Impact of low-intensity magnetic fields on the performance of silicon solar cells: a simulation-based study

Purpose We applied our methodology to the experimental work of other authors. This implies that even in simulated environments, ambient magnetic fields can substantially impact silicon solar cell performance. These findings underscore the necessity of considering magnetic field influences when designing and optimizing solar devices, even in simulated contexts. Design/methodology/approach In the context of uniformly doped semiconductors where the band gap, electrical permittivity, carrier mobility and diffusion coefficients are constant, a common method used to analyze and model such systems is the drift-diffusion model. This model is widely employed in semiconductor physics and device engineering to describe the behavior of charge carriers in response to electric fields and concentration gradients. When an electric field <m:math xmlns:m="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><m:mrow><m:mover accent="true"><m:mi>E</m:mi><m:mo>→</m:mo></m:mover></m:mrow></m:math> is applied, charge carriers experience a force that causes them to move: • Electrons (negative charge) move opposite to the electric field. • Holes (positive charge) move in the direction of the electric field. This motion is described by: J drift =q⋅μ⋅n⋅ <m:math xmlns:m="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><m:mrow><m:mover accent="true"><m:mi>E</m:mi><m:mo>→</m:mo></m:mover></m:mrow></m:math> , where: • J drift : current density due to drift • q: elementary charge • μ: carrier mobility • n: carrier concentration • <m:math xmlns:m="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><m:mrow><m:mover accent="true"><m:mi>E</m:mi><m:mo>→</m:mo></m:mover></m:mrow></m:math> : electric field Findings We conducted tests with different ranges of magnetic field strength to reflect variations at various altitudes and latitudes, where the Earth’s magnetic field can reach 1 mT due to external disturbances like electrical transmission wires, geophysical magnetic rocks or space missions where higher magnetic field levels might be encountered. For a 100 cm 2 area and a magnetic field variation from 1 to 50 mT, our findings indicate that the short-circuit current I SC decreased from 3.6 to 2.62 A, the open-circuit voltage V_OC decreased from 0.63 to 0.58 V, and the efficiency decreased from 20.45 to 13.31%. Conversely, the fill factor increased from 83.55 to 81.187 when the silicon solar cell was illuminated by conventional light. We validated this work by comparing it to the experimental work conducted by other authors, which yielded good results. Originality/value We tested various magnetic field strengths to simulate conditions at different altitudes and latitudes, where the Earth’s magnetic field, influenced by factors like electrical transmission lines, geophysical magnetic rocks or space missions, can reach up to 1 mT. For a 100 cm 2 area and magnetic field strengths ranging from 1 to 50 mT, we observed the following changes: the short-circuit current (I SC ) Decreased from 3.6 A to 2.62 A, the open-circuit voltage (V OC ) Dropped from 0.63 V to 0.58 V, and the efficiency fell from 20.45% to 13.31%. However, the fill factor (FF) increased slightly from 83.55 to 81.187 under conventional light illumination. Our results were validated through comparison with similar experimental work by other authors, which confirmed the accuracy of our findings.