Verfahren zur kostengünstigen Herstellung einer Schicht eines ternären Verbindungshalbleiters

摘要

Prodn. of a layer of a binary or ternary cpd. semiconductor, having metallic and nonmetallic components, comprises (i) vapour depositing a first discrete layer of at least one metallic component of the semiconductor onto a first flexible endless substrate; (ii) opt. vapour depositing a second layer of a second metallic component onto the first layer; (iii) producing a layer of the nonmetallic component by vapour deposition and contacting it with the metallic component layer(s); and heating to effect chemical reaction of the components to produce the cpd. semiconductor, each step being carried out continuously in a through process. A thin film solar cell arrangement has a flexible endless strip substrate which is electrically insulating at least at its surface, a first electrode layer, a photovoltaic absorber layer of a cpd. semiconductor and a second electrode layer, the electrode layers and the absorber layer being quasi-endlessly structured parallel to the strip substrate so that strip-like individual solar cells are electrically series-connected by overlapping of their electrode regions transverse to the strip substrate. ADVANTAGE - The process allows efficient mass prodn. of cpd. semiconductor layers esp. suitable for inexpensive solar cell mfr., can be automated and has high through-put rate.