An example Geiger mode avalanche photodiode includes a first semiconductor alloy forming a compositionally graded gain region configured to form a conduction band having free electrons, a valence band having free holes, and a bandgap between the valence band and the conduction band that varies in size across the graded gain region; a second semiconductor alloy forming an absorber region; and a semiconductor substrate.

Systems and methods for the conversion of energy of high-energy photons into electricity which utilize a series of materials with differing atomic charges to take advantage of the emission of a large multiplicity of electrons by a single high-energy photon via a cascade of Auger electron emissions. In one embodiment, a high-energy photon converter preferably includes a linearly layered nanometric-scaled wafer made up of layers of a first material sandwiched between layers of a second material having an atomic charge number differing from the atomic charge number of the first material. In other embodiments, the nanometric-scaled layers are configured in a tubular or shell-like configuration and/or include layers of a third insulator material.

Various embodiment include optical and optoelectronic devices and methods of making same. Under one aspect, an optical device includes an integrated circuit having an array of conductive regions, and an optically sensitive material over at least a portion of the integrated circuit and in electrical communication with at least one conductive region of the array of conductive regions. Under another aspect, a film includes a network of fused nanocrystals, the nanocrystals having a core and an outer surface, wherein the core of at least a portion of the fused nanocrystals is in direct physical contact and electrical communication with the core of at least one adjacent fused nanocrystal, and wherein the film has substantially no defect states in the regions where the cores of the nanocrystals are fused. Additional devices and methods are described.

Channel stop sections formed by multiple times of impurity ion implanting processes. Four-layer impurity regions are formed across the depth of a semiconductor substrate (across the depth of the bulk), so that a P-type impurity region is formed deep in the semiconductor substrate; thus, incorrect movement of electric charges is prevented. Other four-layer impurity regions of another channel stop section are decreased in width step by step across the depth of the substrate, so that the reduction of a charge storage region of a light receiving section due to the dispersion of P-type impurity in the channel stop section is prevented in the depth of the substrate.

The present disclosure provides an image sensor semiconductor device. The semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate having a first type of dopant; a semiconductor layer having a second type of dopant different from the first type of dopant and disposed on the semiconductor substrate; a photo-sensitive structure formed in the semiconductor layer; a multi-layer interconnect (MLI) structure disposed on the semiconductor layer; a color filter disposed on the MLI structure and disposed above the photo-sensitive structure; and a microlens disposed over the color filter and disposed above the photo-sensitive structure.

A layer system (1) for thin-film solar cells (100), comprising an absorber layer (4), which contains a chalcogenide compound semiconductor, and a buffer layer (5), which is arranged on the absorber layer (4), wherein the buffer layer (5) has a semiconductor material of the formula A.sub.xIn.sub.yS.sub.z, where A is potassium (K) and/or cesium (Cs), with 0.015x/(x+y+z)0.25 and 0.30y/(y+z)0.45.

An optoelectronic device that includes a germanium containing buffer layer atop a silicon containing substrate, and a first distributed Bragg reflector stack of III-V semiconductor material layers on the buffer layer. The optoelectronic device further includes an active layer of III-V semiconductor material present on the first distributed Bragg reflector stack, wherein a difference in lattice dimension between the active layer and the first distributed brag reflector stack induces a strain in the active layer. A second distributed Bragg reflector stack of III-V semiconductor material layers having a may be present on the active layer.

The disclosure provides a multi-junction solar cell structure and the manufacturing method thereof, comprising a first photovoltaic structure and a second photovoltaic structure; wherein at least one of the first photovoltaic structure and the second photovoltaic structure comprises a discontinuous photoelectric converting structure.

Solar cells with doped groove regions separated by ridges and methods of fabricating solar cells are described. In an example, a solar cell includes a substrate having a surface with a plurality of grooves and ridges. A first doped region of a first conductivity type is disposed in a first of the grooves. A second doped region of a second conductivity type, opposite the first conductivity type, is disposed in a second of the grooves. The first and second grooves are separated by one of the ridges.

Methods of fabricating solar cell emitter regions using silicon nano-particles and the resulting solar cells are described. In an example, a method of fabricating an emitter region of a solar cell includes forming a region of doped silicon nano-particles above a dielectric layer disposed above a surface of a substrate of the solar cell. A layer of silicon is formed on the region of doped silicon nano-particles. At least a portion of the layer of silicon is mixed with at least a portion of the region of doped silicon nano-particles to form a doped polycrystalline silicon layer disposed on the dielectric layer.