Patent ID: 8039292

Claim:
A method of forming an electrode grid on a photovoltaic semiconductor substrate, comprising: providing a photovoltare semiconductor substrate having first and second opposite sides; forming a monolayer of nanospheres, in a nanospheres colloid, on a surface of only one of the first and second sides of said substrate; trimming the nanospheres to a desired size depositing a layer of a metal on the substrate and the nanospheres to form a metallic layer on the substrate, around said nanospheres; and removing said nanospheres from the metallic layer to form the metallic layer into an electrode grid defining a multitude of holes on the substrate and electrically connected thereto; wherein said multitude of holes have circular shapes with diameters between 100 and 1000 nms, said holes form a periodic pattern in said electrode grid, and said pattern repeats with a period between 200 nms and 50 μms; and wherein the shape, size and pattern of the holes of the electrode grid provide the electrode grid with greater than 80% transmission of light through the electrode grid.