Abstract: A coating fluid comprising a boron compound, an organic binder, a silicon compound, an alumina precursor, and water and/or an organic solvent is used to diffuse boron into a silicon substrate to form a p-type diffusion layer. The coating fluid is spin coated onto the substrate to form a uniform coating having a sufficient amount of impurity whereupon a p-type diffusion layer having in-plane uniformity is formed.

Abstract: A solar cell fabrication process includes printing of dopant sources over a polysilicon layer over backside of a solar cell substrate. The dopant sources are cured to diffuse dopants from the dopant sources into the polysilicon layer to form diffusion regions, and to crosslink the dopant sources to make them resistant to a subsequently performed texturing process. To prevent counter doping, dopants from one of the dopant sources are prevented from outgassing and diffusing into the other dopant source. For example, phosphorus from an N-type dopant source is prevented from diffusing to a P-type dopant source comprising boron.

Abstract: A lattice-matched solar cell having a dilute nitride-based sub-cell has exponential doping to thereby control current-carrying capacity of the solar cell. Specifically a solar cell with at least one dilute nitride sub-cell that has a variably doped base or emitter is disclosed. In one embodiment, a lattice matched multi junction solar cell has an upper sub-cell, a middle sub-cell and a lower dilute nitride sub-cell, the lower dilute nitride sub-cell having doping in the base and/or the emitter that is at least partially exponentially doped so as to improve its solar cell performance characteristics. In construction, the dilute nitride sub-cell may have the lowest bandgap and be lattice matched to a substrate, the middle cell typically has a higher bandgap than the dilute nitride sub-cell while it is lattice matched to the dilute nitride sub-cell. The upper sub-cell typically has the highest bandgap and is lattice matched to the adjacent sub-cell.

Abstract: A method for forming a photodetector device includes forming an insulator layer on a substrate, forming a germanium (Ge) layer on the insulator layer and a portion of the substrate, forming a second insulator layer on the Ge layer, implanting n-type ions in the Ge layer, patterning the n-type Ge layer, forming a capping insulator layer on the second insulator layer and a portion of the first insulator layer, heating the device to crystallize the Ge layer resulting in an single crystalline n-type Ge layer, and forming electrodes electrically connected to the single crystalline n-type Ge layer.

Abstract: In a method for producing a photovoltaic cell, the improvement comprising: 1) coating a portion of a semiconductor substrate with a layer of a composition comprising acceptor element-containing glass particles and a dispersion medium, and 2) heating the coated semiconductor substrate to a temperature sufficient to cause acceptor element diffusion from the glass particles into the semiconductor substrate so as to form an p-type diffusion region in the semiconductor substrate.

Abstract: The composition for forming an n-type diffusion layer in accordance with the present invention contains a donor element-containing glass powder and a dispersion medium. An n-type diffusion layer and a photovoltaic cell having an n-type diffusion layer are prepared by applying the composition for forming an n-type diffusion layer, followed by a thermal diffusion treatment.

Abstract: A photovoltaic cell comprises an electrode layer (1b) of a transparent, electrically conductive oxide which is deposited upon a transparent carrier substrate (7b). There follows a contact layer (11b) which is of first type doped amorphous silicon and has a thickness of at most 10 nm. There follows a layer (26) of first type doped amorphous silicon compound which has a bandgap which is larger than the bandgap of the material of the addressed contact layer (11b). Subsequently to the first type doped amorphous silicon compound layer (2b) there follows a layer of intrinsic type silicon compound (3b) and a layer of second type doped silicon compound (5b).

Abstract: A method and apparatus for forming solar cells is provided. Doped crystalline semiconductor alloys including carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen are used as light-trapping enhancement layers and charge collection layers for thin-film solar cells. The semiconductor alloy layers are formed by providing semiconductor source compound and a co-component source compound to a processing chamber and ionizing the gases to deposit a layer on a substrate. The alloy layers provide improved control of refractive index, wide optical bandgap and high conductivity.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a differential doped solar cell is described. The method includes the following steps. First, a substrate is provided. A doping process is conducted thereon to form a doped layer. A heavy doping portion of the doped layer is partially or fully removed. Subsequently, an anti-reflection coating layer is formed thereon. A metal conducting paste is printed on the anti-reflection coating layer and is fired to form the metal electrodes for the solar cell.

Abstract: Method for producing doped regions on the rear face of a photovoltaic cell. A doping paste with a first type of conductivity is deposited on a rear face of a semiconductor-based substrate according to a pattern consistent with the desired distribution of regions doped with the first type of conductivity. Then, an oxide layer is deposited at least on the portions of the rear face of the substrate not covered with the doping paste. Finally, an annealing of the substrate diffuses the doping agents in the substrate and forms doped regions under the doping paste.

Abstract: A photodiode and a method of fabricating a photodiode for reducing modal dispersion and increasing travel distance. The central region of the photodiode is made less responsive to incident light than a peripheral region of the photodiode. The less responsive central region discriminates the lower order modes such that only the higher order modes are incident on the more responsive peripheral region. Because the lower order modes are subtracted, the range of propagation constants is reduced and modal dispersion is also reduced.

Abstract: An imager with pixels having a resonant-cavity photodiode. The resonant cavity photodiode increases absorption of light having long wavelengths. A trench is formed for the photodiode and reflective film is grown on the bottom of the trench. The reflective film reflects light that is not initially absorbed back to the active region of the photodiode.

Abstract: A photoelectric conversion device has a non-single-crystal semiconductor laminate member formed on a substrate having a conductive surface, and a conductive layer formed on the non-single-crystal semiconductor laminate member. The non-single-crystal semiconductor laminate member has such a structure that a first non-single-crystal semiconductor layer having a P or N first conductivity type, an I-type second non-single-crystal semiconductor layer and a third non-single-crystal semiconductor layer having a second conductivity type opposite the first conductivity type are laminated in this order. The first (or third) non-single-crystal semiconductor layer is disposed on the side on which light is incident, and is P-type. The I-type non-single-crystal semiconductor layer has introduced thereinto a P-type impurity, such as boron which is distributed so that its concentration decreases towards the third (or first) non-single-crystal semiconductor layer in the thickwise direction of the I-type layer.