Patent ID: 9722121
Date: 2017-08-01
CPC Classifications: H01L,Y02E,Y02P

Claim:
1. A method for forming and conditioning an elementary lattice structure within a silicon light-to-electricity converter, comprising a silicon crystal-line emitter mass, so as to achieve enhanced light-to-electricity conversion properties when said elementary lattice structure, disposed within said silicon crystalline emitter mass, is illuminated with solar light illumination, comprising the steps of: providing a doped silicon crystalline emitter mass (c-Si) comprising elementary crystalline silicon units (ECSUs), wherein said elementary crystalline silicon units (ECSUs) comprise a multiplicity of silicon atoms comprising at least silicon atoms a,a′,b,b′,c,c′,d,d′; operatively associating a PN junction with said silicon crystalline emitter mass; implanting ions at a predetermined depth within said silicon crystalline emitter mass so as to cause an amorphized silicon (a-Si) layer to be formed at a predetermined depth within said crystalline silicon (c-Si) emitter mass so as to thereby form an upper crystalline silicon (c-Si) mass and a lower crystalline silicon (c-Si) mass and a pair of interfaces defined between said amorphized silicon layer and said lower and upper crystalline silicon masses; removing two of said multiplicity of silicon atoms c,c′ from predetermined ones of said elementary crystalline silicon units (ECSUs) originally comprising said at least silicon atoms a,a′, b,b′, c,c′, d,d′ of said multiplicity of silicon atoms, wherein said silicon atoms a,a′, b,b′, c,c′, d,d′ originally define natural covalent atomic bonds, having first predetermined lengths, between said silicon atoms a,a′, b,b′, c,c′, d,d′, comprising a-a′, b-b′, c-c′, and d-d′, wherein, however, said removal of said two silicon atoms c,c′ from each one of said predetermined elementary crystalline silicon units effectively transforms said crystalline matter disposed inside each one of said elementary crystalline silicon units as a result of the development of a pair of divacancy sites within said predetermined elementary crystalline silicon units such that, as a result of said removal of said two silicon atoms c,c′ from said predetermined elementary crystalline silicon units, second new atomic bonds, a-d and d′-a′, having lengths greater than said first predetermined lengths characteristic of said natural covalent atomic bonds, as well as a third new atomic bond b-b′, having a length greater than said second predetermined lengths of said a-d and d′-a′ bonds, are effectively formed through said pair of divacancy sites such that weakly bonded electrons can be released during collisions with warm/hot electrons leading to an electron multiplication cycle comprising additional electron populations; subjecting said crystalline silicon (c-Si) masses and amorphized silicon (a-Si) layer to annealing temperatures within the range of 500-550° C. which create dilatation forces and a built-in electric field between said amorphized silicon (a-Si) layer and said crystalline silicon (c-Si) masses such that said elementary crystalline silicon units are introduced through interfaces and into transition zones, defined between said crystalline silicon (c-Si) masses and said amorphized silicon (a-Si) layer, from said amorphized silicon (a-Si) layer into said upper and lower crystalline silicon (c-Si) masses and maintained within interface transition zones so as to therefore form upper and lower strained crystalline silicon (<c-Si>) transition zones between said upper and lower crystalline silicon (c-Si) masses and said amorphized silicon (a-Si) layer; subjecting said elementary crystalline silicon units disposed within said upper and lower strained crystalline silicon (<c-Si>) transition zones to tensile forces resulting from said dilatation forces and said electric field so as to transform said elementary crystalline silicon units into elementary nanoscale units called SEGTONS; subjecting said SEGTONS to a second annealing step at a temperature of approximately 350° C. in order to activate said SEGTONS; and illuminating said silicon light-to-electricity converter containing said SEGTONS with solar light illumination comprising energetic photons such that absorption of said light illumination generates warm/hot electrons which exhibit high kinetic energy and which collide and interact with said SEGTONS, thereby effectively generating additional electron populations whereby said light-to-electricity conversion properties are significantly improved.