Thin foil silicon solar cells with coplanar back contacts

To fabricate 50 microns thick, coplanar back contact (CBC) silicon solar cells, wraparound junction design was selected and proved to be effective. The process sequence used, the cell design, and the cell performance are described. CBC cells with low solar absorptance have shown AMO efficiencies to 13%, high cells up to 14%; further improvements are projected with predictable optimization.