Various particular embodiments include a method for forming a photodetector, including: forming a structure including a barrier layer disposed between a layer of doped silicon (Si) and a layer of germanium (Ge), the barrier layer including a crystallization window; and annealing the structure to convert, via the crystallization window, the Ge to a first composition of silicon germanium (SiGe) and the doped Si to a second composition of SiGe.

A stacked image sensor and a method of manufacturing the same are provided. The stacked image sensor includes a lower photoelectric conversion layer, a micro-lens provided on the lower photoelectric conversion layer, and an upper photoelectric conversion layer provided on the micro-lens. The lower photoelectric conversion layer and the upper photoelectric conversion layer are different types of photoelectric conversion layers.

A conductive paste includes electrically conductive particles, a binder, an organic solvent, a glass powder, and a specific amount of inorganic oxide particles that are at least partially surface-coated with an organophosphorus compound and have a specific average particle size. Solar cell electrodes formed by firing the conductive paste have increased bond strength with a substrate.

The present invention pertains to a semiconductor light-receiving element and a method for manufacturing the same, enabling operation in a wide wavelength bandwidth and achieving fast response and high response efficiency. A PIN type photodiode made by sequentially layering on top of the substrate a Si layer of a first conductivity type, a non-doped Ge layer and a Ge layer of a second conductivity type that is the opposite type of the first conductivity type and a Ge current-blocking mechanism is provided in at least part of the periphery of the PIN type photodiode.

There is provided a semiconductor device including a semiconductor layer that includes an active region, semiconductor elements that are formed using the active region, connection regions that are obtained by metalizing parts of the semiconductor layer in an island shape isolated from the active region, an insulation film that is formed to cover one main surface side of the semiconductor layer, electrodes that are disposed to face the semiconductor elements and the connection regions via the insulation film, and contacts that penetrate through the insulation film to be selectively formed in portions according to necessity among portions that connect the semiconductor elements or the connection regions to the electrodes.

A conductive paste is provided which can form electrodes in crystalline silicon solar cells at low cost while ensuring that the electrodes exhibit low contact resistance with respect to both p-type and n-type impurity diffusion layers. The conductive paste for forming a solar cell electrode includes a silver powder, a glass frit, an additive particle and an organic vehicle, the glass frit having a glass transition point of 150 to 440 C., the additive particle including an alloy material containing 20 to 98 mass % aluminum, the conductive paste including the additive particle in an amount of 2 to 30 parts by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the silver powder.

Methods of fabricating solar cell emitter regions using self-aligned implant and cap, and the resulting solar cells, are described. In an example, a method of fabricating an emitter region of a solar cell involves forming a silicon layer above a substrate. The method also involves implanting, through a stencil mask, dopant impurity atoms in the silicon layer to form implanted regions of the silicon layer with adjacent non-implanted regions. The method also involves forming, through the stencil mask, a capping layer on and substantially in alignment with the implanted regions of the silicon layer. The method also involves removing the non-implanted regions of the silicon layer, wherein the capping layer protects the implanted regions of the silicon layer during the removing. The method also involves annealing the implanted regions of the silicon layer to form doped polycrystalline silicon emitter regions.

A solar cell and a method for manufacturing the same are disclosed. The method for manufacturing the solar cell includes injecting impurities of a second conductive type opposite a first conductive type into an entire first surface of a semiconductor substrate containing impurities of the first conductive type, the semiconductor substrate having the first surface, a side surface, and a second surface opposite the first surface, forming a doping barrier layer on the entire first surface and the entire side surface of the semiconductor substrate, and at an edge portion of the second surface of the semiconductor substrate, injecting the impurities of the first conductive type into the second surface of the semiconductor substrate at which the doping barrier layer is not formed, at a higher concentration than the semiconductor substrate, performing a thermal process on the semiconductor substrate to simultaneously form an emitter region of the second conductive type at the entire first and side surfaces of the semiconductor substrate and a back surface field region of the first conductive type at the second surface of the semiconductor substrate, and removing the doping barrier layer.

A method of forming electrical contacts on a diamond substrate comprises producing a plasma ball using a microwave plasma source in the presence of a mixture of gases. The mixture of gases include a source of a p-type or an n-type dopant. The plasma ball is disposed at a first distance from the diamond substrate. The diamond substrate is maintained at a first temperature. The plasma ball is maintained at the first distance from the diamond substrate for a first time, and a UNCD film, which is doped with at least one of a p-type dopant and an n-type dopant, is disposed on the diamond substrate. The doped UNCD film is patterned to define UNCD electrical contacts on the diamond substrate.

To improve an optical signal to electrical signal of a photodiode (PD) which is part of an integrated circuit, the PD can be modified to reduce noise and improve the gain bandwidth. In some aspects, the absorption region of the PD can utilize a non-rectangular geometry, for example, a clipped tapered geometry which can absorb the optical signal in more linearly than a rectangular geometry. In some aspects, the input optical signal can be split into two or more split optical signals, where each split optical signal is directed toward a different portion of the absorption region. The incident power of the optical signal transmitted to each respective portion of the absorption region can be reduced by dividing the incident power by the number of split optical signals thereby improving the gain and bandwidth saturation of each portion of the absorption region.