A method for forming contacts on a photovoltaic device includes forming a heterojunction cell including a substrate, a passivation layer and a doped layer and forming a transparent conductor on the cell. A patterned barrier layer is formed on the transparent conductor and has openings therein wherein the transparent conductor is exposed through the openings in the barrier layer. A conductive contact is grown through the openings in the patterned barrier layer by a selective plating process.

In one embodiment, harmful solar cell polarization is prevented or minimized by providing a conductive path that bleeds charge from a front side of a solar cell to the bulk of a wafer. The conductive path may include patterned holes in a dielectric passivation layer, a conductive anti-reflective coating, or layers of conductive material formed on the top or bottom surface of an anti-reflective coating, for example. Harmful solar cell polarization may also be prevented by biasing a region of a solar cell module on the front side of the solar cell.

A method for providing a textured layer in an optoelectronic device is disclosed. The method includes depositing a template layer on a first layer. The template layer has significant inhomogeneity either in thickness or in composition, or both, including the possibility of forming one or more islands to provide at least one textured surface of the island layer. The method also includes exposing the template layer and the first layer to an etching process to create or alter at least one textured surface. The altered at least one textured surface is operative to cause scattering of light.

Two gate electrodes are provided on upper and lower sides of an oxide semiconductor active layer through respective insulating films. In addition, a first read-out electrode and a second read-out electrode are provided on right and left sides of the oxide semiconductor active layer. In the optical sensor element, in a case where a voltage is applied to each gate electrode, a potential difference occurs between the first read-out electrode and the second read-out electrode, and intensity of irradiation light is detected based on a current that flows between the read-out electrodes.

A transparent electrode using an amorphous alloy is provided. The transparent electrode includes a flexible substrate and an amorphous alloy layer configured to have conductivity and to be formed on the flexible substrate so as to have a plurality of voids.

A solid-state imaging device includes a substrate and a photoelectric conversion region. The substrate has a charge accumulation region. The photoelectric conversion region is provided on the substrate. The photoelectric conversion region is configured to generate signal charges to be accumulated in the charge accumulation region. The photoelectric conversion region comprises a material that is not transparent.

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.

Provided are a conductive layer and a method of manufacturing the same. The conductive layer is formed without, so called, a high temperature process but has suitable crystallinity, excellent transparency and excellent resistance characteristic, and the method of manufacturing the same is also provided.

A solar cell includes: a semiconductor substrate having a light receiving surface and a back surface; a first semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type on the back surface; a second semiconductor layer of the second conductivity type on the back surface; a first electrode electrically connected to the first semiconductor layer; and an insulating layer for electrically insulating the first semiconductor layer and the second semiconductor layer from each other in a region in which an edge of the first semiconductor layer and an edge of second semiconductor layer overlap. The first electrode includes a first transparent electrode layer and a first collection electrode layer on the first transparent electrode layer. The first transparent electrode layer is separated into a primary electrode layer that is on the first semiconductor layer and a separated electrode layer that is on the second semiconductor layer in the region.

A light receiving device includes: a photoelectric converter including a photodiode and a first pixel electrode disposed on a lower surface of the photodiode; a scanning circuit connected to the first pixel electrode; an electrode pad disposed on a periphery of the scanning circuit; a transparent conductive film extending from an upper surface of the photodiode to the electrode pad, the transparent conductive film having an inclination relative to the upper surface of the photodiode, between the photodiode and the electrode pad; and a sealing resin filled in a space between the photoelectric converter and the scanning circuit, and in a space under the transparent conductive film around the photoelectric converter.