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"Stiftung Warentest" Appraisal for Solar Cell Technologies
When analysing thin layers of solar cells, experts face a problem well-known to every consumer: Various methods of measurement are available for investigating the quality of layers and the distribution of chemical elements. Yet which one is the best suited to the task? An international team now has presented a comprehensive study comparing 18 of these measuring methods. The study was coordinated by Dr Daniel Abou-Ras from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin.
More than 30 researchers from six countries have collaborated in this comprehensive comparative analysis. They all measured the same thin-layer sample of copper indium gallium selenide, the same as is used as an absorbing layer in solar cells. In doing so, the teams compared detection limits, spatial and depth resolution as well as the measurement speed of the individual procedures.
Daniel Abou-Ras points out, that the methods of analysis are used not only in the examination of thin-layer solar cells. "All multi-layer systems can be examined using these techniques, for example, layers in optoelectronic elements such as LEDs." An important result: In order to reliably detect the quantitative distribution of elements, at least two methods ought to be combined.
