Self-annihilation of electron-irradiation-induced defects in InAs_xp_(1-X)/InP multiquantum well solar cells

摘要

Irradiation by 1 MeV electron of InAs_xP_(1-x)/InP multiquantum well (MQW) solar cells results in the appearance of a dominant electron-emitting level E1, in the upper half of the band gap. The level E1, however, exhibits an interesting behavior as it was found to completely anneal out with storage at room temperature with no change in other majority carrier levels. No any other defect has been observed in electron-irradiated n-type InAs_xP_(1-x)/InP MQW solar cell structures, which contrasts to conventional n-InP solar cell counterparts (structures without QWs). The study reveals that introduction of QWs in the intrinsic region of p-i-n structures enhances significantly the device radiation tolerance well beyond what has been thus far reported for conventional Si or Ⅲ-Ⅴ semiconductor-based solar cells.