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Solar Thin Film Photovoltaics
Search All Applications in Solar Thin Film Photovoltaics
Application US20140099748
Published 2014-04-10
Hybrid Multi-junction Photovoltaic Cells And Associated Methods
A multi-junction photovoltaic cell includes a substrate and a back contact layer formed on the substrate. A low bandgap Group IB-IIIB-VIB2 material solar absorber layer is formed on the back contact layer. A heterojunction partner layer is formed on the low bandgap solar absorber layer, to help form the bottom cell junction, and the heterojunction partner layer includes at least one layer of a high resistivity material having a resistivity of at least 100 ohms-centimeter. The high resistivity material has the formula (Zn and/or Mg)(S, Se, O, and/or OH). A conductive interconnect layer is formed above the heterojunction partner layer, and at least one additional single-junction photovoltaic cell is formed on the conductive interconnect layer, as a top cell. The top cell may have an amorphous Silicon or p-type Cadmium Selenide solar absorber layer. Cadmium Selenide may be converted from n-type to p-type with a chloride doping process.
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- 1. A method of making a p-type Cadmium Selenide semiconductor material, comprising:
depositing a layer of Cadmium Selenide; coating the layer of Cadmium Selenide with a solution comprising a solvent and at least one of chloride selected from the group consisting of chlorides of Group IA elements, chlorides of group IB elements, and chlorides of Group IIIB elements; and heating the layer of Cadmium Selenide in an environment having an ambient temperature of between 300 and 500 degrees Celsius for a time between three and thirty minutes while at least partially preventing the evaporation of Selenium from the layer of Cadmium Selenide.
- 8. A method of making a photovoltaic device, comprising:
depositing a contact layer; depositing a layer of Cadmium Selenide; coating the layer of Cadmium Selenide with a solution comprising a solvent and at least one of chloride selected from the group consisting of chlorides of Group IA elements, chlorides of group IB elements, and chlorides of Group IIIB elements; heating the layer of Cadmium Selenide in an environment having an ambient temperature of between 300 and 500 degrees Celsius for a time between three and thirty minutes while at least partially preventing the evaporation of Selenium from the layer of Cadmium Selenide; depositing a heterojunction partner layer; and depositing a transparent conductor layer.
- 19. A method of making a photovoltaic device, comprising:
depositing a transparent conductor layer; depositing a heterojunction partner layer; depositing a layer of Cadmium Selenide; coating the layer of Cadmium Selenide with a solution comprising a solvent and at least one of chloride selected from the group consisting of chlorides of Group IA elements, chlorides of group IB elements, and chlorides of Group IIIB elements; heating the layer of Cadmium Selenide in an environment having an ambient temperature of between 300 and 500 degrees Celsius for a time between three and thirty minutes while at least partially preventing the evaporation of Selenium from the layer of Cadmium Selenide; and depositing a contact layer.
- 30. A process for forming a hybrid multi-junction photovoltaic cell, comprising:
forming a first single-junction photovoltaic cell on a substrate, including the steps of:
forming a first back contact layer on the substrate,
forming a first solar absorber layer on the back contact layer, the first solar absorber layer being formed of a low bandgap Group IB-IIIB-VIB2 material having bulk p-type character,
forming a first heterojunction partner layer on the first solar absorber layer, the first heterojunction partner layer comprising at least one layer of a high resistivity material having a resistivity of at least 100 ohms-centimeter, the high resistivity material being a material having the formula (Zn and/or Mg)(S, Se, O, and/or OH);
forming a conductive interconnect layer above the first heterojunction partner layer of the first single-junction photovoltaic cell; and forming at least one additional single-junction photovoltaic cell above the conductive interconnect layer.
