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US Patent 5393675 - Process for RF sputtering of cadmium telluride photovoltaic cell
US Patent Issued on February 28, 1995
Estimated Patent Expiration Date:
May 10, 2013Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.
Estimated Patent Expiration Date:
May 10, 2013Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.AbstractA thin film photovoltaic cell having a semiconductor layer of cadmium sulfide and a semiconductor layer of cadmium telluride is manufactured in a process in which the cadmium sulfide and the cadmium telluride are deposited onto a conductive layer of a substrate by RF sputtering. A layer of cadmium sulfide is deposited on the conducting layer of the substrate by RF magnetron sputtering. After the cadmium sulfide is deposited, a layer of cadmium telluride is deposited by RF magnetron sputtering. The RF sputtering deposition of the two semiconductor layers increases the efficiency of the cell and is conducive to a large scale manufacturing process. The photovoltaic cell may include only two semiconductor layers forming a p-n junction. A third semiconductor layer, typically zinc telluride, may be added to the cell to form a p-i-n junction. The efficiency of the cell is further increased by treatment with cadmium chloride and annealing in dry air. The cadmium chloride is deposited using laser-driven physical vapor deposition. The cell is then annealed at approximately 400 degrees Celsius in air prior to deposition of the second contact. The second contact is deposited using vacuum evaporation of copper and gold.Other References
| InventorAssigneeApplicationNo. 059559 filed on 05/10/1993US Classes:438/95, Chalcogen (i.e., oxygen (O), sulfur (S), selenium (Se), tellurium (Te)) containing136/260, Cadmium containing136/264, Selenium or tellurium containing136/265, Copper, lead, or zinc containing204/192.25, Semiconductor204/192.26, Optical or photoactive438/94HeterojunctionField of Search204/192.25, Semiconductor204/192.26, Optical or photoactive257/78, II-VI compound257/184, Light responsive structure257/201, Between different group IV-VI or II-VI or III-V compounds other than GaAs/GaAlAs257/458, PIN detector, including combinations with non-light responsive active devices257/461, Light responsive pn junction257/614, Group II-VI compound (e.g., CdTe, Hg x Cd 1-x Te)257/656With high resistivity (e.g., "intrinsic") layer between P and N layers (e.g., PIN diode)ExaminersPrimary: Weisstuch, AaronAttorney, Agent or FirmUS Patent References4086101, Photovoltaic cellsIssued on: 04/25/1978 Inventor: Jordan, et al.4095006, Cadmium sulfide film Issued on: 06/13/1978 Inventor: Jordan, et al.4261802, Method of making a photovoltaic cell Issued on: 04/14/1981 Inventor: Fulop , et al.4265933, Photovoltaic cell Issued on: 05/05/1981 Inventor: Jordan , et al.4284490, R.F. Sputtering apparatus including multi-network power supply Issued on: 08/18/1981 Inventor: Weber4331707, Process for thin film deposition of cadmium sulfide Issued on: 05/25/1982 Inventor: Muruska , et al.4388483, Thin film heterojunction photovoltaic cells and methods of making the same Issued on: 06/14/1983 Inventor: Basol , et al.4392931, Reactive deposition method and apparatus Issued on: 07/12/1983 Inventor: Maniv , et al.4398055, Radiant energy converter having sputtered CdSiAs2 absorber Issued on: 08/09/1983 Inventor: Ijaz , et al.4400244, Photo-voltaic power generating means and methods Issued on: 08/23/1983 Inventor: Kroger , et al.4415427, Thin film deposition by sputtering Issued on: 11/15/1983 Inventor: Hidler , et al.4420385, Apparatus and process for sputter deposition of reacted thin films Issued on: 12/13/1983 Inventor: Hartsough4465575, Method for forming photovoltaic cells employing multinary semiconductor films Issued on: 08/14/1984 Inventor: Love , et al.4666569, Method of making multilayer ohmic contact to thin film p-type II-VI semiconductor Issued on: 05/19/1987 Inventor: Basol4680611, Multilayer ohmic contact for p-type semiconductor and method of making same Issued on: 07/14/1987 Inventor: Basol4709466, Process for fabricating thin film photovoltaic solar cells Issued on: 12/01/1987 Inventor: McCandless , et al.4710589, Heterojunction p-i-n photovoltaic cell Issued on: 12/01/1987 Inventor: Meyers , et al.4734381, Method of making a thin film cadmium telluride solar cell Issued on: 03/29/1988 Inventor: Mitchell4753684, Photovoltaic heterojunction structures Issued on: 06/28/1988 Inventor: Ondris , et al.5105310, DC reactively sputtered antireflection coatings Issued on: 04/14/1992 Inventor: Dickey5248349, Process for making photovoltaic devices and resultant product Issued on: 09/28/1993 Inventor: Foote, et al.5304499Methods of making pn CdTe/CdS thin film solar cells Issued on: 04/19/1994 Inventor: Bonnet, et al. International ClassesH01L 031/18H01L 031/072 H01L 031/075 C23C 014/35 |
