PROCESS FOR PRODUCING SOLAR BATTERY ELEMENT AND SOLAR BATTERY ELEMENT

摘要

Disclosed is a superstraight-type a-Si:H thin film solar battery element that has improved element characteristics over the conventional solar battery element. The solar battery element is produced by a process comprising the step of depositing phosphorus on a transparent electroconductive film provided on a transparent substrate and the step of successively forming a p-type layer, an i-type layer, and an n-type layer of a-Si:H by plasma CVD on the transparent electroconductive film. The phosphorus is deposited, for example, by plasmatization of a phosphorus-containing gas. Alternatively, the phosphorus may be deposited by, at the start of formation of the p-type layer by plasma CVD, etching a phosphorus supply source, provided in margin areas where the transparent substrate is not provided although a plasma excitation voltage is applied, with hydrogen plasma. Preferably, the deposition of the phosphorus is controlled so that the arithmetic average value (?Cav) of the difference in concentration between boron and phosphorus within a boron diffusion range in the i-type layer is 1.1 × 1017(cm-3) = ?Cav = 1.6 × 1017(cm-3) or less.