Multilayer etching for kerf-free solar cells from macroporous silicon

Kerf-free techniques for subdividing a single thick crystalline Si wafer into a multitude of thin Si layers have a large potential for cost reductions. In this paper, we explore pore formation in Si for separating many 18 μm-thick surface-textured layers from a thick wafer with a single etching process. We demonstrate the fabrication and separation of four macroporous Si layers in a single etching step. Generating many instead of single macroporous layers per etching step improves the economics of the macroporous Si process. We present our etching process that maintains the pore pattern defined by photolithography even after etching many absorber and separation layers.