Thin films of gallium arsenide on low-cost substrates. Quarterly project report No. 3, January 2, 1977--April 2, 1977

Technical Report · Fri Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1977

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7280239· OSTI ID:7280239

Dupuis, R. D.; Campbell, A. G.; Johnson, R. E.; Manasevit, H. M.; Moudy, L. A.; Yingling, R. D.

The metallorganic chemical vapor deposition (MO-CVD) technique is being applied to the growth of thin films of GaAs and GaAlAs on inexpensive polycrystalline or amorphous substrate materials (glasses, glass-ceramics, alumina ceramics, and metals) for use in fabrication of large-area low-cost photovoltaic device structures. Polycrystalline GaAs films have now been grown on all of the low-cost materials on the candidate substrate list. Single-crystal films of GaAs and Ga/sub 1-x/Al/sub x/As(x approximately 0.8) have been grown to study the Zn and Se doping of these materials and to provide the doping data needed to grow p-n junctions and heterostructure solar cell configurations. The physical properties of GaAs films grown on a variety of substrates--including Mo/glass, Mo/alumina, and Ge layers on all of the candidate insulator materials--have been studied, and the results of these investigations are described. Single-crystal window-type heterostructure solar cells have been fabricated in GaAlAs/GaAs multilayer structures grown by the MO-CVD process. Results show that the MO-CVD process is capable of producing materials with the photovoltaic properties required for high-efficiency GaAlAs/GaAs solar cells. Polycrystalline solar cells have also been grown and fabricated. Various techniques for characterizing polycrystalline GaAs films have been developed further, and details of these studies are given. (WHK)

• Research Organization: Rockwell International Corp., Anaheim, Calif. (USA). Electronic Devices Div.
• OSTI ID: 7280239
• Report Number(s): SAN/1202-77/2
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
140501* -- Solar Energy Conversion-- Photovoltaic Conversion
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
360601 -- Other Materials-- Preparation & Manufacture
ARSENIC COMPOUNDS
ARSENIDES
CHEMICAL COATING
CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION
CRYSTAL DOPING
CRYSTAL GROWTH
CRYSTALS
DEPOSITION
DIRECT ENERGY CONVERTERS
EFFICIENCY
FABRICATION
FILMS
GALLIUM ARSENIDE SOLAR CELLS
GALLIUM ARSENIDES
GALLIUM COMPOUNDS
MONOCRYSTALS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANOMETALLIC COMPOUNDS
PERFORMANCE
PHOTOELECTRIC CELLS
PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS
PNICTIDES
POLYCRYSTALS
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
SOLAR CELLS
SUBSTRATES
SURFACE COATING