Photodiodes and nuclear batteries may utilize actinide oxides, such a uranium oxide. An actinide oxide photodiode may include a first actinide oxide layer and a second actinide oxide layer deposited on the first actinide oxide layer. The first actinide oxide layer may be n-doped or p-doped. The second actinide oxide layer may be p-doped when the first actinide oxide layer is n-doped, and the second actinide oxide layer may be n-doped when the first actinide oxide layer is p-doped. The first actinide oxide layer and the second actinide oxide layer may form a p/n junction therebetween. Photodiodes including actinide oxides are better light absorbers, can be used in thinner films, and are more thermally stable than silicon, germanium, and gallium arsenide.

After forming a doped semiconductor layer on a backside of a semiconductor substrate that has a conductivity type opposite a conductivity type of the doped semiconductor layer so as to provide a p-n junction for a photovoltaic cell, transistors are formed in a front side of the semiconductor substrate. The photovoltaic cell is then electrically connected to the transistors from the front side of the semiconductor substrate using through-dielectric (TDV) via structures embedded in the semiconductor substrate.

Manufacture of multi-junction solar cells, and devices thereof, are disclosed. The architectures are also adapted to provide for a more uniform and consistent fabrication of the solar cell structures, leading to improved yields, greater efficiency, and lower costs. Certain solar cells may be from a different manufacturing process and further include one or more compositional gradients of one or more semiconductor elements in one or more semiconductor layers, resulting in a more optimal solar cell device.

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a solar cell from a silicon wafer comprising a step of etching the silicon wafer with specific gas mixtures comprising fluorine, hydrogen fluoride, one or more inert gases and optionally one or more a further gases, to silicon wafers produced using said method as well as to the use of said gas mixtures.

A PIN photodetector includes an n-type semiconductor layer, an n-type semiconductor cap layer, a first plurality of p-type regions located within the n-type semiconductor cap layer and separated from one another by a distance d.sub.1, and an absorber layer located between the n-type semiconductor layer and the n-type semiconductor cap layer including the first plurality of p-type regions. The plurality of p-type regions are electrically connected to one another to provide an electrical response to light incident to the PIN photodetector.

A a semiconductor component (1a, 1b) having a front side and an opposite rear side and also side surfaces, and also at least one emitter (2a, 2b) and at least one base (3a, 3b), wherein a pn junction (4a, 4b) is formed between emitter (2a, 2b) and base (3a, 3b) and the emitter (2a, 2b) extends parallel to the front and/or rear side. At least one side surface is a passivated separating surface (T), at which a separating surface passivation layer (6a, 6b) is arranged, which has stationary charges having a surface charge density at the separating surface (T) with a magnitude of greater than or equal to 10.sup.12 cm-2. A method for singulating a semiconductor component (1a, 1b) having a pn junction is also provided.

Contact holes of solar cells are formed by laser ablation to accommodate various solar cell designs. Use of a laser to form the contact holes is facilitated by replacing films formed on the diffusion regions with a film that has substantially uniform thickness. Contact holes may be formed to deep diffusion regions to increase the laser ablation process margins. The laser configuration may be tailored to form contact holes through dielectric films of varying thicknesses.

Hollow bodies having a silicon-comprising shell, are produced by, in a gas comprising at least one silane of the general formula Si.sub.nH.sub.2n+2−mX.sub.m with n=1 to 4, m=0 to 2n+2 and X=halogen, (a) generating a non-thermal plasma by an AC voltage of frequency f, or operating a light arc, or introducing electromagnetic energy in the infrared region into the gas, giving a resulting phase which (b) is dispersed in a wetting agent and distilled, and then (c) the distillate is contacted at least once with a mixture of at least two of the substances hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid, water, giving a solid residue comprising hollow bodies having a silicon-comprising shell after the conversion reaction of the distillate with the mixture has abated or ended.

An epitaxially grown III-V layer is separated from the growth substrate. The III-V layer can be an inverted lattice matched (ILM) or inverted metamorphic (IMM) solar cell, or a light emitting diode (LED). A sacrificial epitaxial layer is embedded between the GaAs wafer and the III-V layer. The sacrificial layer is damaged by absorbing IR laser radiation. A laser is chosen with the right wavelength, pulse width and power. The radiation is not absorbed by either the GaAs wafer or the III-V layer. No expensive ion implantation or lateral chemical etching of a sacrificial layer is needed. The III-V layer is detached from the growth wafer by propagating a crack through the damaged layer. The active layer is transferred wafer-scale to inexpensive, flexible, organic substrate. The process allows re-using of the wafer to grow new III-V layers, resulting in savings in raw materials and grinding and etching costs.

Foil trim approaches for the foil-based metallization of solar cells and the resulting solar cells are described. For example, a method involves attaching a metal foil sheet to a metallized surface of an underlying supported wafer to provide a unified pairing of the metal foil sheet and the wafer. Subsequent to attaching the metal foil sheet, a portion of the metal foil sheet is laser scribed from above to form a groove in the metal foil sheet. Subsequent to laser scribing the metal foil sheet, the unified pairing of the metal foil sheet and the wafer is rotated to provide the metal sheet below the wafer. Subsequent to the rotating, the unified pairing of the metal foil sheet and the wafer is placed on a chuck with the metal sheet below the wafer. The metal foil sheet is torn at least along the groove to trim the metal foil sheet.