Processing and modeling issues for thin-film solar cell devices. Final report

During the third phase of the subcontract, IEC researchers have continued to provide the thin film PV community with greater depth of understanding and insight into a wide variety of issues including: the deposition and characterization of CuIn{sub 1-x}Ga{sub x}Se{sub 2}, a-Si, CdTe, CdS, and TCO thin films; the relationships between film and device properties; and the processing and analysis of thin film PV devices. This has been achieved through the systematic investigation of all aspects of film and device production and through the analysis and quantification of the reaction chemistries involved in thin film deposition. This methodology has led to controlled fabrications of 15% efficient CuIn{sub 1-x}Ga{sub x}Se{sub 2} solar cells over a wide range of Ga compositions, improved process control of the fabrication of 10% efficient a-Si solar cells, and reliable and generally applicable procedures for both contacting and doping films. Additional accomplishments are listed below