Improved methods and apparatus for forming thin film layers of chalcogenide on a substrate web. According to the present teachings, a feedback control system may be employed to measure one or more properties of the web and/or the chalcogenide layer, and to adjust one or more parameters of the system or buffer layer deposition method in response to the measurement.

A method for producing a P-N junction in a thin film photovoltaic cell comprising a deposition step in which are carried out successively: a layer of precursors of a photovoltaic material of type P or N, a barrier layer and a layer of precursors of a semiconducting material of type N or P, this deposition step being followed by an annealing step carried out with a supply of S and/or Se, this annealing step leading to the formation of an absorbing layer of the type P or N and of a buffer layer of type N or P and of a P-N junction at the interface between said layers.

Disclosed are a solar cell and a method of fabricating the solar cell. The solar cell includes a back electrode layer; a light absorbing layer on the back electrode layer; and a buffer layer on the light absorbing layer, wherein the buffer layer includes a first buffer layer, a second buffer layer on the first buffer layer and a third buffer layer on the second buffer layer, and wherein the first buffer layer includes a group I-VI compound. A method of fabricating a solar cell includes the steps of: forming a back electrode layer on a substrate; forming a light absorbing layer on the back electrode layer; forming a second buffer layer on the light absorbing layer including selenium; and forming a third buffer layer including sulfide on the second buffer layer.

Sodium-containing aluminosilicate and boroaluminosilicate glasses are described herein. The glasses can be used as substrates for photovoltaic devices, for example, thin film photovoltaic devices such as CIGS photovoltaic devices. These glasses can be characterized as having strain points 540 C., thermal expansion coefficient of from 6.5 to 9.5 ppm/ C., as well as liquidus viscosities in excess of 50,000 poise. As such they are ideally suited for being formed into sheet by the fusion process.

A method of fabricating an Ag(Cu)InGaSe (A(C)IGS) based thin film using SeAg.sub.2Se core-shell nanoparticles, an A(C)IGS based thin film fabricated by the method, and a tandem solar cell having the A(C)IGS thin film are disclosed. More particularly, a method of fabricating a densified Ag(Cu)InGaSe (A(C)IGS) based thin film by non-vacuum coating a substrate with a slurry containing SeAg.sub.2Se core-shell nanoparticles, an A(C)IGS based thin film fabricated by the method, and a tandem solar cell including the A(C)IGS based thin film are disclosed. According to the present invention, an A(C)IGS based thin film including Ag is manufactured by applying SeAg.sub.2Se core-shell nanoparticles in a process of manufacturing a (C)IGS thin film, thereby providing an A(C)IGS based thin film having a wide band gap.

A method for depositing one or more thin-film layers on a flexible polyimide substrate having opposing front and back outer surfaces includes the following steps: (a) heating the flexible polyimide substrate such that a temperature of the front outer surface of the flexible polyimide substrate is higher than a temperature of the back outer surface of the flexible polyimide substrate, and (b) depositing the one or more thin-film layers on the front outer surface of the flexible polyimide substrate. A deposition zone for executing the method includes (a) one of more physical vapor deposition sources adapted to deposit one or more metallic materials on the front outer surface of the substrate, and (b) one or more radiant zone boundary heaters.

Photovoltaic cells, photovoltaic devices, and methods of fabrication are provided. The photovoltaic cells include a transparent substrate to allow light to enter the photovoltaic cell through the substrate, and a light absorption layer associated with the substrate. The light absorption layer has opposite first and second surfaces, with the first surface being closer to the transparent substrate than the second surface. A passivation layer is disposed over the second surface of the light absorption layer, and a plurality of first discrete contacts and a plurality of second discrete contacts are provided within the passivation layer to facilitate electrical coupling to the light absorption layer. A first electrode and a second electrode are disposed over the passivation layer to contact the plurality of first discrete contacts and the plurality of second discrete contacts, respectively. The first and second electrodes include a photon-reflective material.

Provided are a water decomposition apparatus and a water decomposition method that can maintain high gas generation efficiency even in an early stage of light irradiation and even in a case where time has elapsed and that can recover the gas generation amount of hydrogen gas or the like, can generate hydrogen gas or the like stably for a long time on an average, and can increase the integrated amount of generation of hydrogen for a long time, even in a case where time has elapsed and the gas generation amount of hydrogen gas or the like has decreased.

A solar cell includes a metal layer and a chalcopyrite compound semiconductor layer in this order on a polyimide film. A manufacturing method according to the present invention includes the following steps in the order: cast applying a polyimide precursor solution onto a support base containing an alkali metal; imidizing the polyimide precursor by heating to form a stacked body including a polyimide film on the support base; forming a metal layer on the polyimide film of the stacked body; and forming a chalcopyrite compound semiconductor layer on the metal layer.

A photoelectric conversion device includes a semiconductor substrate, an insulating layer provided on the semiconductor substrate, an electrode provided on the insulating layer, a photoelectric conversion film provided on the electrode for converting received light to charges, a line connected between the electrode and the semiconductor substrate, a first planar electrode provided in the insulating layer and connected to the electrode, and a second planar electrode provided in the insulating layer between the first planar electrode and the semiconductor substrate.