Screen printed Ag-doped nickel metallization for industrial n-TOPCon silicon solar cells

This study introduces an innovative Ag-doped Ni metallization technique for TOPCon silicon solar cells, offering a cost-effective alternative to traditional silver-based contacts. Employing nickel paste doped with only 4 % silver a conversion efficiency of 23.66 % was achieved compared to silver-contacted counterparts, with an efficiency of 23.71 %. The custom-engineered glass frit used in the Ag-Ni metal paste, acting as a hole-selective layer after firing, enhanced the performance of the solar cells by improving carrier transfer and reducing contact resistance to 0.98 m Omega cm2. Significantly, this method reduced silver usage to less than 0.5 mg/Wp, leading to a dramatic decrease in metallization costs in which conventional screen-printed metallization typically requires 13-20 mg/ Wp of silver. Additionally, the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) was substantially lowered, demonstrating the economic viability of this approach for large-scale solar energy production. These findings underscore the potential of Ag-doped Ni contacts in addressing the scalability and sustainability challenges of solar cell manufacturing.