Devices and methods of protecting a cadmium sulfide layer for further processing

摘要

Methods are generally provided for protecting a cadmium sulfide layer 18 on a substrate 12. In one particular embodiment, the method can include sputtering a cadmium sulfide layer 18 onto a substrate from a cadmium sulfide target at a sputtering pressure of 10 mTorr to about 150 mTorr, and sputtering a cap layer 19 directly on the cadmium sulfide layer. The cap layer 19 can be sputtered directly onto the cadmium sulfide layer 18 from a cadmium telluride target at a sputtering pressure of 10 mTorr to about 150 mTorr without breaking the sputtering pressure. Methods are also generally provided for manufacturing a cadmium telluride based thin film photovoltaic device 10.