In order to find an upper theoretical limit for the efficiency of p‐n junction solar energy converters, a limiting efficiency, called the detailed balance limit of efficiency, has been calculated for an ideal case in which the only recombination mechanism of hole‐electron pairs is radiative as required by the principle of detailed balance. The efficiency is also calculated for the case in which radiative recombination is only a fixed fraction fc of the total recombination, the rest being nonradiative. Efficiencies at the matched loads have been calculated with band gap and fc as parameters, the sun and cell being assumed to be blackbodies with temperatures of 6000°K and 300°K, respectively. The maximum efficiency is found to be 30% for an energy gap of 1.1 ev and fc = 1. Actual junctions do not obey the predicted current‐voltage relationship, and reasons for the difference and its relevance to efficiency are discussed.

Detailed Balance Limit of Efficiency of p‐n Junction Solar Cells

The various origins of a frequency-dependent conductivity in amorphous semiconductors are reviewed, stressing particularly recent advances and the influences that factors such as correlation and non-random spatial distributions of electrically active centres can have on the a.c. conductivity. A comprehensive survey is given of the experimental a.c. data for two types of amorphous semiconductor, namely chalcogenide and pnictide materials. It is concluded that the a.c. behaviour at intermediate to high temperatures is well accounted for by the correlated-barrier-hopping model, whereas the low-temperature behaviour is probably due to atomic tunnelling.

A.c. conduction in amorphous chalcogenide and pnictide semiconductors

Publisher Summary The chapter presents a study on relations between the concentrations of imperfections in crystalline solids. Many properties of crystalline solids, such as the electronic or ionic conductivity, the color, the luminescence, and the magnetic susceptibility are determined by the presence of imperfections. Generally, six types of primary imperfections are distinguished; namely phonons, electrons and holes, excitons, vacant lattice sites and interstitial atoms or ions, foreign atoms or ions in either interstitial or substitutional positions, and dislocations. In addition atoms of the base crystal may be present at lattice sites normally occupied by other atoms. Five types of primary imperfections—namely, electrons and holes, vacant lattice sites, interstitials, misplaced lattice atoms, and foreign atoms—are discussed in this chapter. The chapter presents a new treatment of these problems by making use of a graphical representation. This treatment, together with the use of a band scheme for the electronic energy levels, greatly facilitates the application of the theory and the deduction of conclusions from it. Apart from a few exceptions, binary nonmetallic compounds of the formula M X will be considered almost exclusively. Here M indicates an element of a more electropositive character (metal) and X an element of a more electronegative character.

Relations between the Concentrations of Imperfections in Crystalline Solids

The available data on solid solubilities of impurity elements in germanium and silicon are summarized in the form of solidus or solvus curves. New solubility data are presented for the lead-germanium, zinc-germanium, indium-germanium, antimony-silicon, gallium-silicon and aluminum-silicon systems. The correlation of the solid solubilities with the heats of sublimation and the atom sizes of the impurity elements is considered.

Solid solubilities of impurity elements in germanium and silicon

Recent developments in the theoretical analysis and experimental study of frequency-dependent loss by relaxation in amorphous semiconductors are reviewed. A unified theoretical treatment of the complex a.c. conductivity is given, within the pair approximation, for single electron tunnelling and hopping in both uncorrelated and strongly correlated cases, and the discussion is then extended to pair processes and to atomic relaxation. The problems associated with measuring the frequency dependent conductivity of amorphous samples are considered, and relevant measurements reported for the different classes of amorphous semiconductors, tetrahedral and group V materials and chalcogenides are reviewed in the light of the available theoretical models. The similarity in the magnitudes and frequency, temperature and electric field dependences of the losses observed in many different systems at liquid helium temperatures is noted, and the possible physical reasons for this are examined.

Frequency-dependent loss in amorphous semiconductors

Interactions among defects in germanium and silicon have been investigated. The solid solutions involved bear a strong resemblance to aqueous solutions insofar as they represent media for chemical reactions. Such phenomena as acid-base neutralization, complex ion formation, and ion pairing, all take place. These phenomena, besides being of interest in themselves, are useful in studying the properties of the semiconductors in which they occur. The following article is a blend of theory and experiment, and describes developments in this field during the past few years.

F. J. Morin

Papers

Chemical interactions among defects in germanium and silicon

Precipitation of lithium in germanium

Formation of Ion Pairs and Triplets between Lithium and Zinc in Germanium