SEMITRANSPARENT PHOTOVOLAIC MODULE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME
20250338636 · 2025-10-30
Inventors
Cpc classification
H10F19/37
ELECTRICITY
B32B2255/28
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
Y02E10/50
GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
B32B17/10036
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
H10F71/125
ELECTRICITY
B32B17/10192
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
H10F10/162
ELECTRICITY
H02S20/26
ELECTRICITY
H10F19/33
ELECTRICITY
B32B3/08
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B32B3/02
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B32B17/10935
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
H10F19/807
ELECTRICITY
B32B7/12
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
International classification
H10F19/80
ELECTRICITY
H10F10/162
ELECTRICITY
H10F71/00
ELECTRICITY
H10F19/37
ELECTRICITY
Abstract
A semitransparent photovoltaic module includes a submodule with a first glass layer, a transparent conducting oxide layer, a semiconductor layer, and a metal back contact layer. The submodule further includes a plurality of interconnection scribes extending in a first direction across the submodule and a plurality of light transmission scribes disposed perpendicularly to the plurality of interconnection scribes in a second direction. The module may further include a lamination layer and a second glass layer and have a visible light transmission of about 7% to about 70% and is capable of generating about 60 W to about 120 W of power. In one embodiment, the light transmission scribes are about 0.05 mm to about 1 mm wide, with a pitch of about 1 mm to about 5 mm.
Claims
1. A semitransparent photovoltaic module comprising: at least one submodule having an outer surface and an inner surface and comprising a first glass layer, a transparent conducting oxide layer, a semiconductor layer, and a metal back contact layer, wherein the submodule further comprises a plurality of interconnection scribes extending in a first direction across the submodule and a plurality of light transmission scribes disposed perpendicularly to the plurality of interconnection scribes in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to the first direction; and wherein the plurality of light transmission scribes are disposed through at least part of the semiconductor layer.
2. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 1, wherein the module further comprises a first lamination layer disposed on the inner surface of the at least one submodule and a glass backing layer disposed on an inner surface of the first lamination layer.
3. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor layer is made of CdTe, CdSeTe, CdSe, CdZnTe, CdMgTe, CdHgTe, ZnTe, GaAs, AlGaAs, GaAsP, a-Si, CIGS, perskovite, or combinations thereof.
4. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 3, wherein the semiconductor layer comprises CdTe.
5. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 1, wherein the module has a visible light transmission of about 7% to about 70% and is capable of generating about 60 W to about 120 W of power.
6. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 1, wherein the light transmission scribes are about 0.05 mm to about 1 mm wide.
7. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 6, wherein the plurality of light transmission scribes are disposed about 0.25 mm to about 5.0 mm apart.
8. The semitransparent photovoltaic module of claim 2, wherein the module comprises a plurality of submodules, a second lamination layer, and a glass outer layer, wherein the plurality of submodules are positioned in sequence between an outer surface of the first lamination layer and an inner surface of the second lamination layer.
9. A method of making a semitransparent photovoltaic module, the method comprising: providing at least one submodule having an outer surface and an inner surface, the submodule comprising a first glass layer, a transparent conducting oxide layer, a semiconductor layer, and a metal back contact layer, wherein the submodule further comprises a plurality of interconnection scribes extending in a first direction across the submodule and a plurality of light transmission scribes disposed perpendicularly to the plurality of interconnection scribes in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to the first direction; and wherein the plurality of light transmission scribes are created using a pulsed laser ablation process with a wavelength of about 1064 nm; and wherein the plurality of light transmission scribes are disposed through at least part of the semiconductor layer.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises applying a first lamination layer disposed on the inner surface of the at least one submodule and a glass backing layer disposed on an inner surface of the first lamination layer.
11. The method of claim 9, wherein the semiconductor layer is made of CdTe, CdSeTe, CdSe. CdZnTe, CdMgTe, CdHgTe, ZnTe, GaAs, AlGaAs, GaAsP, a-Si, perskovite, CIGS, or combinations thereof.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein the semiconductor layer comprises CdTe.
13. The method of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises providing a plurality of submodules, a second lamination layer, and a glass outer layer: wherein the plurality of submodules are positioned in sequence between an outer surface of the first lamination layer and an inner surface of the second lamination layer.
14. The method of claim 9, wherein the semitransparent photovoltaic module has a visible light transmission of about 7% to about 70% and is capable of generating about 60 W to about 120 W of power.
15. The method of claim 9, wherein the light transmission scribes are about 0.05 mm to about 1 mm wide, with a pitch of about 1 mm to about 5 mm.
16. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of light transmission scribes are disposed about 0.25 mm to about 5.0 mm apart.
17. A method of preventing power loss in a photovoltaic module due to an isolated electrical shunt, the method comprising: providing a photovoltaic module comprising a plurality of closely-spaced lines of laser ablation, wherein the lines of laser ablation are disposed on the module in a pattern that prevents or inhibits electrical current from flowing from one line to adjacent lines.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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[0022] insulated glass unit:
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] As shown in
[0026] As shown in
[0027] In one embodiment, the opaque submodule 12 includes a glass layer 14, a transparent conducting oxide layer 16, a semiconductor layer 18, and a metal back contact layer 20. In one embodiment the glass layer 14 may be made of soda line glass, but it should be appreciated that any suitable glass material may be used, such as borosilicate glass or yttria-stabilized zirconia. The semiconductor layer 18 may be made of CdTe, CdSeTe, CdSe, CdZnTe, CdMgTe, CdHgTe, ZnTe, GaAs, AlGaAs, GaAsP, amorphous silicon (a-Si), perovskites (such as CaTiO.sub.3), copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), or combinations thereof. In one embodiment, the semiconductor layer is made of CdTe. However, it should be appreciated that the semiconductor layer may be made of any semiconductor material suitable for use in a thin film photovoltaic module.
[0028] In one embodiment, the glass layer 14 may be pre-coated with the transparent conducting oxide layer (TCO) 16 that includes a buffer layer of undoped tin oxide (SnO.sub.2) or other suitable resistive buffer layer. The Semiconductor layer 18 may then be deposited on top of the TCO layer 16 using any known deposition process. In one embodiment, the Semiconductor layer 18 is deposited on the TCO layer 16 using a vertical vapor transport deposition (VVTD) process, such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,337,069, incorporated herein, to form a CdTe coated glass substrate. In one embodiment, the semiconductor layer 18 includes a cadmium sulfide layer that is about 50 nm to about 200 nm thick and a cadmium telluride layer that is about 2000 nm to about 4000 nm thick. In another embodiment the cadmium sulfide layer is about 100 to about 200 nm thick, and the cadmium telluride layer is about 2000 to about 4000 nm thick. In yet another embodiment, the semiconductor layer includes a CdSeTe layer about 100 to 200 nm thick and a CdTe layer 2000 nm to 4000 nm thick. The CdSeTe layer may have a gradient of Se ranging from about 40% near the TCO to 0% where it merges with the CdTe. The coated glass substrate is then sprayed with a liquid cadmium chloride solution using an ultrasonic spray machine. The sprayed coated glass substrate is then baked to form an activated CdTe coated glass substate.
[0029] The activated coated glass substate is then ablated to form a plurality of P1 laser scribes (or isolation scribes), which dictate how the electrons will flow through the CdTe coated glass substrate and to the connecting buss tape, which is applied later in the process. Each P1 scribe is a 30-50 micron wide scribe that ablates through all material to the glass layer 14. as shown in
[0030] The CdTe coated glass substate is then ablated again to form a plurality of P2 laser scribes, each spaced 30-50 microns away from each of the P1 scribes. Each P2 scribe ablates all of the coating materials except for the TCO layer 16. Once filled with a conducting metal, as described below, this scribe will serve as the bridge between the two conductive surfaces, the TCO layer 16 and the metal back contact layer 20.
[0031] The metal back contact layer 20 may include three metals, all of which are applied through the process of sputtering or metallization. In a first embodiment, the first metal is molybdenum, followed by aluminum, and finally chromium. In a second embodiment, the first layer is molybdenum nitride, followed by aluminum, and finally chromium. It should be appreciated that other suitable materials may be used for the metal back contact layer 20, such as gold, or silver, or combinations thereof, and non-metals, such as ZnTe. The metals fill the P2 scribes and connect the metal back contact layer 20 to the TCO layer 16.
[0032] A plurality of P3 scribes are then ablated through the metal back contact layer 20 and are disposed 30-50 microns away from each respective P2 scribe. The P3 scribe or the rear cell isolation scribe, is the last cell scribe needed to allow the scribed cells to work in series, allowing the electrons to flow from cell to cell on the submodule.
[0033] Referring now to
[0034] In one embodiment, the ablation lines P4 are created with a pulsed 1064 nm fiber laser having 30-200 nanosecond pulses and operated at 45 kHz repetition frequency and a power of 12 Watts, which is focused to a spot diameter of about 30 microns. The energy per pulse is about 250 microjoules per pulse and the pulse energy per unit area is about 5 to 10 Joules per square cm. The laser spot may be scanned from the glass side of the submodule with a galvanometer to form the ablation scribe lines P4 with an overall width ranging from 30 microns (0.03 mm) to about 500 microns (0.5 mm), or larger depending on the desired ablation width. The separation (pitch) of the ablation scribe lines P4 may range from 100 microns (0.1 mm) to 5000 microns (5 mm). The preferred pitch will depend on the ablation width of the ablation scribe lines and the desired transparency. In one embodiment the ablation scribe line P4 width is 500 microns (0.5 mm) and the pitch is 2500 microns (2.5 mm) to yield a transparency of 20%.
[0035] In another embodiment, the ablation lines P4 are created with a pulsed 1030 nm fiber laser operated at 1000 KHz repetition frequency with 10 picosecond pulses and a power of 50 Watts, which is focused to a spot diameter of about 15 microns. The energy per pulse is about 20 microjoules per pulse and the pulse energy per unit area is about 0.2 Joules per square cm.
[0036] In other embodiments, the ablation scribe lines P4 may be a plurality of 0.19 mm lines with a pitch of about 1.0 mm (
[0037] Generally, the galvanometer head is translated along the length in the ablation scribe line P4 direction (the narrow or first direction), perpendicular to the interconnect P1, P2, and P3 scribes (which are disposed along a second direction), with the galvanometer scanning the spot parallel to the interconnect scribes (P1, P2, and P3) and perpendicular to the ablation scribe line P4 scan direction (or galvanometer head motion). In one embodiment, the ablation scribe lines P4 run in a first direction along a vertical axis of the submodule 12, in another embodiment, the first direction is along the horizonal axis of the submodule 12.
[0038] In another embodiment, the pulsed laser may have a wavelength of 532nm, 355 nm, or other suitable wavelength, and can be directed at the semiconductor layer 18 through the glass side 14 of the submodule 12. In another embodiment, the pulsed laser may be directed from the metal back contact layer 20, rather than through the glass layer 14. The ablation scribe lines P4 may be made using lines, dots, square, or other suitable patterns.
[0039] Once the ablation scribe lines P4 have been created, the submodule 12 is subjected to a laser edge deletion (LED) process, whereby all of the material around the perimeter of the submodule 12 is removed. In one embodiment, a perimeter of at least 10 mm is created to provide an electrically insulating border between the electrical generating surface and the submodule's 12 most outer edge.
[0040] Once the border is created, the submodule 12 undergoes an annealing process and a conductive buss tape 22 (
[0041] As shown in
[0042] As shown in
[0043] The light transmission through the semitransparent PV window can be adjusted by choosing the width of the galvanometer scan for the ablation scribe lines and the repeat pitch of the ablation scribe. For example, if the pitch of the ablation scribe is chosen as 2 mm and the width of as 0.5 mm, the light transmission will be about 0.5/2.0, or about 25%. So, the ratio of the ablation scribe width to the ablation scribe pitch will determine the transmissibility of the module. Moreover, the power output of the semitransparent window will be proportional to the fractional area of the opaque module. With a light transmission of 25%, as described above, the power output will be about 1.5/2.0, or 75% of the normal opaque module.
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[0045] It has been found that the use of laser ablation removal of material to produce semitransparent PV modules has an important benefit for thin-film PV in addition to being a convenient, precisely controllable, and efficient method to create patterns to allow light to pass through an otherwise opaque module. This added benefit arises from how the ablation scribes can be used to control and guide the flow of electrical current through the panel.
[0046] For example, when the ablation process removes certain portions of either or both of the conductive back contact and the conductive and transparent front contact, light-generated current can be restricted from reaching shunting defects that may be present in the film. If, for example, straight-line ablation scribe lines P4 are used along the length of a photovoltaic window module, current will flow only between the ablation scribe lines P4 and not perpendicular to the ablation scribe lines P4. This can be used to prevent the shunting defect from draining power from the region surrounding the shunt, i.e. an electrical short due to a defect in the module material. The ability to isolate this type of defect can be shown using analysis of electroluminescence emission from thin-film modules.
[0047] Electroluminescence (EL) is a powerful tool to use for diagnostics and quality control of laser-ablated submodule panels and fully laminated, laser-ablated modules. EL reveals spatially resolved dead areas, shunts and heat-affected zones as well as subtle performance variations across a module or submodule that can degrade the power output of the module.
[0048] EL is produced when a cell or module is held in the dark and a forward bias is applied that is slightly greater than open-circuit voltage, as shown in
[0049] The typical operating point for EL is forward bias above open-circuit voltage (VOC) with forward current density similar in magnitude to the short-circuit reverse current density (JSC 25 mA/cm2). For the module images in
[0050]
[0051] As shown in
[0052] However, as shown in
[0053] Thus, ablation scribing limits the harmful effects of shunting (including loss of power generation) that inevitably occur in large-area thin-film devices. Making semitransparent modules through laser ablation may permit use of modules with a higher density of defects than standard opaque modules. This will improve yield, improve power generation, and reduce manufacturing costs.
[0054] Referring now to
[0055] In this embodiment, the outer surfaces 114 of the plurality of submodules 112a, b, and c, may be laminated to the inner surface of a second 3 mm thick monolithic outer glass layer 132, with another lamination layer 130 disposed therebetween. In one embodiment, there may be an amount of space 122a and 122b disposed between each module once they are laminated between or sandwiched between, the outer glass layer 132 and the glass backing layer 128. Generally, each glass layer 128 and 132 will be made of a single sheet of glass or other suitable material, such as those materials described with regard to glass backing layer 28. In one embodiment, each submodule 112a, b, and c, may be about 4 ft2 ft in size, with the overall size of the subassembly 112 being about 4 ft4 ft or 4 ft6 ft or 4 ft8 ft or 4 ft10 ft or 4 ft12 ft, etc.
[0056] To complete the PV IGU, a third inner glass layer 134 may be disposed toward the inside surface of the glass backing layer 128, separated from the glass backing layer 128 by a space 136, which is filled with an amount of argon gas or other suitable medium. In one embodiment, the space 136 is about 12 mm wide.
[0057] Referring now to
[0058] Although the description has been focused on the use of the semitransparent photovoltaic module in a building window application, this module may have many more applications. For example, curved glass modules may be created using the vertical vapor deposition process and a scribing system having an adjustable focus along the z-axis to enable the focal spot to follow the curvature of the glass. This curved module may be used for windshields, windows, and sunroofs of automobiles. The power generated from these solar powered panels may then be converted for use in the automobile's system.
[0059] This written description sets forth the best mode of carrying out the invention and describes the invention so as to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention, by presenting examples of the elements recited in the claims. The detailed descriptions of those elements do not impose limitations that are not recited in the claims, either literally or under the doctrine of equivalents.