Degradation assessment of a single junction InP solar cell under 1 MeV electron irradiation effect

Energetic particles, such as protons and electrons, play a crucial role in causing significant degradation in the efficiency of solar cells powering satellites and spacecraft. This degradation primarily stems from damages inflicted upon the crystal lattice within the active area of the device. This study investigates the immunity behavior of a single-junction InP solar cell to radiation effects using a 1D numerical simulation. By assuming an air mass zero spectrum along the path and a fluency rate of 1 MeV electrons, the solar cell’s J–V characteristics are computed. Various energy levels of defects within the InP energy gap are considered. The findings reveal that the principal factor contributing to the solar cell's performance degradation is the reduction in the minority carrier lifetime, along with contributions from series and shunt resistances that limit the device’s current capabilities due to displacement damages induced by irradiation. In this context, the advantages of utilizing InP, a direct bandgap semiconductor, as a radiation-resistant material for solar cells are explored.