In0.8Ga0.2As Quantum Dots for GaAs Solar Cells: Metal-Organic Vapor-Phase Epitaxy Growth Peculiarities and Properties

Abstract

The growth peculiarities of In_0.8Ga_0.2As quantum dots and their arrays on GaAs surface by metalorganic vapor-phase epitaxy are investigated. The bimodal size distribution of In_0.8Ga_0.2As quantum dots is established from the photoluminescence spectra recorded at different temperatures. The growth parameters were determined at which the stacking of 20 In_0.8Ga_0.2As quantum-dot layers in the active area of a GaAs solar cell makes it possible to enhance the photogenerated current by 0.97 and 0.77 mA/cm² for space and terrestrial solar spectra, respectively, with the high quality of the p–n junction retained. The photogenerated current in a solar cell with quantum dots is higher than in the reference GaAs structure by ~1% with regard to nonradiative-recombination loss originating from stresses induced by the quantum-dot array.