Approaches for foil-based metallization of solar cells and the resulting solar cells are described. For example, a method of fabricating a solar cell involves locating a metal foil above a plurality of alternating N-type and P-type semiconductor regions disposed in or above a substrate. The method also involves laser welding the metal foil to the alternating N-type and P-type semiconductor regions. The method also involves patterning the metal foil by laser ablating through at least a portion of the metal foil at regions in alignment with locations between the alternating N-type and P-type semiconductor regions. The laser welding and the patterning are performed at the same time.

Provided are a method for local structuring of a silicon layer, which method comprises a step of local modification of the etching resistance within said silicon layer and a subsequent step of removing unmodified regions of said silicon layer by etching and applications of this method for the production of solar cells.

The present description concerns a support (54) for semiconductor substrates (26) comprising an assembly of trays (58A, 58B, 58C, 58D) having the semiconductor substrates resting thereon. Each tray is made of an electrically-conductive material and has at least one substantially vertical surface having locations arranged in at least two horizontally-oriented rows and two vertically-oriented columns. Each location receives a semiconductor substrate oriented with an inclination relative to a vertical direction varying from 1° to 10°. Each tray comprises, at each location, a recess or a cavity covered with the substrate (56). The trays of each pair of trays facing each other are separated by electrically-insulating spacers (60).

Discussed is a solar cell including a single crystalline silicon substrate, a polycrystalline silicon layer on a back surface and side surfaces of the single crystalline silicon substrate, a diffusion region on a front surface of the single crystalline silicon substrate, a front passivation layer on the diffusion region, a back passivation layer on the polycrystalline silicon layer, a first electrode connected to the diffusion region through the front passivation layer, and a second electrode connected to the polycrystalline silicon layer through the back passivation layer, wherein the side surfaces of the single crystalline silicon substrate includes a first portion without the polycrystalline silicon layer and a second portion with the polycrystalline silicon layer.

A method for manufacturing a solar cell, includes providing a silicon substrate, forming an oxide layer on a first surface of the silicon substrate, forming a doped polycrystalline silicon layer on the oxide layer, forming a passivation layer on the doped polycrystalline silicon layer, printing a metal paste on the passivation layer, and forming a metal contact connected to the doped polycrystalline silicon layer by firing the metal paste to penetrate the passivation layer.

Approaches for foil-based metallization of solar cells and the resulting solar cells are described. For example, a method of fabricating a solar cell involves locating a metal foil above a plurality of alternating N-type and P-type semiconductor regions disposed in or above a substrate. The method also involves laser welding the metal foil to the alternating N-type and P-type semiconductor regions. The method also involves patterning the metal foil by laser ablating through at least a portion of the metal foil at regions in alignment with locations between the alternating N-type and P-type semiconductor regions. The laser welding and the patterning are performed at the same time.

Disclosed is a solar cell including a semiconductor substrate, and a dopant layer disposed over one surface of the semiconductor substrate and having a crystalline structure different from that of the semiconductor substrate, the dopant layer including a dopant. The dopant layer includes a plurality of semiconductor layers stacked one above another in a thickness direction thereof, and an interface layer interposed therebetween. The interface layer is an oxide layer having a higher concentration of oxygen than that in each of the plurality of semiconductor layers.

A solar cell according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a first passivation layer including a first aluminum oxide layer positioned on a first conductivity-type region composed of a polycrystalline silicon layer having an n-type conductivity and having hydrogen, and a first dielectric layer positioned on the first aluminum oxide layer and including a material different from the first aluminum oxide layer.

Method and structural embodiments are described which provide an integrated structure using polysilicon material having different optical properties in different regions of the structure.

Methods of fabricating solar cell emitter regions using self-aligned implant and cap, and the resulting solar cells, are described. In an example, a method of fabricating an emitter region of a solar cell involves forming a silicon layer above a substrate. The method also involves implanting, through a stencil mask, dopant impurity atoms in the silicon layer to form implanted regions of the silicon layer with adjacent non-implanted regions. The method also involves forming, through the stencil mask, a capping layer on and substantially in alignment with the implanted regions of the silicon layer. The method also involves removing the non-implanted regions of the silicon layer, wherein the capping layer protects the implanted regions of the silicon layer during the removing. The method also involves annealing the implanted regions of the silicon layer to form doped polycrystalline silicon emitter regions.