Full CVD Reel-To-Reel Process to Obtain Perfectly Oriented Silicon Films on Metal Tapes with Oxide Buffer Layers**

Abstract

Silicon films with a sharp biaxial texture on low-cost, flexible metal tapes are prominent materials for cost-effective photovoltaics. The cost of such materials can be further reduced by the application of easily scalable chemical deposition methods. In the present article, we report on the application of CVD to obtain epitaxial silicon films on Ni alloy tapes with metal-organic (MO)CVD-produced buffer layers. Two types of buffer layer architecture are presented, which enable textured silicon growth on textured Ni(Cr,W) alloy and on non-textured Hastelloy tape. The Si film appears highly textured and demonstrates chemical purity, indicating the possibility of application of proposed Si/buffer/metal heterostructures formed by CVD for the photovoltaic industry.