Methods of making pn CdTe/CdS thin film solar cells

US5304499A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Battelle Institute e.V. · DE

Inventors

• Dieter Bonnet · Friedrichsdorf, DE
• Beate Henrichs · Eschborn, DE
• Karlheinz Jager · Kronberg, DE
• Hilmar Richter · Florstadt, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 28, 1992
• Grant date: Apr 19, 1994
• Expiry date: Sep 28, 2012

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10S438/967

Abstract

A method of making pn CdTe/CdS thin film solar cells, in which a transparent TCO layer is deposited as a front contact on a transparent substrate in the form of inexpensive soda-lime glass, and is preferably provided with an ultra-thin indium layer, which is in turn coated with the CdS layer, wherein the thus coated substrate is brought to the CdTe coating at a temperature between 480.degree. C. and 520.degree. C., which is maintained during the ensuing rapid CdTe deposition using the close-spaced sublimation method with a preferred rate of deposition of 5 to 15 .mu.m/min in an inert atmosphere. The indium layer dissolves during this deposition and effects the necessary n-doping of the CdS layer, without an additional method step. Solar cells can be made in this way with high efficiency in an inexpensive method, suitable for mass production.