Article

A research team from the Australian National University and Longi has identified antimony (Sb) as a strong candidate dopant for Czochralski (RCz) silicon wafers, demonstrating highly uniform radial concentration profiles critical for solar cell efficiency. The study assessed doping concentrations using photoluminescence (PL) imaging and found that Sb-doped wafers exhibit excellent axial uniformity and bulk quality.

Central irregularities linked to buoyancy-driven convection were noted, with Sb showing the highest central inhomogeneities due to its properties. Radial dopant concentrations varied less than 10%, with Sb-doped wafers maintaining stable axial distributions. These findings suggest that RCz technique can produce silicon wafers with low radial dopant variation, positioning antimony as a viable option for next-generation photovoltaic devices.