Patent ID: 9159851
Filing Date: 2015-10-13
Classification: H01L,Y02E,Y02P

Abstract:
1. A photovoltaic cell comprising: a first semiconductor layer configured to absorb a first portion of incident light rays and permit a second portion of incident light rays to pass therethrough; a second semiconductor layer configured to absorb a wavelength range of the second portion of incident light rays, at least one of the first and second semiconductor layers being annealed; and a light scattering interface region formed within one or more of the first and second semiconductor layers at an interface, the light scattering interface region including inclusions configured as one of particulates and voids, the inclusions configured to scatter a wavelength of one of the first and second portions of incident light rays, the inclusions being formed in the one or more of the first and second semiconductor layers during annealing such that the inclusion size is generally equal to the wavelength range of one of the first and second portions of incident light rays; wherein the first semiconductor layer is a CdS layer and the second semiconductor layer is a CdTe layer, the CdTe being annealed such that the light scattering interface region is formed in the CdTe layer adjacent to the CdS layer, the light scattering interface region having voids extends from about 20% to about 50% of the CdTe layer thickness, the first and second semiconductor material layers exhibiting a compressive stress in a plane defined by the first and second semiconductor material layers, and the light scattering interface region forming a lattice that is elongated in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the first and second semiconductor material layers.