Effect of surface recombination on the spectral dependence of photocurrent in intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon films

The spectral dependence of the photocurrent in intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) films was measured in the annealed and light-soaked states. The photocurrents were modeled using numerical analysis which quantified the recombination in both the bulk as well as at the film surface and glass substrate interface. The results on films, having thicknesses between 1 and 3 μm, are consistent with thickness independent bulk transport properties and surface and substrate interface recombination velocities of (3–6)×104 and (1–2)×106 cm/s, respectively.