Currently, the majority of screens manufactured for the screen-printed metallization of industrial-grade solar cells are structured using laser processing. This study aims to enhance the scientific understanding of the interaction between the laser and the screen during the structuring process by investigating the effects of key laser parameters, including laser power, line-to-line pitch, number of passes, and scanning speed, on the quality of screen openings. From the conducted parameter variation tests, a statistical model is developed using the R software to predict screen opening widths. The model focuses on identifying key laser parameters that significantly influence the screen opening width and aims to provide accurate predictions. By establishing a robust predictive model, this work seeks to minimize the need for extensive laser parameter variations conducted on screens and to select optimal laser parameters. The model indicates that laser power and scanning speed exert the greatest influence on screen opening widths. The predicted results demonstrate an accuracy within 1 μm when compared to experimental findings, thereby validating the model's predictive capabilities. Subsequently, the optimal laser parameters are used to structure two screens with the same mesh configuration and which are then used to print on M10-sized tunnel oxide passivating contact substrates with a silver paste. The results are compared with an industry-standard reference screen with similar screen specifications. The mean shading width of the printed contacts from both screens are measured to be 22 and 21 μm, which is comparable with the 20 μm shading width printed from the industry standard screen.
{"title":"Progress in Fine Line Metallization: A Statistical Approach to Optimize Laser Processing During Screen Production","authors":"Aathira Krishnadas Nair;Srivarshini Upadhya;Jörg Schube;Michael Linse;René Haberstroh;Jale Schneider;Andreas Lorenz;Florian Clement;Ralf Preu","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3665335","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3665335","url":null,"abstract":"Currently, the majority of screens manufactured for the screen-printed metallization of industrial-grade solar cells are structured using laser processing. This study aims to enhance the scientific understanding of the interaction between the laser and the screen during the structuring process by investigating the effects of key laser parameters, including laser power, line-to-line pitch, number of passes, and scanning speed, on the quality of screen openings. From the conducted parameter variation tests, a statistical model is developed using the <italic>R</i> software to predict screen opening widths. The model focuses on identifying key laser parameters that significantly influence the screen opening width and aims to provide accurate predictions. By establishing a robust predictive model, this work seeks to minimize the need for extensive laser parameter variations conducted on screens and to select optimal laser parameters. The model indicates that laser power and scanning speed exert the greatest influence on screen opening widths. The predicted results demonstrate an accuracy within 1 μm when compared to experimental findings, thereby validating the model's predictive capabilities. Subsequently, the optimal laser parameters are used to structure two screens with the same mesh configuration and which are then used to print on M10-sized tunnel oxide passivating contact substrates with a silver paste. The results are compared with an industry-standard reference screen with similar screen specifications. The mean shading width of the printed contacts from both screens are measured to be 22 and 21 μm, which is comparable with the 20 μm shading width printed from the industry standard screen.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"342-352"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11413942","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146834","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-04-22DOI: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3678744
G. Rodrigues Lopes;S. Bastide;Y. Bourlier;J. Jourdan;W. Favre
This work presents a seed-layer-free wet-chemical surface treatment enabling direct copper (Cu) electroplating on indium-based transparent conductive oxides (TCOs), particularly indium tin oxide (ITO), for silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells, without the need for a seed or barrier layer. The process involves two sequential chemical baths: an ammoniacal copper complex bath (B1) promoting Cu(OH)2 chemisorption, followed by a borohydride-based reducing bath (B2) that converts Cu2+ to Cu0 and catalyzes the formation of metallic indium (In0) particles at the surface, enabling adhesion at the TCO interface. Structural and chemical analyses (SEM, EDX, XPS) confirmed the formation of Cu and In species, while electrical (dark I–V) and mechanical (shear strength) tests showed reduced contact resistance and strong adhesion for optimized treatment durations. Interfacial TEM-$ mu$EDX analysis further reveals that the chemical treatment induces localized modification of the TCO near the surface, while a continuous oxide layer remains beneath the plated copper. The proposed method offers a cost-effective, low-temperature, and easy-to-implement alternative to conventional metallization processes for SHJ technologies.
{"title":"Seed-Layer-Free Electroplated Copper Metallization of SHJ Cells Enabled by Chemical Modification of Transparent Conductive Oxides","authors":"G. Rodrigues Lopes;S. Bastide;Y. Bourlier;J. Jourdan;W. Favre","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3678744","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3678744","url":null,"abstract":"This work presents a seed-layer-free wet-chemical surface treatment enabling direct copper (Cu) electroplating on indium-based transparent conductive oxides (TCOs), particularly indium tin oxide (ITO), for silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells, without the need for a seed or barrier layer. The process involves two sequential chemical baths: an ammoniacal copper complex bath (B1) promoting Cu(OH)<sub>2</sub> chemisorption, followed by a borohydride-based reducing bath (B2) that converts Cu<sup>2+</sup> to Cu<sup>0</sup> and catalyzes the formation of metallic indium (In<sup>0</sup>) particles at the surface, enabling adhesion at the TCO interface. Structural and chemical analyses (SEM, EDX, XPS) confirmed the formation of Cu and In species, while electrical (dark I–V) and mechanical (shear strength) tests showed reduced contact resistance and strong adhesion for optimized treatment durations. Interfacial TEM-<inline-formula><tex-math>$ mu$</tex-math></inline-formula>EDX analysis further reveals that the chemical treatment induces localized modification of the TCO near the surface, while a continuous oxide layer remains beneath the plated copper. The proposed method offers a cost-effective, low-temperature, and easy-to-implement alternative to conventional metallization processes for SHJ technologies.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"361-368"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11491880","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-03-31DOI: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3673768
Yu Wu;Busra E. Kucuk;Lars A. G. Okel;Eric J. Kossen;Astrid Gutjahr;Victor Rosca;Bart Geerligs
This study reports progress in screen-printed copper (Cu) metallization (Cu paste with 0% Ag content) for silicon heterojunction solar cells (HJT), fully replacing the conventional silver-based metallization. Important performance requirements for practical application were tested and demonstrated. A line width of less than 20 μm was achieved, which implies it is suitable for use on the front side of a solar cell. Cell-to-cell interconnection by use of low-temperature soldering was demonstrated with sufficient material adhesion. Selected accelerated degradation tests (damp heat and thermal cycling) showed Cu metallized HJT cell and module stability within IEC test thresholds. The optimized Cu metallization resulted in less than 0.5% power loss compared to silver (Ag) metallized reference cells; a peel force for the interconnection tabs of 1.0–2.0 N/mm comparable to the soldered Ag contact. After 200 thermal cycles (cf. IEC standard 61215), Cu-metallized HJT single cell modules showed an average ∼2.7% power loss, mainly due to a reduction in fill factor. In the Cu contact durability test at cell and module level, only minor losses in voltage and pseudo fill factor were measured, from which we assess there was no detrimental Cu diffusion into the active cell layers. Both Ag and Cu metallization based single cell modules, provided with and without edge sealant, showed less than 5% power loss after 1000-hour damp heat testing, which meets the IEC 61215 standard, though the modules without edge sealant with Cu-metallized cells showed more degradation than the other three types of modules.
{"title":"Investigation of Screen-Printed Copper Metallization Interconnection and Durability in the HJT Solar Cell and Module","authors":"Yu Wu;Busra E. Kucuk;Lars A. G. Okel;Eric J. Kossen;Astrid Gutjahr;Victor Rosca;Bart Geerligs","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3673768","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3673768","url":null,"abstract":"This study reports progress in screen-printed copper (Cu) metallization (Cu paste with 0% Ag content) for silicon heterojunction solar cells (HJT), fully replacing the conventional silver-based metallization. Important performance requirements for practical application were tested and demonstrated. A line width of less than 20 μm was achieved, which implies it is suitable for use on the front side of a solar cell. Cell-to-cell interconnection by use of low-temperature soldering was demonstrated with sufficient material adhesion. Selected accelerated degradation tests (damp heat and thermal cycling) showed Cu metallized HJT cell and module stability within IEC test thresholds. The optimized Cu metallization resulted in less than 0.5% power loss compared to silver (Ag) metallized reference cells; a peel force for the interconnection tabs of 1.0–2.0 N/mm comparable to the soldered Ag contact. After 200 thermal cycles (cf. IEC standard 61215), Cu-metallized HJT single cell modules showed an average ∼2.7% power loss, mainly due to a reduction in fill factor. In the Cu contact durability test at cell and module level, only minor losses in voltage and pseudo fill factor were measured, from which we assess there was no detrimental Cu diffusion into the active cell layers. Both Ag and Cu metallization based single cell modules, provided with and without edge sealant, showed less than 5% power loss after 1000-hour damp heat testing, which meets the IEC 61215 standard, though the modules without edge sealant with Cu-metallized cells showed more degradation than the other three types of modules.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"382-388"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11458047","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146791","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-03-23DOI: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3667911
Jörg Schube;Andreas Lorenz;Sebastian Mack;Laura Harnecker;Sebastian Pingel;Jonas D. De Rose;Andreas Wolf
As the silver price sets one record height after another, to curb costs, the need to reduce silver consumption in solar cell metallization increases. This work develops front-side metallization for tunnel oxide passivating contact (TOPCon) solar cells toward fine-line printing, i.e., feature sizes of less than 20 μm in width and a reduction of wet paste laydown. Besides silver reduction, this is motivated by increasing conversion efficiency, which further reduces cost per watt. To reach these goals by screen printing, three different fine-mesh configurations for knotless screens are utilized. Nominal screen opening widths vary from 24 µm to 13 μm. Moreover, printing with a dual-layer stencil featuring a nominal opening width of 9 μm is analyzed. The printed and fired contacts are characterized toward key geometrical and electrical performance indicators. Based on the corresponding findings, M10-sized TOPCon solar cells featuring fine-line grids with a core finger width wc = (16 ± 1) μm were fabricated. Compared to the reference group with wc = (23 ± 2) μm, a conversion efficiency gain of (0.9 ± 0.2)% rel is achieved, which is mainly driven by a reduction of shading-induced losses. Furthermore, wet paste laydown on the front is reduced by ∼30% rel using such metallization.
{"title":"Progress in Fine-Line Front-Side Printing for TOPCon Solar Cells","authors":"Jörg Schube;Andreas Lorenz;Sebastian Mack;Laura Harnecker;Sebastian Pingel;Jonas D. De Rose;Andreas Wolf","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3667911","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3667911","url":null,"abstract":"As the silver price sets one record height after another, to curb costs, the need to reduce silver consumption in solar cell metallization increases. This work develops front-side metallization for tunnel oxide passivating contact (TOPCon) solar cells toward fine-line printing, i.e., feature sizes of less than 20 μm in width and a reduction of wet paste laydown. Besides silver reduction, this is motivated by increasing conversion efficiency, which further reduces cost per watt. To reach these goals by screen printing, three different fine-mesh configurations for knotless screens are utilized. Nominal screen opening widths vary from 24 µm to 13 μm. Moreover, printing with a dual-layer stencil featuring a nominal opening width of 9 μm is analyzed. The printed and fired contacts are characterized toward key geometrical and electrical performance indicators. Based on the corresponding findings, M10-sized TOPCon solar cells featuring fine-line grids with a core finger width <italic>w</i><sub>c</sub> = (16 ± 1) <italic>μ</i>m were fabricated. Compared to the reference group with <italic>w</i><sub>c</sub> = (23 ± 2) <italic>μ</i>m, a conversion efficiency gain of (0.9 ± 0.2)% <sub>rel</sub> is achieved, which is mainly driven by a reduction of shading-induced losses. Furthermore, wet paste laydown on the front is reduced by ∼30% <sub>rel</sub> using such metallization.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"313-320"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11451766","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146796","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The upscaling of perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells is an increasingly important topic in research to bridge the gap between laboratory scale performance and industrial application. This requires adapting well-established technologies to enable the processing of upscaled tandem cell manufacturing steps, including the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) front electrode by magnetron sputtering and the metal contact by screen printing. For state-of-the-art silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells, both the TCO and the metal contact are annealed at temperatures around 200 °C. Perovskite films in contrast are known to degrade at such high temperatures, which makes the processing of the front contact for perovskite based solar cells more challenging. In this work, we demonstrate an optimized screen-printing process that, with the right choice of sputtering process parameters, enables a low TCO/Ag contact resistivity of around 1 mΩcm2 at a maximum processing temperature of 135 °C and therefore suitable for (most) perovskite absorbers. The interaction between the TCO and the silver paste is analyzed in detail with respect to achieving low contact resistivity between the two layers. Our results demonstrate that controlling the hydrogen content during the sputtering process is critical: higher hydrogen levels result in a clear increase in the specific contact resistivity. Finally, we show a screen-printed tandem device that further confirms the process feasibility.
{"title":"Role of Hydrogen on the ITO/Ag Contact Resistance for Low-Temperature Screen-Printing Metallization of Pero/Si Tandems","authors":"Jannik N. Kleesiek;Maximilian Günther;Alexander Steigert;Darja Erfurt;Stefan Janke;Marlene Härtel;Rutger Schlatmann;Bernd Stannowski;Angelika Harter","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3675739","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3675739","url":null,"abstract":"The upscaling of perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells is an increasingly important topic in research to bridge the gap between laboratory scale performance and industrial application. This requires adapting well-established technologies to enable the processing of upscaled tandem cell manufacturing steps, including the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) front electrode by magnetron sputtering and the metal contact by screen printing. For state-of-the-art silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells, both the TCO and the metal contact are annealed at temperatures around 200 °C. Perovskite films in contrast are known to degrade at such high temperatures, which makes the processing of the front contact for perovskite based solar cells more challenging. In this work, we demonstrate an optimized screen-printing process that, with the right choice of sputtering process parameters, enables a low TCO/Ag contact resistivity of around 1 mΩcm<sup>2</sup> at a maximum processing temperature of 135 °C and therefore suitable for (most) perovskite absorbers. The interaction between the TCO and the silver paste is analyzed in detail with respect to achieving low contact resistivity between the two layers. Our results demonstrate that controlling the hydrogen content during the sputtering process is critical: higher hydrogen levels result in a clear increase in the specific contact resistivity. Finally, we show a screen-printed tandem device that further confirms the process feasibility.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"369-374"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11475172","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146819","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-06-03DOI: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3695623
{"title":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics Information for Authors","authors":"","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3695623","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3695623","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"C3-C3"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11548689","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146844","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-01Epub Date: 2026-03-20DOI: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3671871
Sebastian Pingel;Fadi M. Maarouf;Noah Wengenmeyr;Oumaima Mhirsi;Marius Singler;Dirk Eberlein;Thomas Müller;Benjamin Grübel;Jonas De Rose;Florian Clement;Andreas Lorenz
Enabling terawatt-scale silicon solar cell manufacturing requires a drastic reduction in silver usage without compromising performance. We demonstrate fine-line screen-printed silicon heterojunction (SHJ) cells using silver (Ag), silver-coated copper (AgCu), and copper (Cu) pastes on industrial precursors, delivering full-cell efficiencies around 23%, comparable to pure-Ag references. Specific Ag consumption drops to 2.1 mg/Wp (AgCu/AgCu) and 1.4 mg/Wp (AgCu/Cu). Fine AgCu grids printed with a nominal 17 μm screen opening on the wafer side achieve high effective Ag utilization of ∼25–30 cm2/Ω·mg. Cells with pure Cu paste metallization on both sides exhibited substantially lower JSC and fill factor (FF). Cells were half-cut and integrated into modules via low-temperature, wire-based soldered interconnection; cutting and module-integration losses were assessed. Under accelerated thermal cycling of modules with cells based on Ag/Ag, AgCu/AgCu, as well as AgCu/Cu metallization, showed ≤2% relative efficiency loss, while Cu/Cu degraded by ∼7%. In module reliability testing, VOC and JSC remained stable, while the degradation was dominated by FF losses due to increased series resistance, partially explained by occasional wire detachment. These results show that SHJ cells with AgCu/AgCu or AgCu/Cu metallization can meet Terawatt (TW)-era Ag constraints and deliver SHJ modules with substantially lower Ag consumption compared to typical tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) cells and modules, which require ∼7 mg/Wp.
{"title":"Efficient Silver Usage in Screen-Printed SHJ Cells for the Terawatt Production Era","authors":"Sebastian Pingel;Fadi M. Maarouf;Noah Wengenmeyr;Oumaima Mhirsi;Marius Singler;Dirk Eberlein;Thomas Müller;Benjamin Grübel;Jonas De Rose;Florian Clement;Andreas Lorenz","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3671871","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3671871","url":null,"abstract":"Enabling terawatt-scale silicon solar cell manufacturing requires a drastic reduction in silver usage without compromising performance. We demonstrate fine-line screen-printed silicon heterojunction (SHJ) cells using silver (Ag), silver-coated copper (AgCu), and copper (Cu) pastes on industrial precursors, delivering full-cell efficiencies around 23%, comparable to pure-Ag references. Specific Ag consumption drops to 2.1 mg/W<sub>p</sub> (AgCu/AgCu) and 1.4 mg/W<sub>p</sub> (AgCu/Cu). Fine AgCu grids printed with a nominal 17 μm screen opening on the wafer side achieve high effective Ag utilization of ∼25–30 cm<sup>2</sup>/Ω·mg. Cells with pure Cu paste metallization on both sides exhibited substantially lower <italic>J<sub>SC</sub></i> and fill factor <italic>(FF)</i>. Cells were half-cut and integrated into modules via low-temperature, wire-based soldered interconnection; cutting and module-integration losses were assessed. Under accelerated thermal cycling of modules with cells based on Ag/Ag, AgCu/AgCu, as well as AgCu/Cu metallization, showed ≤2% relative efficiency loss, while Cu/Cu degraded by ∼7%. In module reliability testing, <italic>V<sub>OC</sub></i> and <italic>J<sub>SC</sub></i> remained stable, while the degradation was dominated by <italic>FF</i> losses due to increased series resistance, partially explained by occasional wire detachment. These results show that SHJ cells with AgCu/AgCu or AgCu/Cu metallization can meet Terawatt (TW)-era Ag constraints and deliver SHJ modules with substantially lower Ag consumption compared to typical tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) cells and modules, which require ∼7 mg/W<sub>p</sub>.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"321-332"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11448999","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146843","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The reliance of photovoltaic industry on silver (Ag) for silicon solar cell metallization faces critical challenges due to Ag scarcity, cost volatility, and sustainability concerns. Here, we systematically compare advanced metallization strategies that minimize Ag usage while preserving cell performance. We evaluate different approaches such as ultrafine screen printing of Ag, hybrid core–shell metal pastes, pure Ag-free metal pastes (Cu, Ni, Al/Si), and novel deposition techniques of electroplating and multinozzle dispensing. Fine-line printing enables Ag finger widths as narrow as 10–15 μm, reducing Ag consumption by up to 30% without compromising efficiency. However, fingers widths below 10 μm introduce printability challenges and increased series resistance. Hybrid core-shell pastes, such as Cu-core/Ag-shell (Ag/Cu) configurations, mitigate oxidation of Cu and diffusion risks at low temperatures but face limitations in high-temperature processes. To address this, pure Cu and Ni contacts demonstrate a breakthrough, achieving power conversion efficiencies comparable to traditional Ag contacts while slashing Ag usage to almost zero. Meanwhile, Al/Si pastes, while limited by lower voltage, show promise for rear-side metallization if used with Al/(boron doped) Si or Al/Ge alloy mixtures. These comparative findings highlight the trade-offs among Ag-reduction approaches and delineate a clear path toward significantly lower-Ag, high-efficiency silicon solar cells.
{"title":"Beyond Silver: Comparative Performance Analysis of Alternative Metallization in Silicon Solar Cells","authors":"Veysel Unsur;Melisa Korkmaz Arslan;Seda Kilickaya Unver;Esma Alloji;Rasit Turan","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3667903","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3667903","url":null,"abstract":"The reliance of photovoltaic industry on silver (Ag) for silicon solar cell metallization faces critical challenges due to Ag scarcity, cost volatility, and sustainability concerns. Here, we systematically compare advanced metallization strategies that minimize Ag usage while preserving cell performance. We evaluate different approaches such as ultrafine screen printing of Ag, hybrid core–shell metal pastes, pure Ag-free metal pastes (Cu, Ni, Al/Si), and novel deposition techniques of electroplating and multinozzle dispensing. Fine-line printing enables Ag finger widths as narrow as 10–15 μm, reducing Ag consumption by up to 30% without compromising efficiency. However, fingers widths below 10 μm introduce printability challenges and increased series resistance. Hybrid core-shell pastes, such as Cu-core/Ag-shell (Ag/Cu) configurations, mitigate oxidation of Cu and diffusion risks at low temperatures but face limitations in high-temperature processes. To address this, pure Cu and Ni contacts demonstrate a breakthrough, achieving power conversion efficiencies comparable to traditional Ag contacts while slashing Ag usage to almost zero. Meanwhile, Al/Si pastes, while limited by lower voltage, show promise for rear-side metallization if used with Al/(boron doped) Si or Al/Ge alloy mixtures. These comparative findings highlight the trade-offs among Ag-reduction approaches and delineate a clear path toward significantly lower-Ag, high-efficiency silicon solar cells.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"333-341"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11440333","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146837","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The interconnection technology for solar cells using electrically conductive adhesives (ECA) is a promising low-temperature, low-stress, and lead- and bismuth-free solution. The ECA ensures the bonding between either ribbons/wires and solar cells or cell tiles for shingle configurations providing excellent reliability during accelerated ageing tests and in outdoor conditions. The use of ECA has proven its value in recent years, particularly for interconnecting temperature-sensitive heterojunction (HJT) cells. Consequently, interest in the ECA interconnection process is expected to grow in the coming years, especially due to its compatibility with new Si/Perovskite tandem cells. For this technology, solder pads and even busbars are not necessary, allowing for a significant reduction in the amount of paste deposited at the cell level. However, the quantity of ECA used for interconnection remains substantial, and it is at this level that research must focus to reduce silver consumption. It has been shown that lowering the quantity of ECA deposited on the cell can hinder module reliability. Thus, the preferred approach to reduce silver in the interconnection process without affecting reliability is to use uncoated copper ribbons and to reduce the silver content within the ECAs. To achieve this, we used commercial ECAs with low silver content and also developed ECAs based on copper particles coated with a thin layer of silver to prevent oxidation. With the introduction of full copper metallization on the backside of HJT cells, the total amount of silver in the module can be lowered to 7 mg/Wp. This article presents the latest results obtained on the interconnection of HJT solar cells with ECA bonding material, focusing on reducing silver consumption by using low-silver ECAs combined with pure copper ribbons, Cu-Ag and full Cu pastes for cell metallization.
{"title":"Toward Less Than 10 mg/Wp Silver Consumption in HJT Modules With ECA Based Interconnection","authors":"Rémi Monna;Gustavo Rodrigues Lopes;Nathalie Ronayette-Lamoine;Anne-Sophie Ozanne;Jules Clerjon;Didier Therme;Johann Jourdan;Bertrand Hladys;Wilfried Favre","doi":"10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3675701","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/JPHOTOV.2026.3675701","url":null,"abstract":"The interconnection technology for solar cells using electrically conductive adhesives (ECA) is a promising low-temperature, low-stress, and lead- and bismuth-free solution. The ECA ensures the bonding between either ribbons/wires and solar cells or cell tiles for shingle configurations providing excellent reliability during accelerated ageing tests and in outdoor conditions. The use of ECA has proven its value in recent years, particularly for interconnecting temperature-sensitive heterojunction (HJT) cells. Consequently, interest in the ECA interconnection process is expected to grow in the coming years, especially due to its compatibility with new Si/Perovskite tandem cells. For this technology, solder pads and even busbars are not necessary, allowing for a significant reduction in the amount of paste deposited at the cell level. However, the quantity of ECA used for interconnection remains substantial, and it is at this level that research must focus to reduce silver consumption. It has been shown that lowering the quantity of ECA deposited on the cell can hinder module reliability. Thus, the preferred approach to reduce silver in the interconnection process without affecting reliability is to use uncoated copper ribbons and to reduce the silver content within the ECAs. To achieve this, we used commercial ECAs with low silver content and also developed ECAs based on copper particles coated with a thin layer of silver to prevent oxidation. With the introduction of full copper metallization on the backside of HJT cells, the total amount of silver in the module can be lowered to 7 mg/Wp. This article presents the latest results obtained on the interconnection of HJT solar cells with ECA bonding material, focusing on reducing silver consumption by using low-silver ECAs combined with pure copper ribbons, Cu-Ag and full Cu pastes for cell metallization.","PeriodicalId":445,"journal":{"name":"IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics","volume":"16 3","pages":"375-381"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=11475639","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148146810","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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