A functionalized glass device, such as a microchannel plate, includes a glass substrate having a chemistry including an ionic species that may diffuse toward a surface, and a functional layer supported by the glass substrate and having a functional characteristic that may be undesirably altered by introduction of the ionic species during operation of the device. An ion barrier layer is disposed between the surface of the glass substrate and the functional layer, the ion barrier layer being substantially of a metal oxide material effective to limit the diffusion of the ionic species into the functional layer.

A superlattice structure for a thin film solar cell includes superimposed layers of nanocrystals and is configured to generate a flow of electrons across the layers when it is irradiated by a solar radiation. Each of the layers includes an array of nanocrystals which have substantially the same size and shape and the nanocrystals of each of the layers have different size and/or different shape with respect to the nanocrystals of the other layers. The layers are sorted in such an order that the superlattice structure is anisotropic. A thin film solar cell having the superlattice structure and a method for making the superlattice structure is related.

An epitaxial structure of a nonpolar AlGaN-based deep-ultraviolet (DUV) photoelectric detector and a preparation method thereof are provided. The epitaxial structure of the nonpolar AlGaN-based DUV photoelectric detector includes a nonpolar AlN buffer layer, a nonpolar Al.sub.0.15Ga.sub.0.85N buffer layer, and a nonpolar Al.sub.0.7Ga.sub.0.3N epitaxial layer that are sequentially grown on a LaAlO.sub.3 substrate. The LaAlO.sub.3 substrate takes a (100) plane as an epitaxial plane, and AlN[11-20] as an epitaxial growth direction. With the LaAlO.sub.3 substrate, the epitaxial structure reduces dislocations and stresses between the substrate and the epitaxial buffer layer. By designing two AlGaN epitaxial buffer layers with different components, the epitaxial structure reduces a dislocation density and a surface roughness of the nonpolar AlGaN epitaxial layer, further accelerates photoresponse and detectivity of the detector, and enhances overall performance of the nonpolar AlGaN-based DUV photoelectric detector.

An electromagnetic radiation detectors includes anti-reflective epitaxial structures incorporated into an epitaxial stack of the electromagnetic radiation detector. An anti-reflective structures as described herein are grown between (and thereby connect) two lattice-matched epitaxial layers that have different refractive indices. The anti-reflective structure reduces Fresnel reflections that would otherwise occur if the two epitaxial layers were directly connected.

A method includes forming, on a substrate by performing physical vapor deposition in vacuum, an absorber layer including copper (Cu), indium (In), gallium (Ga) and selenium (Se), forming a stack including the substrate and an oxygen-annealed absorber layer by performing in-situ oxygen annealing of the absorber layer to improve quantum efficiency of the image sensor by passivating selenium vacancies due to dangling bonds, and forming a cap layer over the oxygen-annealed absorber layer by performing physical vapor deposition in vacuum. The cap layer includes at least one of: Ga.sub.2O.sub.3.Math.Sn, ZnS, CdS, CdSe, ZnO, ZnSe, ZnIn.sub.2Se.sub.4, CuGaS.sub.2, In.sub.2S.sub.3, MgO, or Zn.sub.0.8Mg.sub.0.2O.

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.

Methods are provided for fabricating photovoltaic cell contacts, which include: providing a block copolymer layer above an electrical contact layer of the photovoltaic cell, the block copolymer layer being self-assembled by phase segregation to include multiple structures of a first polymer material surrounded, at least in part, by a second polymer material; selectively etching the block copolymer layer to remove the multiple structures, forming holes in the block copolymer layer; and using the holes in the block copolymer layer to facilitate providing electrical contacts between a light absorption layer of the photovoltaic cell and the electrical contact layer. For instance, the holes in the copolymer layer may be used in etching a passivation layer over the electrical contact layer to form nano-sized contact openings in the passivation layer to the contact layer. Once provided, the cell's light absorption material forms contacts extending through the contact openings in the passivation layer.

The invention relates in particular to a method for producing subsequent patterns in an underlying layer (120), the method comprising at least one step of producing prior patterns in a carbon imprintable layer (110) on top of the underlying layer (120), the production of the prior patterns involving nanoimprinting of the imprintable layer (110) and leave in place a continuous layer formed by the imprintable layer (110) and covering the underlying layer (120), characterized in that it comprises the following step: at least one step of modifying the underlying layer (120) via ion implantation (421) in the underlying layer (120), the implantation (421) being carried out through the imprintable layer (110) comprising the subsequent patterns, the parameters of the implantation (421) being chosen in such a way as to form, in the underlying layer (120), implanted zones (122) and non-implanted zones, the non-Implanted zones defining the subsequent patterns and having a geometry that is dependent on the prior patterns.

A method for producing a semiconductor layer sequence is disclosed. In an embodiment the includes growing a first nitridic semiconductor layer at the growth side of a growth substrate, growing a second nitridic semiconductor layer having at least one opening on the first nitridic semiconductor layer, removing at least pail of the first nitridic semiconductor layer through the at least one opening in the second nitridic semiconductor layer, growing a third nitridic semiconductor layer on the second nitridic semiconductor layer, wherein the third nitridic semiconductor layer covers the at least one opening at least in places in such a way that at least one cavity free of a semiconductor material is present between the growth substrate and a subsequent semiconductor layers and removing the growth substrate.

A photodetector includes an insulating layer on a substrate, a first graphene layer on the insulating layer, a 2-dimensional (2D) material layer on the first graphene layer, a second graphene layer on the 2D material layer, a first electrode on the first graphene layer, and a second electrode on the second graphene layer. The 2D material layer includes a barrier layer and a light absorption layer. The barrier layer has a larger bandgap than the light absorption layer.