Process for fabricating glass-encapsulated solar cell arrays and the product produced thereby

The product formed by a process for fabricating solar cell arrays which comprises the steps of:

• a. forming a base layer of glass;
• b. forming a pattern of indentations bounded by ridges in said base layer;
• c. forming an electrically conducting first connecting element on said base layer, wherein said first connecting element extends from a given indentation to a point on an adjacent ridge;
• d. positioning a solar cell in said given indentation so that the lower surface of said solar cell is in electrical contact with the one end of said first connecting element in said given indentation;
• e. forming an electrically conducting second connecting element to extend between the other end of said first connecting element on said adjacent ridge and the top surface of a solar cell in an adjacent indentation;
• and
• f. forming a top layer of glass on the product of steps a-e above by heating glass sufficiently until it flows, applying the flowing gas to the upper surface of the product of steps a-e above so that it fills in the irregularities thereof, and applying sufficient pressure to create an intermolecular bond between said top layer of glass and the exposed portions of the glass base layer, the solar cells and the connecting elements, the application of pressure being sufficiently time-limited to prevent migration of the PN junction in the solar cell.

A glass-encapsulated solar cell array, comprising:

• a base layer of glass having at least two indentations therein which are bounded by ridges;
• solar cells positioned in said indentations;
• an electrically conducting first connecting element positioned on said base layer of glass so that it extends from a beginning point in one of said indentations between said base layer of glass and the lower surface of said solar cell to a termination point on a ridge bounding said one indentation;
• an electrically conducting second connecting element extending between said first connecting element and the top surface of the other solar cell in an adjacent indentation;
• and
• a top layer of glass which covers the exposed upper surfaces of said base layer, said solar cells and said first and second connecting elements and is directly bonded thereto in an intermolecular bond.