Optically transparent and electrically conductive NiO window layer for Si solar cells

• Electrically conductive and optically transparent NiO was applied.
• NiO window layer efficiently transmit visible light with selective blocking of UV.
• Functional NiO window-embedding solar cell provides significant improvements.

Nickel oxide (NiO) material has been functionally applied for Si solar cells. Optically transparent and electrically conductive NiO was used as a window layer for Si solar cells to provide a relatively high efficiency of 15.37%. An optically transparent NiO layer was coated onto Si by large-area applicable sputtering deposition to give good crystalline structure. NiO-coating on Si spontaneously reduces the light reflection for visible range light, resulting in the improved current profiles. Due to the electrically low sheet resistance, the NiO-coating design is effective to improve the open circuit voltage and fill factor of solar cells. The optical and electrical benefits of NiO would provide a route of improvement for various photoelectric devices, including solar cells.