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Apparatus for forming thin-film, large area solar cells having a relatively high light-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency and characterized in that the cell comprises a p-n-type heterojunction formed of: (i) a first semiconductor layer comprising a photovoltaic active material selected from

Apparatus for forming thin-film, large area solar cells having a relatively high light-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency and characterized in that the cell comprises a p-n-type heterojunction formed of: (i) a first semiconductor layer comprising a photovoltaic active material selected from the class of I-III-VI2 chalcopyrite ternary materials which is vacuum deposited in a thin “composition-graded”layer ranging from on the order of about 2.5 microns to about 5.0 microns (2.5 mm

대표청구항 ▼

Apparatus for forming a photovoltaic light-to-electrical energy transducer of the type comprising a thin-film, A-B-type heterojunction formed on a substrate from a first ternary semiconductor material and a second semiconductor material, comprising, in combination: (a) first means for forming a low-

Apparatus for forming a photovoltaic light-to-electrical energy transducer of the type comprising a thin-film, A-B-type heterojunction formed on a substrate from a first ternary semiconductor material and a second semiconductor material, comprising, in combination: (a) first means for forming a low-resistivity base metal contact on the substrate; (b) second means for forming a transient A-B-type, thin-film homojunction on the base metal contact by simultaneous elemental evaporation of the constituent elements of the ternary semiconductor material, said second means including: (i) means for monitoring the ratio of two of the constituent metallic elements of the ternary semiconductor material being evaporatively formed on the base metal contact; (ii) means for establishing an initial ratio of the two constituent metallic elements being monitored so that the evaporation stream of elements being deposited on the base metal contact is slightly enriched by a slight excess of one metallic elemental constituent as compared to the stoichiometric condition of the ternary semiconductor material so as to permit formation of a first region of low resistivity semiconductor material on the base metal contact; and, (iii) means for adjusting the ratio of the two constituent elements being monitored during simultaneous elemental evaporation thereof so that the evaporative stream of elements being deposited on the first region of low resistivity semiconductor material contains a slight deficiency of the one metallic elemental constituent as compared to the stoichiometric condition of the ternary semiconductor material so as to permit formation of a second region of relatively high-resistivity transient semiconductor material on the first region of low resistivity semiconductor material, thereby forming a transient A-B-type homojunction; and, (c) third means for forming a low resistivity, thin-film layer of said second semiconductor material on the transient A-B-type homojunction with such layer in face-to-face contact with the second region of the transient homojunction and having a p-type or n-type state corresponding to the transient state of the high resistivity region; so that upon elemental interdiffusion of the elemental constituents formed on the substrate by said second and third means, the second region of relatively high resistivity transient semiconductor material is permitted to evolve into a relatively high resistivity region of semiconductor material having a p-type or n-type state corresponding to the state of the first region of low resistivity semiconductor material to thereby form a thin-film, A-B-type, heterojunction.