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Our Technologies: Innovative Energy Storage and Conversion Technologies (Fuel Cells, Solar Cells, and Batteries)

(A) Thin-film Solar Cells

1.                  L. W. Wu and W. C. Huang, “Manufacturing Method for Thin Film Solar Cells,” U.S. Patent No. 6,635,307, 10/21/2003.

            A method for depositing a coating onto a solid substrate for the fabrication of a functional layer in a solar cell device wherein the functional layer is used as an anti-reflection layer, an active layer for photon absorption and charge generation, a buffer layer, a window layer, or an electrode layer. The method includes (Fig.4): (a) providing an ionized arc nozzle that includes a consumable electrode, a non-consumable electrode, and a working gas flow to form an ionized arc between the two electrodes, wherein the consumable electrode provides a metal material vaporizable therefrom by the ionized arc; (b) operating the arc nozzle to heat and at least partially vaporize the metal material for providing a stream of nanometer-sized vapor clusters of the metal material into a coating chamber in which the substrate is disposed; (c) introducing a stream of a reactive gas into the coating chamber to impinge upon the stream of metal vapor clusters and exothermically react therewith to produce substantially nanometer-sized compound semiconductor or ceramic clusters; and (d) directing the compound semiconductor or ceramic clusters to deposit onto the substrate for forming the coating.