Contribution of the region depleted of charge carriers to the current-voltage characteristic of photoconverters

The contribution of the recombination current of a soft $n$–$p$ junction with a diffusion doping profile to the current-voltage characteristic of silicon photoconverters has been analyzed. It is shown that the locations of the space charge region (SCR) and the charge carrier depleted region (CCDR) do not coincide. The value of the electric potential barrier of the $n$–$p$ junction $V_0$ is equal to the change in the electric field potential in the CCDR, and not in the entire SCR. This fact significantly limits the open circuit voltage and efficiency of photoconverters.