Electrical characterization of small area devices for manufacturing

Uniformity of electrical performance is critical for thin film modules. The more uniformly that all areas of the module perform the better the overall efficiency will be. Total module performance tends towards the average of localized performance, skewed slightly lower by the width of localized performance distribution. Measurement of overall module efficiency does not give information about performance uniformity. Use of small area devices (SAD's) defined from the module allow standard electrical measurements including light and dark current-voltage (IV/JV) and quantum efficiency to be performed on a small scale. Data from these measurements allows mapping of electrical performance across the module. The structure of types of SAD's is discussed and some examples of efficiency data from JV measurements as used in the optimization of a thin film module manufacturing line are presented. Also a brief discussion of statistical analysis of the data is included.