Effect of Diamond Wire Saw Marks on Solar Cell Performance

Diamond wires from several manufacturers were investigated in term of their impact on wafer quality and cell performance. It was identified that under identical ingot sawing conditions the diamond wire make had an impact on the resulting cell performance. Several cells exhibited defects that remained with the cell even after the saw damage etching process. These defects were investigated in terms of there impact on various solar cell performance parameters. This analysis was performed using photoluminescence imaging and spatially resolved quantum efficiency and reflectance measurements. The diamond wire marks were observed to have the largest impact on the local short-circuit current density across the cell.