skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Systems and methods for advanced ultra-high-performance InP solar cells

Patent ·
OSTI ID:1346013

Systems and Methods for Advanced Ultra-High-Performance InP Solar Cells are provided. In one embodiment, an InP photovoltaic device comprises: a p-n junction absorber layer comprising at least one InP layer; a front surface confinement layer; and a back surface confinement layer; wherein either the front surface confinement layer or the back surface confinement layer forms part of a High-Low (HL) doping architecture; and wherein either the front surface confinement layer or the back surface confinement layer forms part of a heterointerface system architecture.

Research Organization:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC36-08GO28308
Assignee:
Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC
Patent Number(s):
9,590,131
Application Number:
14/226,540
OSTI ID:
1346013
Resource Relation:
Patent File Date: 2014 Mar 26
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (100)

Apparatus and method for pulse tracker ranging equipment with increased resolution patent August 1975
Cascade solar cells patent December 1979
Thin film photovoltaic converter and method of preparing same patent July 1980
Multilayer photovoltaic solar cell with semiconductor layer at shorting junction interface patent March 1981
Device for conversion of electromagnetic radiation into electrical current patent July 1981
Stacked multijunction photovoltaic converters patent July 1982
Three-terminal ternary III-V multicolor solar cells and process of fabrication patent May 1984
Three-junction solar cell patent March 1986
Ternary III-V multicolor solar cells containing a quaternary window layer and a quaternary transition layer patent March 1986
Current and lattice matched tandem solar cell patent May 1987
High conductance ohmic junction for monolithic semiconductor devices patent September 1988
Junctions for monolithic cascade solar cells and methods patent November 1989
Method of making an epitaxial gallium arsenide semiconductor wafer using a strained layer superlattice patent October 1990
Substrate structures for InP-based devices patent October 1990
Tandem solar cell patent April 1991
Monolithic tandem solar cell patent May 1991
Bilevel contact solar cells patent October 1991
Epitaxial growth method patent February 1993
Current-matched high-efficiency, multijunction monolithic solar cells patent June 1993
Monolithic voltage-matched tandem photovoltaic cell and method for making same patent November 1993
Monolithic tandem solar cell patent June 1994
InP solar cell with window layer patent June 1994
Single-junction solar cells with the optimum band gap for terrestrial concentrator applications patent December 1994
Tandem solar cell with improved tunnel junction patent April 1995
Multiwavelength infrared focal plane array detector patent December 1995
Hydrogen passivated heteroepitaxial III-V photovoltaic devices grown on lattice-mismatched substrates, and process patent November 1996
Monolithically integrated solar cell microarray and fabrication method patent February 1998
High efficiency multi-junction solar cells patent December 1998
Energy-band-matched infrared emitter for use with low bandgap thermophotovoltaic cells patent February 1999
High-efficiency solar cell and method for fabrication patent August 1999
Dot-junction photovoltaic cells using high-absorption semiconductors patent March 2000
Semiconductor thin film, method for manufacturing the same, and solar cell using the same patent August 2000
Quantum well thermophotovoltaic energy converter patent November 2000
Dispersants and dispersant viscosity index improvers from selectively hydrogenated polymers: free radically initiated direct grafting reaction products patent December 2000
Monolithic interconnected module with a tunnel junction for enhanced electrical and optical performance patent December 2000
Fabrication of single absorber layer radiated energy conversion device patent January 2001
Compact man-portable thermophotovoltaic battery charger patent April 2001
Electrical isolation of component cells in monolithically interconnected modules patent May 2001
InGaAsN/GaAs heterojunction for multi-junction solar cells patent June 2001
Bilayer passivation structure for photovoltaic cells patent July 2001
High voltage photovoltaic power converter patent July 2001
Multi-junction, monolithic solar cell using low-band-gap materials lattice matched to GaAs or Ge patent August 2001
Low-bandgap double-heterostructure InAsP/GaInAs photovoltaic converters patent October 2001
Lattice matched solar cell and method for manufacturing the same patent October 2001
Multijunction photovoltaic cell with thin 1st (top) subcell and thick 2nd subcell of same or similar semiconductor material patent November 2001
Multijunction photovoltaic cells and panels using a silicon or silicon-germanium active substrate cell for space and terrestrial applications patent January 2002
Light emitting diode of improved current blocking and light extraction structure patent July 2002
Using a critical composition grading technique to deposit InGaAs epitaxial layers on InP substrates patent November 2002
Multi-junction photovoltaic cell patent December 2003
Apparatus and method for optimizing the efficiency of a bypass diode in multijunction solar cells patent January 2004
Silicon solar cell with germanium backside solar cell patent June 2004
Isoelectronic co-doping patent November 2004
AlGaAs or InGaP low turn-on voltage GaAs-based heterojunction bipolar transistor patent July 2005
High efficiency, monolithic multijunction solar cells containing lattice-mismatched materials and methods of forming same patent October 2005
Voltage-matched, monolithic, multi-band-gap devices patent August 2006
Method of making diode structures patent November 2006
Multi-junction solar cell device patent December 2007
Compound solar battery and manufacturing method thereof patent February 2009
Light-emitting diode and method for manufacturing the same patent March 2010
High-efficiency, monolithic, multi-bandgap, tandem photovoltaic energy converters patent November 2011
Monolithic, multi-bandgap, tandem, ultra-thin, strain-counterbalanced, photovoltaic energy converters with optimal subcell bandgaps patent May 2012
High efficiency solar photovoltaic cells produced with inexpensive materials by processes suitable for large volume production patent-application May 2002
Suitable semiconductor structure for forming multijunction solar cell and method for forming the same patent-application January 2003
Voltage-matched, monolithic, multi-band-gap devices patent-application August 2003
Compound solar battery and manufacturing method thereof patent-application October 2004
Stable Three-Terminal and Four-Terminal Solar Cells and Solar Cell Panels Using Thin-Film Silicon Technology patent-application July 2005
Solar cells having a transparent composition-graded buffer layer patent-application December 2005
Multi-junction solar cells and methods of making same using layer transfer and bonding techniques patent-application June 2006
High-efficiency, monolithic, multi-bandgap, tandem photovoltaic energy converters patent-application July 2006
Low bandgap, monolithic, multi-bandgap, optoelectronic devices patent-application July 2006
High efficiency solar cells utilizing wafer bonding and layer transfer to integrate non-lattice matched materials patent-application August 2006
Solar cell with superlattice structure and fabricating method thereof patent-application July 2007
Systems and methods for enhanced solar module conversion efficiency patent-application December 2007
Semiconductor light-emitting structure and graded-composition substrate providing yellow-green light emission patent-application June 2008
Semiconductor device and method of fabricating a semiconductor device patent-application August 2008
Thin Inverted Metamorphic Multijunction Solar Cells with Rigid Support patent-application March 2009
Monolithic, Multi-Bandgap, Tandem, Ultra-Thin, Strain-Counterbalanced, Photovoltaic Energy Converters with Optimal Subcell Bandgaps patent-application September 2009
Wide Band Gap Window Layers In Inverted Metamorphic Multijunction Solar Cells patent-application November 2009
High Efficiency Photovoltaic Cell For Solar Energy Harvesting patent-application December 2010
Textured Metallic Back Reflector patent-application April 2011
High Performance, High Bandgap, Lattice-Mismatched, GaInP Solar Cells patent-application August 2011
Reverse Heterojunctions for Solar Cells patent-application October 2013
Photon recycling and Shockley’s diode equation journal October 1997
Detailed modelling of photon recycling: application to GaAs solar cells journal May 2006
Radiative efficiency of state-of-the-art photovoltaic cells journal September 2011
Strong Internal and External Luminescence as Solar Cells Approach the Shockley–Queisser Limit journal July 2012
27.6% Conversion efficiency, a new record for single-junction solar cells under 1 sun illumination conference June 2011
An empirical investigation of the InP shallow-homojunction solar cell conference January 1988
Emitter structures in MOCVD InP solar cells conference January 1990
Detailed Balance Limit of Efficiency of p‐n Junction Solar Cells journal March 1961
Antireflection coating design for series interconnected multi-junction solar cells journal January 2000
High performance anti-reflection coatings for broadband multi-junction solar cells journal November 2000
Computer modeling of a two-junction, monolithic cascade solar cell journal January 1980
A Rigorous Analysis of Series-Connected, Multi-Bandgap, Tandem Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) Energy Converters conference January 2004
Lattice-mismatched approaches for high-performance, III-V photovoltaic energy converters conference January 2005
Extreme selectivity in the lift‐off of epitaxial GaAs films journal December 1987
Wafer bonding and layer transfer processes for 4-junction high efficiency solar cells conference January 2002
Progress in the development of metamorphic multi-junction III-V space solar cells
  • Sinharoy, Samar; Patton, Martin O.; Valko, Thomas M.
  • Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications, Vol. 10, Issue 6, p. 427-432 https://doi.org/10.1002/pip.449
journal August 2002
An inverted-growth approach to development of an IR-transparent, high-efficiency AlGaAs/GaAs cascade solar cell conference January 1991
Electrochemical performance of α-Fe2O3 nanorods as anode material for lithium-ion cells journal February 2009

Similar Records

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE