Release strategies for making transferable semiconductor structures, devices and device components

A method for making a photovoltaic device or device array, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing a multilayer structure comprising a plurality of functional layers and a plurality of release layers;
• wherein at least a portion of said release layers are positioned between functional layers in said multilayer structure, at least a portion of said functional layers comprising photovoltaic cells;
• releasing at least a portion of said functional layers from said multilayer structure by separating one or more of said release layers or a portion thereof from one or more of said functional layers, thereby generating a plurality of transferable photovoltaic cells;
• and
• printing one or more of said transferable photovoltaic cells onto a device substrate or device component supported by a device substrate by contact printing or solution printing, thereby making said photovoltaic device or device array.