Abstract: Materials and Methods for fabrication of rear tabbing, front busbar, and fine grid line layers for silicon based photovoltaic cells are disclosed. Materials include conductive metallization pastes that contain core-shell nickel based particles.

Abstract: Apparatus and methods to incorporate p-type dopants in II-VI semiconducting layers are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, radical nitrogen is introduced in a physical vapor deposition apparatus operating at moderate pressures (e.g. 10?5 Torr to 100 Torr). The radical nitrogen allows for in-situ doping of II-VI materials, such as ZnTe, to degenerate levels.

Abstract: Materials and methods for fabrication of rear tabbing, front busbar, and fine grid line layers for silicon based photovoltaic cells are disclosed. Materials include conductive metallization pastes that contain core-shell nickel based particles.

Abstract: A solar cell having increased near-infrared (NIR) light harvesting is provided that includes a container comprising an optically transparent top surface and a bottom surface, where a cavity is disposed between the top surface and the bottom surface, a first electrode connected to the top surface, a second electrode connected to the bottom surface, and an NIR dye cosensitized with a metal complex sensitizing dye (SD) disposed in the cavity that absorbs NIR light, where the NIR light undergoes energy transfer to the metal complex dyes that separates the charges and produces photocurrent.

Abstract: Improved efficiency for dye-sensitized solar cells is provided using a combination of dyes that have distinct roles—a sensitizing dye and an energy relay dye. The sensitizing dye is disposed on the surface of a photo-electrode, and is capable of absorbing incident radiation and of transferring charge at the photo-electrode surface. The energy relay dye is disposed in the electrolyte of the solar cell. The energy relay dye is capable of absorbing incident radiation and is capable of non-radiative energy transfer to the sensitizing dye. The energy relay dye need not be capable of direct charge transfer at the photo-electrode surface. We have found that the presence of such an energy relay dye can significantly increase solar cell efficiency compared to conventional dye-sensitized solar cell approaches having the dye (or dyes) all adsorbed to the photo-electrode surface.