Open AccessLarge-area Silicon-Film{trademark} panels and solar cells. Phase 2 technical report, January 1996--December 1996
Author(s) -
James A. Rand,
Allen Barnett,
J. C. Checchi,
J.S. Culik,
S.R. Collins,
D.H. Ford,
R.B. Hall,
Edward L. Jackson,
C.L. Kendall
Publication year - 1997
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/459392
Subject(s) - trademark , silicon , materials science , solar cell , crystalline silicon , common emitter , fabrication , engineering physics , optics , optoelectronics , engineering , computer science , physics , operating system , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology
The Silicon-Film{trademark} process is on an accelerated path to large-scale manufacturing. A key element in that development is optimizing the specific geometry of both the Silicon-Film{trademark} sheet and the resulting solar cell. That decision has been influenced by cost factors, engineering concerns, and marketing issues. The geometry investigation has focused first on sheet nominally 15 cm wide. This sheet generated solar cells with areas of 240 cm{sup 2} and 675 cm{sup 2}. Most recently, a new sheet fabrication machine was constructed that produces Silicon-Film{trademark} with a width in excess of 30 cm. Test results have indicated that there is no limit to the width of sheet generated by this process. The new wide material has led to prototype solar cells with areas of 300, 400, and 1,800 cm{sup 2}. Significant advances in solar-cell processing have been developed in support of fabricating large-area devices, including uniform emitter diffusion and anti-reflection coatings