Comparison of Characterization Techniques for Measurements of Doping Concentrations in Compensated n-type Silicon

Nowadays, compensated silicon (Si) is used in photovoltaic (PV) processes, whether it is through intentional co-doping of resistivity-adjusted Czochralski ingots for high efficiency n-type Si solar cells, as a result of alternative Si purification processes for the production of low-cost Si feedstock, or as a result of recycling end-of-life materials. Whatever the origin of the compensated Si, the doping concentrations need to be accurately and quickly characterized in order to control such processes. In this work, a rapid and highly sensitive characterization technique based on low temperature Hall Effect measurements is described in scientific details and compared to three well-established chemical methods: Glow Discharge Mass Spectrometry (GDMS), Inductively-Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), and Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS). The characterized samples were extracted from the n-type top part of a casted solar grade Si ingot. A very good agreement is observed between the dopants densities extracted from the electrical method and from the standard methods. With the advantage of a very low detection limit combined with a short measurement time, the advanced Hall Effect technique is promising for the rapid and accurate characterization of dopant concentrations in compensated Si.