Patent · US Expired

Technique and apparatus for depositing thin layers of semiconductors for solar cell fabrication

US7374963B2 · kind B2 · utility

33Cited by
12References
35Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMar 15, 2005
Grant dateMay 20, 2008
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 3, 2025

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY02E10/541
  • WIPO fieldSemiconductors
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

The present invention advantageously provides for, in different embodiments, low-cost deposition techniques to form high-quality, dense, well-adhering Group IBIIIAVIA compound thin films with macro-scale as well as micro-scale compositional uniformities. In one embodiment, there is provided a method of growing a Group IBIIIAVIA semiconductor layer on a base, and includes the steps of depositing on the base a film of Group IB material and at least one layer of Group IIIA material, intermixing the film of Group IB material and the at least one layer of Group IIIA material to form an intermixed layer, and forming over the intermixed layer a metallic film comprising at least one of a Group IIIA material sub-layer and a Group IB material sub-layer. Other embodiments are also described.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.