Substrate with transparent conductive oxide film, process for its production and photoelectric conversion element

• US 7,179,527 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2004
• Issued: 02/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AGC, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Asahi Glass Company, Limited (AGC, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kambe, Mika, Fukawa, Makoto, Taneda, Naoki, Sato, Kazuo, Aomine, Nobutaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong; Edna
• Application Number:
  US10/826,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20050000564A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,037 Days
• Field of Search: 136/255, 136/256, 428/333, 428/334, 428/336, 428/432, 428/689, 428/702, 428/699, 257/458, 257/431, 252/518.1, 252/519.5, 252/519.54
• US Class Current: 428/333
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/0272 Deposition of sub-layers, e.g. to promote the adhesion of the main coating
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/04 Coating on selected surface areas, e.g. using masks
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/407 of zinc, germanium, cadmium, indium, tin, thallium or bismuth
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/022466 made of transparent conductive layers, e.g. TCO, ITO layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/022483 composed of zinc oxide [ZnO]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0236 Special surface textures
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/02363 of the semiconductor body itself, e.g. textured active layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/02366 of the substrate or of a layer on the substrate, e.g. textured ITO/glass substrate or superstrate, textured polymer layer on glass substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/1884 Manufacture of transparent electrodes, e.g. TCO, ITO
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/50 Photovoltaic [PV] energy
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24364 with transparent or protective coating
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/261 In terms of molecular thickness or light wave length
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/263 Coating layer not in excess of 5 mils thick or equivalent
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/265 1 mil or less

Abstract

A substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film (especially a substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film useful as a substrate for a thin-film silicon-based solar cell) being excellent in mass production efficiency and being characterized by having a low resistance, a high transparency and a good light scattering performance over a full wavelength region (300 nm to 3 μm) of solar ray, a process for its production, and a photoelectric conversion element (especially, solar cell) employing the substrate, are presented. A substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film, comprising a substrate and a transparent conductive oxide layer formed on the substrate and constituted by a plurality of ridges is and a plurality of flat portions, wherein the surfaces of the ridges and the flat portions, have many continuous micron-size protrusions.

Claims

1. A substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film, comprising a substrate and a transparent conductive oxide film provided on the substrate and constituted by a plurality of ridges and a plurality of flat portions,

wherein the surfaces of the ridges and the flat portions have a plurality of continuous micron-size protrusions, and the plurality of ridges have a discontinuous portion and a continuous portion, the spacing between ridges being from 0 to 2.0 μ

m.

2. The substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film according to claim 1, wherein the protrusions have basal plane diameters of from 0.1 to 0.3 μ

m and height/basal plane diameter ratios of from 0.7 to 1.2.

3. The substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film according to claim 1, wherein the substrate with the transparent conductive oxide film has a sheet resistance of from 8 to 20 Ω

/□ and

a transmittance of from 80 to 90% at 550 nm measured by an immersed method.

4. The substrate with a transparent conductive oxide film according to claim 1, wherein the substrate with the transparent conductive oxide film, has a haze of from 10 to 95% over a full wavelength region of from 400 to 800 nm.