Collector grid and interconnect structures for photovoltaic arrays and modules

An article combining two photovoltaic cells and an interconnection component wherein,

• each of said cells has a downward facing conductive bottom surface and an upward facing top light incident surface,
• said interconnection component comprises a substrate having a sheetlike form, whereby said substrate has length, width and thickness and wherein the length and width are greater than thickness,
• said substrate length and width define outer boundaries of said substrate,
• said substrate further has an upward facing top side and a downward facing bottom side,
• a first portion of said substrate comprises one or more polymeric layers, a first of said one or more layers being a structural polymer selected to supply support to said substrate,
• said first portion overlays a preponderance of a first cell such that the downward facing bottom substrate side faces said top light incident surface of said first cell,
• a second portion of said substrate is positioned beneath a second of said cells such that the upward facing top substrate side faces the conductive bottom surface of said second cell,
• said interconnection component further comprises a first electrically conductive material extending from said downward facing bottom side of said first portion to said upward facing top side of said second portion,
• no part of said first electrically conductive material is positioned outside said substrate boundaries,
• said interconnection component further comprises additional electrically conductive material positioned on and extending over at least a part of said second portion top side, such that said additional conductive material is beneath and faces said conductive bottom surface of said second cell, and
• no portion of said structural polymer layer overlays said second cell.

An article combining two series connected photovoltaic cells and an interconnection component wherein,

• each of said cells has a downward facing bottom surface and an upward facing top light incident surface,
• said cells further comprise a photovoltaic semiconductor layer having terminal edges which encompass said semiconductor layer,
• said interconnection component comprises a substrate formed by one or more polymeric layers and having a sheetlike form, whereby said substrate has length, width, and thickness and the length and width are greater than thickness,
• said substrate having a perimeter encompassing an area of said substrate,
• said sheetlike substrate further having a top, upward facing outer side and a bottom, downward facing outer side,
• a first portion of said substrate overlays a preponderance of a first of said photovoltaic cells such that said downward facing outer substrate side faces said top light incident first cell surface,
• said interconnection component further comprises a first electrically conductive material extending from said downward facing outer substrate side to said top upward facing outer substrate side,
• no part of said first electrically conductive material is positioned outside said substrate perimeter,
• said article can achieve said series connection without requiring either overlapping of said cells or substantial separation, in a direction parallel to said light incident surfaces, of the facing terminal edges of the semiconductor layers of said two cells.

An article combining two photovoltaic cells and an interconnection component wherein,

• each of said cells has a downward facing bottom surface, an upward facing top light incident surface formed by a window electrode formed by an unbroken layer of light transmitting first conductive material, and a layer of photovoltaic semiconductor underlying all of said first conductive material layer,
• said interconnection component comprises a substrate having a sheetlike form, whereby said substrate has length and width, wherein the length and width are greater than thickness,
• a first portion of said substrate comprises multiple polymeric layers and has a downward facing bottom side,
• a first of said multiple layers comprises polymeric adhesive and forms the downward facing bottom side of said first portion,
• a second of said multiple layers overlays at least part of said first layer,
• said first portion of said substrate overlays a preponderance of a first photovoltaic cell such that said downward facing bottom side directly contacts and is adhesively bonded to said top light incident first cell surface,
• a second portion of said substrate is positioned beneath the bottom surface of said second cell,
• said second polymeric layer does not overlay the second cell.