflection coating effect of deposited SiO2 thin films on crystalline silicon substrates was analyzed after optimizing the solution, deposition, and thermal treatment processes. The effect of ethanol dilution of the solution was investigated as well. Spectrophotometer reflectance measurements, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) measurements and Afors-het based simulations were carried out. For the prepared solution based SiO2 thin films, the annealing temperature of 950 °C for 7 min in the air was determined as optimum. The minimum surface reflectance of SiO2 coated silicon surface could be reduced below 10% depending on the applied process. Based on the silicon solar cell device simulations, it was revealed that efficiency of a solar cell could be improved 4.23% more thanks to the antireflection coating effect.