# US 2014/0154836 A1 · Plating equipment for solar cell wafer using electroplating and light-induced plating jointly and method of the same > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0154836 A1 - Document ID: US20140154836A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 14/174,736 - Filed: 2014-02-06 - Published: 2014-06-05 - Earliest claimed: 2012-01-17 - Assignees: Hojin Platech Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Hojin Platech Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Pan Soo Kim; Duk Haeng Lee; Woon Suk Jung - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140154836A1 ## CPC - C25D 5/011: {Electroplating using electromagnetic wave irradiation (using locally applied electromagnetic radiation C25D5/024)} - C23C 18/1653: {Two or more layers with at least one layer obtained by electroless plating and one layer obtained by electroplating} - C25D 7/126: {for solar cells} - C25D 17/001: {Apparatus specially adapted for electrolytic coating of wafers, e.g. semiconductors or solar cells} - C25D 17/06: Suspending or supporting devices for articles to be coated - C25D 17/12: Shape or form (C25D17/14 takes precedence) - H10F 71/135: {Application of a bias; Current injection} - H10F 77/211: {for photovoltaic cells} - H10P 72/0476: {comprising at least one plating chamber} - C25D 17/008: {Current shielding devices} - C25D 21/12: Process control or regulation (controlling or regulating in general G05) - Y02E 10/50: Photovoltaic [PV] energy - C25D: PROCESSES FOR THE ELECTROLYTIC OR ELECTROPHORETIC PRODUCTION OF COATINGS; ELECTROFORMING; APPARATUS THEREFOR - C23C: COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL (making metal-coated products by extrusion B21C23/22; covering with metal by connecting pre-existing layers to articles, see the relevant places, e.g. B21D39/00, B23K; metallising of glass C03C; metallising mortars, concrete, artificial stone, ceramics or natural stone C04B41/00; enamelling of, or applying a vitreous layer to, metals C23D; treating metal surfaces or coating of metals by electrolysis or electrophoresis C25D; single-crystal film growth C30B; by metallising textiles D06M11/83; decorating textiles by locally metallising D06Q1/04) - H10F: INORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES SENSITIVE TO INFRARED RADIATION, LIGHT, ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION OF SHORTER WAVELENGTH OR CORPUSCULAR RADIATION - H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10 - Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION ## Abstract The present invention relates to plating equipment and method for a solar cell wafer using electroplating and light-induced plating jointly. The plating equipment includes a jig allowing a wafer (1), that is a body to be plated, to be vertically immersed into a plating solution at a center of a plating bath (209), a first plating unit (200) comprising a plurality of anode members (210) symmetrically disposed on both sides of the plating bath (209) facing the wafer (1), the first plating unit performing electroplating; and a second plating unit (300) disposed in a light source receiving unit (320) physically blocked from the first plating unit (200), the second plating unit (300) being disposed at a rear side of the anode members (210) to perform light-induced plating by using an light emitting diode (LED) lamp (301) irradiating light onto the wafer (1). ## Claims ### Claim 1 A plating equipment comprising: a jig holding a wafer to be plated at a center of a plating bath such that the wafer is vertically immersed into a plating solution in the plating bath; a first plating unit including a plurality of anode members symmetrically disposed on both sides of the plating bath facing the wafer, the first plating unit performing electroplating; and a second plating unit disposed in a light source receiving unit physically blocked from the first plating unit, the second plating unit being disposed behind the anode members to perform light-induced plating by using a light emitting diode (LED) lamp irradiating light onto the wafer. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The plating equipment of claim 1, wherein the plurality of anode members have the same width and spaced apart from one another at the same distance as the width of each of the anode members in the plating bath. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The plating equipment of claim 1, when the light-induced plating is performed, the jig is controlled to move the wafer in a direction parallel to that of the anode member so that an area on which reception of light emitted from the LED lamp is disrupted due to a position of the anode members is uniformly distributed on the surface of the wafer. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The plating equipment of claim 1, wherein a barrier is disposed between the first and second plating units to prevent the plating solution in the plating bath from being permeated into the light source receiving unit, and the barrier is formed of a transparent material through which light is transmitted. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The plating equipment of claim 3, wherein a ventilation hole or an air blower is disposed in a surface opposite to the plating bath of the light source receiving unit to prevent dew from being generated on the barrier when the LED lamp operates. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The plating equipment of claim 1, wherein if the second plating unit performs the light induced plating, a seed layer is formed on the surface of the wafer. ### Claim 7 A plating equipment comprising: a jig holding a wafer to be plated in a middle of the plating bath and moving at a predetermined speed in a longitudinal direction of the plating bath; anode members symmetrically disposed above and below the plating bath facing the wafer to perform electroplating; and light source receiving units disposed behind each anode member to perform light-induced plating by using a light emitting diode (LED) lamp irradiating light onto the wafer. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The plating equipment of claim 7, wherein the anode members have the same width and spaced apart from one another at the same distance as the width of each anode. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The plating equipment of claim 7, wherein the jig is controlled to move the wafer in a direction parallel to that of the anode member so that an area on which reception of light emitted from the LED lamp is disrupted due to a position of the anode members is uniformly distributed on the surface of the wafer. ### Claim 10 A plating method comprising: performing a light-induced plating on a wafer to be plated using light emitting diode (LED) lamps located at two separate locations in a plating bath; and performing an electroplating on both surfaces of the wafer by using anode members disposed on one sides of the LED lamps located at the two separate locations in the plating bath. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the LED lamps are located at both sides of the plating bath such that the wafer is mounted at a center of the plating bath and vertically immersed into a plating solution in the plating path. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the LED lamps are located above and under the jig such that the wafer is mounted in a middle of the plating bath and moves at a predetermined speed in a longitudinal direction of the plating bath. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising: prior to performing the light-induced plating, forming a seed layer on the surface of the wafer. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the performing of the light-induced plating and the performing the electroplating are concurrently processed.