A method of manufacturing an imaging apparatus includes: preparing a substrate comprising a wafer and a silicon layer arranged on the wafer, the wafer including a first semiconductor region made of single crystal silicon with an oxygen concentration not less than 210.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.3 and not greater than 410.sup.17 atoms/cm.sup.3, the silicon layer including a second semiconductor region made of single crystal silicon with an oxygen concentration lower than the oxygen concentration in the first semiconductor region; annealing the substrate in an atmosphere containing oxygen and setting the oxygen concentration in the second semiconductor region within the range not less than 210.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.3 and not greater than 410.sup.17 atoms/cm.sup.3; and forming a photoelectric conversion element in the second semiconductor region after the annealing.

A method for forming a photovoltaic device includes providing a substrate. A layer is deposited to form one or more layers of a photovoltaic stack on the substrate. The depositing of the amorphous layer includes performing a high power flash deposition for depositing a first portion of the layer. A low power deposition is performed for depositing a second portion of the layer.

A method of producing a structure comprising a substrate (11) having at least one integral first face at a first angle relative to a normal from the substrate, at least one second integral second face at a second angle relative to a normal from the substrate; with a cavity in the structure between the first and second faces; the method comprising the steps of: coating a portion (15) of the first face with a first conducting layer; coating a portion (18) of the second face with a second conducting layer; and depositing in the cavity an active material (31) to provide ohmic and rectifying contacts for insertion or extraction of charge from the active material by way of the first and second conducting layers. The active material may be photovoltaic, light emitting or ion conducting.

In some embodiments, a semiconductor biosensor includes a plurality of wells, a plurality of detectors, and processing circuitry. Each well is configured to hold a test sample and to allow the test sample to be irradiated with ultraviolet radiation. The plurality of detectors are configured to capture a spectral response of the test sample irradiated with the ultraviolet radiation. Each well is coupled directly onto a detector, and each detector includes a) a photodiode and b) a planar optical antenna tuned to a particular wavelength. The planar optical antenna is between the photodiode and the well. The processing circuitry is coupled to the plurality of detectors, the processing circuitry being configured to calculate an average spectral response for the plurality of detectors.

A device and method for fabricating a photovoltaic device includes forming a double layer transparent conductive oxide on a transparent substrate. The double layer transparent conductive oxide includes forming a doped electrode layer on the substrate, and forming a buffer layer on the doped electrode layer. The buffer layer includes an undoped or p-type doped intrinsic form of a same material as the doped electrode layer. A light-absorbing semiconductor structure includes a p-type semiconductor layer on the buffer layer, an intrinsic layer and an n-type semiconductor layer.

Techniques are disclosed to enable an energy-collecting touchscreen unit having a thin, substantially transparent cover layer through which a viewing area within the touchscreen unit can be observed while protecting the touchscreen unit from physical damage. The touchscreen unit has a common base layer disposed beneath the cover layer, and it has at least one touch sensor and a photovoltaic surface. The touch sensor and the photovoltaic surface are affixed to opposite faces of the common base layer. The touchscreen unit also includes an electrical interconnection with both the photovoltaic surface and the touch sensor.

A device and method for fabricating a photovoltaic device includes forming a double layer transparent conductive oxide on a transparent substrate. The double layer transparent conductive oxide includes forming a doped electrode layer on the substrate, and forming a buffer layer on the doped electrode layer. The buffer layer includes an undoped or p-type doped intrinsic form of a same material as the doped electrode layer. A light-absorbing semiconductor structure includes a p-type semiconductor layer on the buffer layer, an intrinsic layer and an n-type semiconductor layer.

A novel, low cost method for manufacturing flexible crystalline ultra-thin Si solar cells using previously fabricated inflexible crystalline Si solar cells. A stack of metal layers is coated onto a front side of previously completed inflexible crystalline Si solar cells. The stack serves as a bonding layer as well as an electrically conducting layer between the inflexible solar cell and the carrier substrate. The front side of the coated inflexible Si solar cell is bonded onto the carrier substrate. Back side layers from the starting inflexible solar cell are removed, as is much of the base layer, so that only a thin base layer remains, with the thin base layer and emitter region having a total thickness of between 1 m and 30 m and the final cell having a total thickness of about 10 to about 125 m.

A semiconductor device and a photosensitive device are provided. The semiconductor device includes a substrate and a photosensitive thin film transistor. The photosensitive thin film transistor includes a first metal layer, an insulating layer, a photosensitive semiconductor layer, a photosensitive ohmic contact layer, and a second metal layer. At least one side of the photosensitive ohmic contact layer protrudes from the second metal layer arranged on it, which increases an irradiated area of the photosensitive ohmic contact layer, thereby improving a photo-responsiveness of the photosensitive thin film transistor.

A method for forming a photovoltaic device includes providing a substrate. A layer is deposited to form one or more layers of a photovoltaic stack on the substrate. The depositing of the amorphous layer includes performing a high power flash deposition for depositing a first portion of the layer. A low power deposition is performed for depositing a second portion of the layer.