Composite making regions are provided. These masking regions can include layers or other areas of different transparency where a first region has a first transparency and a second region has a different transparency. Masking regions can be positioned between adjacent photovoltaic cells of photovoltaic arrays.

A photovoltaic device and method include a substrate, a conductive layer formed on the substrate and an absorber layer formed on the conductive layer from a Cu—Zn—Sn containing chalcogenide material. An emitter layer is formed on the absorber layer and a buffer layer is formed on the emitter layer including an atomic layer deposition (ALD) layer. A transparent conductor layer is formed on the buffer layer.

A solar cell module is disclosed including, in sequence from a light-receiving surface side, a surface glass layer having a thickness of 0.4 mm or more and 1.6 mm or less, a first sealing layer, cells, a second sealing layer, and a back protective layer, wherein the back protective layer comprises, in sequence from a side closer to the second sealing layer, a first resin sheet layer having a flexural modulus of 1500 MPa or more and 5000 MPa or less, a second resin layer having a maximum bending load of 8N/10 mm or more and 100N/10 mm or less, wherein the maximum bending load is measured by a method in accordance with a bending test (JIS K7171) except that only the span between supports is changed to 48 mm, and a third resin sheet layer having a flexural modulus of 1500 MPa or more and 5000 MPa or less.

Disclosed is a solar cell. The solar cell includes a semiconductor substrate, conductivity-type regions located in or on the semiconductor substrate, electrodes conductively connected to the conductivity-type regions, and insulating films located on at least one of opposite surfaces of the semiconductor substrate, and including a first film and a second film located on the first film, the second film has a higher carbon content than that of the first film, a refractive index of the second film is equal to or less than a refractive index of the first film, and an extinction coefficient of the second film is equal to or greater than an extinction coefficient of the first film.

A polymer comprising

##STR00001## wherein m+n=1.

A photovoltaic device includes: a semiconductor substrate stretching in a first direction and a second direction that intersects the first direction; and a first amorphous semiconductor film and a second amorphous semiconductor film both provided on the semiconductor substrate. The second amorphous semiconductor film has a differ conductivity type from the first amorphous semiconductor film. The first amorphous semiconductor film and the second amorphous semiconductor film are divided into a plurality of sections in the first direction and the second direction.

Methods of fabricating solar cells having junctions retracted from cleaved edges, and the resulting solar cells, are described. In an example, a solar cell includes a substrate having a light-receiving surface, a back surface, and sidewalls. An emitter region is in the substrate at the light-receiving surface of the substrate. The emitter region has sidewalls laterally retracted from the sidewalls of the substrate. A passivation layer is on the sidewalls of the emitter region.

An electrical device includes an aluminum nitride passivation layer for a mercury cadmium telluride (Hg.sub.1-xCd.sub.xTe) (MCT) semiconductor layer of the device. The AlN passivation layer may be an un-textured amorphous-to-polycrystalline film that is deposited onto the surface of the MCT in its as-grown state, or overlying the MCT after the MCT surface has been pre-treated or partially passivated, in this way fully passivating the MCT. The AlN passivation layer may have a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) that closely matches the CTE of the MCT layer, thereby reducing strain at an interface to the MCT. The AlN passivation layer may be formed with a neutral inherent (residual) stress, provide mechanical rigidity, and chemical resistance to protect the MCT.

Reconfigurable PV panels can have features that include cut lines for separating full panels into smaller subpanels, connector ribbons for assembling several reconfigurable PV panels into a one-dimensional or two-dimensional array and can be stacked upon each other and unstacked by rotating them about a shared connection.

A solar cell and a photovoltaic module including the same are provided. The solar cell includes a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite to each other; a first passivation stack disposed on the first surface and including a first oxygen-rich dielectric layer, a first silicon-rich dielectric layer, a second oxygen-rich dielectric layer, and a second silicon-rich dielectric layer that are sequentially disposed in a direction away from the first surface, wherein an atomic fraction of oxygen in the first oxygen-rich dielectric layer is less than an atomic fraction of oxygen in the second oxygen-rich dielectric layer; a tunneling oxide layer disposed on the second surface; a doped conductive layer disposed on a surface of the tunneling oxide layer; and a second passivation layer disposed on a surface of the doped conductive layer.