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AssigneeThe Standard Oil Company
InventorsMiroslav Ondris, Marty A. Pichler, Richard E. Brownfield
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A method of electrodepositing a doped compound semiconductor film including tellurium and a metal selected from Group IIB of the Period Table of Elements by adding an effective concentration of dopant ions to the electrolyte bath. Cadmium telluride, mercury cadmium telluride and zinc cadmium telluride may be doped with copper, silver and gold. The conductivity type of the electrodeposited doped layers may be changed by a heat treatment. Thin film photovoltaic cells incorporating the doped layer to form a heterojunction with a semiconductor layer of the opposite conductivity type show substantial improvements in open circuit voltage, fill factor and efficiency over similar devices employing undoped electrodeposited layers.
A photovoltaic device comprising a first thin film of a compound semiconductor of a first conductivity type including tellurium and a metal selected from Group IIB of the Periodic Table of Elements (as published by the American Chemical Society) and containing as a dopant impurity in a concentration not exceeding 10.sup.20 atoms per cubic centimeter a metal selected from Group IB, a second semiconductor thin film in contact with said first semiconductor thin film and having a second conductivity type opposite that of said first conductivity type and electrical contacts to each of said first and second semiconductor thin films.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.