Solar cell
OwnerAntonio MARTÍ VEGA, Antonio LUQUE LÓPEZinventors
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A solar cell comprises a three layer semiconductor structure wherein the top (14) and middle (15) layer are made of a semiconductor of higher bandgap than the bottom layer (16), the middle layer (15) has a higher dopant concentration than the top layer (14), and the three layer semiconductor structure is either a p-n-p structure or an n-p-n structure. The solar cell includes three terminals or contacts: a top contact (17) contacting the top layer (14), a middle contact (18) contacting the middle layer (15) and a bottom contact (19) contacting the bottom layer (16). Light anti-reflecting layers and semiconductor layers to reduce surface recombination can also be added to the basic three layer semiconductor structure.
Claims12
A solar cell comprising:
- a three layer semiconductor structure comprising a top layer, a bottom layer, and a middle layer, the middle layer being placed between and in contact with the top layer and the bottom layer, the three layer semiconductor structure being either a p-n-p structure or an n-p-n structure, and
- three electrical contacts, each electrical contact being connected to a different one of the top layer, the bottom layer, and the middle layer,
- wherein:
- each of the top layer and the middle layer comprises at least one semiconductor having a bandgap higher than the bandgap of a semiconductor of the bottom layer, and
- the middle layer has a higher dopant concentration than the top layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.