A new technique for large-area thin film CdS/CdTe solar cells

The atmospheric pressure CSS method has been developed as a reproducible and efficient process. Thin film CdTe grown under atmospheric pressure has a rough surface morphology. The density of carbon black powder in the graphite carbon paste for screen printing is a key factor in reducing the series resistance of the device with rough surface CdTe. Using graphite carbon paste with 7 wt% carbon black powder has resulted in cells with a relatively low back contact resistance. A highly efficient large-area CdS/CdTe solar cell (11.0%, 5327 cm²) sub-module has been fabricated using the new technique.