A photovoltaic device is described, the device comprising a transparent conducting electrode layer; a back contact layer comprising at least one MXene material; and an active layer, comprising a photovoltaic active material, disposed between the transparent conducting electrode layer and the back contact layer. Also described is a method of producing a photovoltaic device, the method comprising the steps of providing substrate, depositing a transparent conducting electrode over the substrate; depositing an active layer comprising a photovoltaic material over the transparent conducting electrode; and depositing an MXene layer material over the active layer. A method of generating electricity using the disclosed device is also described.

Disclosed is a firing furnace for firing an electrode of a solar cell element, which is provided with: a transfer member, which transfers a substrate having a conductive paste applied thereto; a heating section, which heats the substrate and fires the conductive paste; and a cooling section, which cools the heated substrate. The furnace is also provided with a heating means for heating the transfer member. Specifically, at the time of firing the electrode paste using the wire-type firing furnace, since a wire is fired at a temperature substantially equivalent to the ambient temperature of the heating section, deterioration of yield due to having the electrode damaged by a deposited material of the metal component of the conductive paste is suppressed, said deposited material being deposited on the wire, and the wire-type firing furnace can be continuously used.

A method of fabricating a solar cell is disclosed. The method can include forming a dielectric region on a surface of a solar cell structure and forming a metal layer on the dielectric layer. The method can also include configuring a laser beam with a particular shape and directing the laser beam with the particular shape on the metal layer, where the particular shape allows a contact to be formed between the metal layer and the solar cell structure.

A solar cell can include a silicon semiconductor substrate; an oxide layer on a first surface of the silicon semiconductor substrate; a polysilicon layer on the oxide layer; a diffusion region at a second surface of the silicon semiconductor substrate; a dielectric film on the polysilicon layer; a first electrode connected to the polysilicon layer through the dielectric film; a passivation film on the diffusion region; and a second electrode connected to the diffusion region through the passivation film.

Disclosed is a solar cell including a semiconductor substrate, and a dopant layer disposed over one surface of the semiconductor substrate and having a crystalline structure different from that of the semiconductor substrate, the dopant layer including a dopant. The dopant layer includes a plurality of semiconductor layers stacked one above another in a thickness direction thereof, and an interface layer interposed therebetween. The interface layer is an oxide layer having a higher concentration of oxygen than that in each of the plurality of semiconductor layers.

According to the embodiments provided herein, a photovoltaic device can include an absorber layer. The absorber layer can be doped p-type with a Group V dopant and can have a carrier concentration of the Group V dopant greater than 4×10.sup.15 cm.sup.−3. The absorber layer can include oxygen in a central region of the absorber layer. The absorber layer can include an alkali metal in the central region of the absorber layer. Methods for carrier activation can include exposing an absorber layer to an annealing compound in a reducing environment. The annealing compound can include cadmium chloride and an alkali metal chloride.

A solar battery according to the present embodiment has an electrode, which includes a metal and an adhesive material, formed in a conductive region including a polycrystalline semiconductor layer, and thus, the electrical characteristics of the solar battery may be improved and the manufacturing process thereof may be simplified. More specifically, the solar battery includes a semiconductor substrate, and the conductive region including the polycrystalline semiconductor layer is positioned on one surface of the semiconductor substrate.

A solar cell includes a substrate having a front surface and a back surface opposite to the front surface; a first passivation layer, a second passivation layer and a third passivation layer sequentially formed on the front surface of the substrate and in a direction away from the substrate; where the first passivation layer includes a dielectric material; the second passivation layer includes a first Si.sub.uN.sub.v material, and a value of v/u is 1.3≤v/u≤1.7; and the third passivation layer includes a Si.sub.rO.sub.s material, and a value of s/r is 1.9≤s/r≤3.2; and a tunneling oxide layer and a doped conductive layer sequentially formed on the back surface of the substrate and in a direction away from the back surface; the doped conductive layer and the substrate are doped to have a same conductivity type.

In one aspect, a method includes forming an electrical path between p-type mercury cadmium telluride and a metal layer. The forming of the electrical path includes depositing a layer of polycrystalline p-type silicon directly on to the p-type mercury cadmium telluride and forming the metal layer on the layer of polycrystalline p-type silicon. In another aspect, an apparatus includes an electrical path. The electrical path includes a p-type mercury cadmium telluride layer, a polycrystalline p-type silicon layer in direct contact with the p-type mercury cadmium telluride layer, a metal silicide in direct contact with the polycrystalline p-type silicon layer, and an electrically conductive metal on the metal silicide. In operation, holes, indicative of electrical current on the electrical path, flow from the p-type mercury cadmium telluride layer to the electrically conductive metal.

Provided are a solar cell superfine electrode transfer thin film, manufacturing method and application method thereof. The electrode transfer thin film sequentially includes from bottom to top a substrate, a release layer, a resin layer and a hot melt adhesive layer; the resin layer is formed with electrode trenches therein; the electrode trenches are formed with electrodes therein; superfine conductive electrodes are continuously prepared on a transparent thin film via a roll-to-roll nanoimprinting method, the width of an electrode wire being 2 μm-50 μm, and the width of a typical line being 10 μm-30 μm. Directly attach the superfine electrodes of the hot melt adhesive layer to a solar cell by peeling off the substrate material, and sintering at a high temperature to volatilize the hot melt adhesive layer material while retaining the electrodes, thus the electrodes are integrally transferred, without poor local transfer.