Electrostatic InkJet Printed Silver Grids for Non-vacuum Processed CIGS
Solar Cells
Abstract
Printed electronics (PE) technology shows huge promise for the
realisation of low-cost flexible electronics. Here, we demonstrate the
use of Electro-Static Inkjet (ESJET) printing technology to deposit
silver nanoparticle (Ag nps) inks for fabrication of grid electrodes for
non-vacuum processed Cu(In,Ga)S2 (CIGS) solar cells to bridge the gap of
additive printing between high viscosity screen printed materials and
low viscosity inkjet processes. The effect of printing parameters and
the sintering condition of the ESJET printed Ag grids were investigated
by the measurement of photovoltaic performance parameters of CIGS solar
cells. It was found that sintering temperatures of 220°C caused a
significant loss of performance in the CIGS cell however, sintering of
the Ag grids at temperatures up to 160°C produced a cells with good
performance and efficiency comparable to the test cells using thermal
evaporated Ag grids. Results from stability test (ISOS-D-1) shows the
efficiency of the CIGS solar cells with ESJET printed Ag grids decreased
from 11.14% to 10.44%, which is around 0.6% efficiency after 3 months
in air without any encapsulation. ESJET printing is a viable method for
production of PV metal grids which can minimize material waste and
enable significant cost reduction of thin film solar cells.