Wolf, Martin, and Hans Rauschenbach. "Series resistance effects on solar cell measurements." Advanced energy conversion 3.2 (1963): 455-479.
Suns-Voc
The classic reference for using illumination-Voc curves for the analysis of solar cells.
1985
Kane, D. E., and R. M. Swanson. "Measurement of the emitter saturation current by a contactless photoconductivity decay method." IEEE photovoltaic specialists conference. 18. 1985.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
Classic reference for a method to separate bulk recombination from dopant diffusion recombination on lightly-doped wafers using the injection-level dependence of lifetime.
1987
Sinton, Ronald A., and Richard M. Swanson. "Recombination in highly injected silicon." IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices 34.6 (1987): 1380-1389.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
download, Determination of the ambipolar recombination coefficient at 1.66e-30 cm6/s +or-15%.
1993
Aberle, A. G., S. R. Wenham, and M. A. Green. "A new method for accurate measurements of the lumped series resistance of solar cells." Conference Record of the Twenty Third IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference-1993 (Cat. No. 93CH3283-9). IEEE, 1993.
Suns-Voc
Describes using series resistance measurements on modern high-efficiency devices and an explanation of two-dimensional effects.
1996
Sinton, Ronald A., Andres Cuevas, and Michael Stuckings. "Quasi-steady-state photoconductance, a new method for solar cell material and device characterization." Conference Record of the Twenty Fifth IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference-1996. IEEE, 1996.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
download, First major reference for QSSPC photoconductance method.
1997
Cuevas, Andrés, and Ronald A. Sinton. "Prediction of the open-circuit voltage of solar cells from the steady-state photoconductance." Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications 5.2 (1997): 79-90.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
Tutorial-style paper concerning applications of QSSPC measurements to solar cells.
1997
Schroder, Dieter K. "Carrier lifetimes in silicon." IEEE transactions on Electron Devices 44.1 (1997): 160-170.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
1998
Berge, C., et al. "Comparison of effective carrier lifetimes in silicion determined by transient and quasi-steady-state photoconductance measurements. Paper." (1998).
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
1999
Nagel, Henning, Christopher Berge, and Armin G. Aberle. "Generalized analysis of quasi-steady-state and quasi-transient measurements of carrier lifetimes in semiconductors." Journal of Applied Physics 86.11 (1999): 6218-6221.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
The math for analyzing data using the fully time dependent solutions rather than the steady-state or transient limits.
1999
Schmidt, Jan. "Measurement of differential and actual recombination parameters on crystalline silicon wafers [solar cells]." IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices 46.10 (1999): 2018-2025.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
1999
Sinton, Ronald A. "Possibilities for process-control monitoring of electronic material properties during solar-cell manufacture." NREL 9th Workshop on Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells and Materials and Processes. 1999.
Suns-Voc
Covers the practical use of SunsVoc and lifetime testers at various stages during cell processing.
2000
Bail, M., and R. Brendel. "Separation of bulk and surface recombination by steady state photo conductance measurements." 16th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference. 2000.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
A very nice application note for using 2 wavelengths of light for separating surface and bulk recombination.
2000
Cuevas, Andrbs, et al. "Emitter quantum efficiency from contactless photoconductance measurements." Conference Record of the Twenty-Eighth IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference-2000 (Cat. No. 00CH37036). IEEE, 2000.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2000
Macdonald, Daniel, and Andres Cuevas. "Reduced fill factors in multicrystalline silicon solar cells due to injection-level dependent bulk recombination lifetimes." Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications 8.4 (2000): 363-375.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
Describes how changes in the bulk lifetime will lower the fill factor of multicrystalline silicon solar cells.
2000
Nagel, H., et al. "Relationship between effective carrier lifetimes in silicon determined under steady-state and transient illumination." Proceedings of the 16th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conversion, Glasgow, European Commission 93 (2000).
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2000
Sinton, Ronald Alan, and Andres Cuevas. "A quasi-steady-state open-circuit voltage method for solar cell characterization." Proceedings of the 16th European photovoltaic solar energy conference. Vol. 1152. 2000.
Suns-Voc
download, The first major reference for the QSSVOC technique.
2001
Lago-Aurrekoetxea, Rosa, et al. "Lifetime measurements by photoconductance techniques in wafers immersed in a passivating liquid." Journal of the Electrochemical Society 148.4 (2001): G200.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2001
Neuhaus, D. H., et al. "Method for measuring minority and majority carrier mobilities in solar cells." Proceeding of 17th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference. 2001.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2001
Bowden, Stuart, and Ajeet Rohatgi. "Rapid and accurate determination of series resistance and fill factor losses in industrial silicon solar cells." Georgia Institute of Technology, 2001.
Suns-Voc
Comparison of the Suns-Voc method with curve fitting the double diode model.
2001
Kerr, Mark J., and Andres Cuevas. "Generalization of the Illumination Intensity Vs. Open-Circuit Voltage Characteristics of Solar Cells." 17th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference. 2001.
Suns-Voc
Description of the SunsVoc measurement and correction for very high voltage devices.
2002
Brendel, Rolf, et al. "Analysis of photoexcited charge carrier density profiles in Si wafers by using an infrared camera." Applied physics letters 80.3 (2002): 437-439.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2002
Rein, S., et al. "Advanced defect characterization by combining temperature-and injection-dependent lifetime spectroscopy (TDLS and IDLS)." Conference Record of the Twenty-Ninth IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, 2002.. IEEE, 2002.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2002
Rein, S., et al. "Lifetime spectroscopy for defect characterization: Systematic analysis of the possibilities and restrictions." Journal of Applied Physics 91.4 (2002): 2059-2070.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2002
Kerr, Mark J., Andres Cuevas, and Ronald A. Sinton. "Generalized analysis of quasi-steady-state and transient decay open circuit voltage measurements." Journal of applied physics 91.1 (2002): 399-404.
Suns-Voc
Generalization of QSSVOC math to cover cases from Steady-state to OCVD (transient) measurements.
2002
Neuhaus, D. H., et al. "Dependence of the recombination in thin-film Si solar cells grown by ion-assisted deposition on the crystallographic orientation of the substrate." Solar energy materials and solar cells 74.1-4 (2002): 225-232.
Suns-Voc
2003
Cuevas, Andres, and Ronald A. Sinton. "Characterisation and diagnosis of silicon wafers and devices." Practical Handbook of Photovoltaics. Elsevier Science, 2003. 227-252.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2003
Schmidt, Jan. "Temperature-and injection-dependent lifetime spectroscopy for the characterization of defect centers in semiconductors." Applied Physics Letters 82.13 (2003): 2178-2180.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
Generalization of QSSPC for temperature-dependent measurements.
2003
Sinton, Ronald A., and Tanaya Mankad. "PREDICTING MULTI-CRYSTALLINE SOLAR CELL EFFICIENCY FROM LIFETIME MEASURED IN SILICON BLOCKS." 13th Workshop on Crystalline Silicon Solar Cell Materials and Processes. 2003.
Lifetime (Bulk)
2004
Macdonald, D. H., Lambert Johan Geerligs, and A. Azzizi. "Iron detection in crystalline silicon by carrier lifetime measurements for arbitrary injection and doping." Journal of Applied Physics 95.3 (2004): 1021-1028.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
A model application for QSSPC to study SRH bulk recombination with practical implications. Uses the lifetime tester to measure the iron concentration in silicon.
2004
Sinton, R. A., et al. "Evaluating silicon blocks and ingots with quasi-steady-state lifetime measurements." Proceedings of the 19th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference, Paris, France. 2004.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
download, Demonstrates how to measure iron concentration in silicon blocks and determine how the wafers will perform during processing.
2004
Kerr, M. J., and Andres Cuevas. "Generalized analysis of the illumination intensity vs. open-circuit voltage of solar cells." Solar Energy 76.1-3 (2004): 263-267.
Suns-Voc
Complete mathematical description of the SunsVoc measurement and correction for very high voltage devices.
2005
Bothe, Karsten, Ron Sinton, and Jan Schmidt. "Fundamental boron–oxygen‐related carrier lifetime limit in mono‐and multicrystalline silicon." Progress in photovoltaics: Research and Applications 13.4 (2005): 287-296.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2005
Bentzen, A., et al. "Recombination lifetime and trap density variations in multicrystalline silicon wafers through the block." Conference Record of the Thirty-first IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, 2005.. IEEE, 2005.
Lifetime (Bulk)
2008
Sinton, R. A. "Challenges with testing high-efficiency Si solar cells and modules." Proc. 18th Workshop on Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells and Modules: Materials and Processes. 2008.
I-V Measurements
2009
Swirhun, James S., et al. "Contactless Measurement of Carrier Lifetime on Silicon Ingots and Bricks." MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) 1210 (2009).
Lifetime (Bulk)
2013
Blum, Adrienne L., et al. "Interlaboratory study of eddy-current measurement of excess-carrier recombination lifetime." IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics 4.1 (2013): 525-531.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2013
Mankad, Tanaya, et al. "Inline bulk-lifetime prediction on as-cut multicrystalline silicon wafers." Energy Procedia 38 (2013): 137-146.
Blum, A. L., et al. "An updated analysis to the WCT-120 QSSPC measurement system using advanced device physics." Proceedings of the 28th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition. 2013.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2014
Kimmerle, Achim, et al. "Increased reliability for J0-analysis by QSSPC." Energy Procedia 55 (2014): 101-106.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2014
Forsyth, M. Keith, et al. "Use of the suns-Voc for diagnosing outdoor arrays & modules." 2014 IEEE 40th Photovoltaic Specialist Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2014.
Suns-Voc
2014
Hameiri, Ziv, et al. "Contactless determination of the carrier mobility sum in silicon wafers using combined photoluminescence and photoconductance measurements." Applied Physics Letters 104.7 (2014): 073506.
Lifetime (Wafer), QSSPC
2016
Blum, Adrienne L., et al. "Lifetime and substrate doping measurements of solar cells and application to in-line process control." 2016 IEEE 43rd Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2016.
I-V Measurements, In-Line Cell Measurements
2016
Wilterdink, Harrison, et al. "Monitoring the recovery of c-Si modules from potential-induced degradation using suns-V oc curves." 2016 IEEE 43rd Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2016.
I-V Measurements
2016
Wilterdink, Harrison, et al. "Monitoring the recovery of c-Si modules from potential-induced degradation using suns-V oc curves." 2016 IEEE 43rd Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2016.
I-V Measurements, Suns-Voc
2017
Jordan, Dirk C., et al. "Silicon heterojunction system field performance." IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics 8.1 (2017): 177-182.
I-V Measurements
2017
Sinton, Ronald A., Harrison W. Wilterdink, and Adrienne L. Blum. "Assessing transient measurement errors for high-efficiency silicon solar cells and modules." IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics 7.6 (2017): 1591-1595.
I-V Measurements
2017
Haschke, Jan, et al. "The impact of silicon solar cell architecture and cell interconnection on energy yield in hot & sunny climates." Energy & Environmental Science 10.5 (2017): 1196-1206.
TIDLS, WCT-120TS
2017
Sinton, Ronald A., et al. "Critical Evaluation of the Foundations of Solar Simulator Standards." 2017 IEEE 44th Photovoltaic Specialist Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2017.
I-V Measurements
2017
Dobson, Weston, et al. "Accuracy of Solar Simulator Spectral Determination Using Band-Pass Filtering Method." 2017 IEEE 44th Photovoltaic Specialist Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2017.
I-V Measurements
2018
Blum, Adrienne L., Ronald A. Sinton, and Harrison W. Wilterdink. "Determining the Accuracy of Solar Cell and Module Measurements on High-Capacitance Devices." 2018 IEEE 7th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion (WCPEC)(A Joint Conference of 45th IEEE PVSC, 28th PVSEC & 34th EU PVSEC). IEEE, 2018.
I-V Measurements
2018
Altermatt, Pietro P., et al. "A method for optimizing PERC cells in industrial production lines using final IV parameters, statistical procedures and numerical device modeling." AIP Conference Proceedings. Vol. 1999. No. 1. AIP Publishing LLC, 2018.
I-V Measurements, In-Line Cell Measurements
2018
Hossain, Mohammad Jobayer, et al. "Detailed performance loss analysis of silicon solar cells using high-throughput metrology methods." 2018 IEEE 7th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion (WCPEC)(A Joint Conference of 45th IEEE PVSC, 28th PVSEC & 34th EU PVSEC). IEEE, 2018.
I-V Measurements, In-Line Cell Measurements
2018
Kim, Kyung, et al. "Degradation of surface passivation and bulk in p-type monocrystalline silicon wafers at elevated temperature." IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics 9.1 (2018): 97-105.
WCT-120TS
2018
Sinton, Ronald A., et al. "Challenges and Opportunities in Cell and Module IV Testing." 2018 IEEE 7th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion (WCPEC)(A Joint Conference of 45th IEEE PVSC, 28th PVSEC & 34th EU PVSEC). IEEE, 2018.
I-V Measurements
2019
Hossain, Mohammad Jobayer, et al. "A Comprehensive Methodology to Evaluate Losses and Process Variations in Silicon Solar Cell Manufacturing." IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics 9.5 (2019): 1350-1359.
I-V Measurements
2019
Black, Lachlan E., and Erwin Kessels. "Dependence of coil sensitivity on sample thickness in inductively coupled photoconductance measurements." AIP Conference Proceedings. Vol. 2147. No. 1. AIP Publishing LLC, 2019.
TIDLS, WCT-120TS
2019
Sainsbury, Cassidy, Harrison Wilterdink, and Ronald A. Sinton. "Measurement Uncertainty in Production Solar Cell and Module Power." 2019 IEEE 46th Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC). Vol. 2. IEEE, 2019.
I-V Measurements
2019
Black, Lachlan E., and Daniel H. Macdonald. "Accounting for the dependence of coil sensitivity on sample thickness and lift-off in inductively coupled photoconductance measurements." IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics 9.6 (2019): 1563-1574.
WCT-120, QSSPC
2020
Dapprich, Karoline, et al. "Production-Line Binning Of Bifacial Cells Using Suns-Voc Analysis." 2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC). IEEE, 2020.
Herrmann, W., and W. Wiesner. "Modelling of PV modules-The effects of non-uniform irradiance on performance measurements with solar simulators." Sixteenth European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference. Routledge, 2020.
Sinton Instruments has a number of application notes available as reference for existing customers to assist you in optimizing your process and use of our instruments:
Measuring Fe:B pairs in silicon
Testing wafers after phosphorus diffusion or nitride
Testing bare wafers
Testing silicon ingot and blocks with the Sinton BLS/BCT instruments
Lifetime measurements on B-doped CZ bulk silicon with the BLS/BCT instruments
Surface recombination current and bulk lifetime measurements with WCT-120 instruments
If you are an existing customer, using one of our instruments, and would like to obtain one of these application notes, please fill out the form below, and we will be happy to send it to you.
You can also call us at +1.303.945.2113 (please see the contact page for our hours of operation).
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