High voltage V-groove solar cell
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
InventorsJohn C. Evans, An-Ti Chai, Chandra P. Goradia
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Abstract
A high voltage multijunction solar cell comprises a plurality of discrete voltage generating regions, or unit cells, which are formed in a single semiconductor wafer (10) and are connected together so that the voltages of the individual cells are additive. The unit cells comprise doped regions of opposite conductivity types (30, 32) separated by a gap. The method includes forming V-shaped grooves (16) in the wafer and thereafter orienting the wafer so that ions of one conductivity type can be implanted in one face (e.g., 16a) of the groove while the other face (e.g., 16b) is shielded. A metallization layer (22) is applied and selectively etched away to provide connections between the unit cells.
Claims8
A high voltage multijunction solar cell of the type having a plurality of discrete voltage generating regions connected together;
- said solar cell comprising
- a single semiconductor body of one conductivity type having oppositely disposed surfaces,
- a plurality of V-shaped grooves in one of said surfaces, each of said grooves being short of and spaced from the oppositely disposed surface and including first and second faces angularly disposed to each other,
- first doped regions of a first conductivity type in said first faces,
- second doped regions of a second conductivity type opposite said first conductivity type in said second faces,
- gap regions consisting essentially of undiffused regions of said semiconductor body located between pairs of oppositely disposed doped regions of adjacent grooves,
- said gap regions providing electrical isolation means between adjacent unit cells,
- said pairs of oppositely disposed doped regions defining voltage generating unit cells, and
- means for connecting together adjacent ones of said unit cells so that their output voltages are additive.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.