MX2008007091A - Photovoltaic cell - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a photovoltaic cell, including at least a first junction between a pair of semiconducting regions (4-9) . At least one of the pair of semiconducting regions includes at least part of a superlattice comprising a first material interspersed with formations of a second material. The formations are of sufficiently small dimensions so that the effective band gap of the superlattice is at least partly determined by the dimensions. An absorption layer (24-26) is provided between the semiconducting regions and the absorption layer comprises a material for absorption of radiation so as to result in excitation of charge carriers and is of such thickness that excitation levels are determined by the material itself . At least one of the effective energy bands of the superlattice and one of the excitation levels of the material of the absorption layer is selected to match at least one of the excitation levels of the material of the absorption layer and the effective energy band of the superlattice, respectively.

Description

PHOTOVOLTAIC CELL DESCRIPTIVE MEMORY The invention relates to a photovoltaic cell, which includes at least a first connection between a pair of semiconductor regions, wherein at least one of the pair of semiconductor regions includes at least part of a superreticle comprising a first dispersed material with formations of a second material, whose formations are of sufficiently small dimensions that the effective band space of the superreticle is at least partly determined by the dimensions, wherein an absorption layer is provided between the semiconducting regions and wherein the absorption layer comprises a material for radiation absorption which results in the excitation of charge carriers and has such a thickness that the levels of excitation are determined by the material itself. The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing an array of photovoltaic cells. The invention also relates to a photovoltaic device that includes a plurality of photovoltaic cells. Examples of said photovoltaic cell, method and photovoltaic device are known. US 4,718,947 discloses a p-i-n photovoltaic cell comprising a transparent substrate made of glass or plastic and coated with a transparent conductive oxide layer. A layer is formed in the conductive oxide layer, and an intrinsic layer (layer i) is formed in the p layer. A layer n is formed in layer i and a subsequent metal contact layer is formed in layer n. The superlattices are used to form the layer p and / or layer n in order to decrease the absorption in the impurified layers without reducing their conductivity. US 4,598,164 discloses a tandem solar cell that includes a first active region that includes a superreticle material in which the band space has a first predetermined value; a second active region that includes a second superreticle material wherein the band space has a second predetermined value and a means for electrically interconnecting the first and second active regions so that the current can flow between the first and second active regions. The amorphous superreticle is a multi-layered material whose layers are thin sheets of tetrahedrally bound semiconductor or insulating amorphous material, wherein the material is formed of tetrahedrally bound elements or alloys containing said tetrahedrally bound elements. Each layer is less than about 1500 A thick. A problem with the last cell is that, in order to make it sufficiently efficient, it must comprise many combinations of layers of different semiconductor materials that form the active regions. Otherwise, only a small fraction of the incident light will be absorbed in the active region formed by a superreticle. However, adding additional layers to the superreticle will make the device known to be expensive to manufacture.

It is an object of the invention to provide a photovoltaic cell, method and photovoltaic device that provides a relatively efficient conversion of solar energy for a given manufacturing effort. This objective is achieved by means of a photovoltaic cell, characterized in that at least one of the effective energy bands of the superreticle and one of the energy excitation levels of the material of the absorption layer is selected to substantially match at least one of the energy excitation levels of the absorption layer material and the effective energy band of the superreticle, respectively. Since at least one of the two semiconductor regions includes at least part of a superreticle, the photovoltaic cell can be made relatively efficient. The effective band space of the superreticle can be tuned to a useful scale of the solar space. The drawback in that the dimensions of the formations of both materials must be small enough to provide the superreticle with an effective band gap that differs from that of the semiconducting materials in the individual superlattice layers, and that many layers must be deposited in an ordinary manner to build a photovoltaic cell that absorbs sufficient radiation, decreases due to the presence of the layer of material for absorption of radiation to result in the excitation of charge carriers. Excited charge carriers are transferred to the attached superlattice, thus improving the conversion efficiency of solar energy.

Within a photovoltaic cell, a distinction can be made between radiation absorption functions to generate the excited charge carriers, subsequent separation of charge carriers of opposite polarity (due to the presence of opposite charges of pyn-type impurities that are pulled in an electric field integrated in opposite directions), transportation of load carriers and collection of the load carriers separated and transported. An advantage of the proposed structure is that a separation of functions is achieved, and can be further optimized. The material of the absorption layer for radiation absorption can be specifically selected to have a high absorption coefficient, whereby the first and second materials forming the superreticle, as well as the dimensions of the formations of both materials, are selected to provide a desired effective bandwidth. Effective band space depends on the chemical and / or structural composition and the dimensions of the material formations in the superreticle. The excitation levels of the absorption layer for radiation absorption, which is homogeneous to allow formation in one step of the process, are independent of the thickness of the layer. These only depend on their chemical composition and / or the phase of their constituents. Where the level of excitation of the absorption layer for radiation absorption corresponds substantially with the effective conduction band, the transfer of negative charge carriers is more efficient. Less energy is lost in the transfer when the level corresponds, for example, with 0.2 eV, more preferably less than 0.1 eV, of the lower edge of the effective conduction band. Where the material of the absorption layer for radiation absorption has at least one stable energy level which substantially corresponds to an effective valence band of a semiconductor region that is attached to the absorption layer, the transfer of positive charge carriers It is more efficient. Less energy is lost in the transfer when the level corresponds, for example, with 0.2 eV, more preferably less than 0.1 eV, of the upper edge of the effective valence band. In other words, the selection of at least one of the effective bands of the superreticle and one of the excitation levels of the material of the absorption layer to substantially match at least one of the levels of excitation of the material of the absorption layer and the effective band of the superreticle, respectively, increases the efficiency of the photovoltaic cell. The semiconductor region that includes at least part of the functions of the superreticle as a selective energy transport layer, to remove the absorption layer generated by the carriers for radiation absorption. One embodiment comprises a series of pairs of semiconductor regions, separated by junctions and having effective bandgap spaces that decrease with each pair, wherein at least two of the semiconductor regions include a superreticle and an attached absorption layer of a material for absorption. of radiation to result in the excitation of charge carriers, of said thickness the levels of excitation are determined by the material itself. In this way, a so-called multi-junction tandem cell or cell is provided. The advantage of this configuration is that it can be used to convert different scales of the solar spectrum in different regions, adapted specifically to the respective scales. This decreases the thermalization of charge carriers, that is, the generation of heat when a charge carrier is created by absorption of a photon having an energy greater than that of the effective band space of the region where it is absorbed. The presence, immediately adjacent to the successive superreticle, of an absorption layer of a material for absorption of radiation to result in the excitation of charge carriers, of such thickness that the levels of excitation are determined by the material itself, ensures that as much as possible of a frequency scale is filtered out before the radiation reaches a next semiconductor region in the series. In one embodiment, each superreticle comprises a periodically repeated combination of layers of different semiconducting materials, sufficiently thin to provide the superreticle with effective band space that differs from that of the semiconducting materials in the individual layers of the superreticle. In comparison with alternative modalities, such as those of a quantum dot superreticle, this modality has the advantage that there is a clear way to manufacture said superreticle on an industrial scale.

In one embodiment, the absorption layer is sandwiched between the semiconductor regions and the semiconductor regions have different effective bandwidths. This mode allows the charge carriers generated on both sides of the absorption layer to contribute to the efficiency of the photovoltaic cell. In one embodiment, the material for radiation absorption comprises at least one of a direct semiconductor, an organic molecular material and a material comprising nanocrystals. The last type of material includes materials comprising multiple phase structures, for example, consisting of a matrix with nanometer sized particles placed regularly in the material. In these materials the absorption edge can be manipulated by changing the size of the particles and can therefore be energetically adjusted to the effective band space of the adjacent superreticle. This contributes to making the photovoltaic cell relatively efficient. The organic molecular materials are more easily adapted to achieve absorption on a particular scale of the solar spectrum, as well as being easier to adapt to adjust the effective conduction and / or the valence band of a particular superreticle. In one embodiment, the superreticle comprises a combination of periodic repetition of layers of different amorphous semiconductor materials.

The effect is to substantially avoid any tension caused by the discordance in the structure. For this reason, layers of amorphous semiconductor materials are easier to stack. In one embodiment, the superreticle comprises a periodically repeated combination of layers of hydrogenated semiconductor materials. The effect is to calm the coordination defects. According to another aspect, the method of manufacturing a photovoltaic cell arrangement includes depositing layers of material in a length of a sheet and modeling at least one of the layers to form an arrangement of the photovoltaic cells, wherein a disposition of cells according to the invention. Due to the configuration of photovoltaic cells, few layers of material need to be deposited, resulting in substantial savings in manufacturing effort. Preferably, the layers are deposited in at least one station in a production line, where an almost continuous length of the sheet is advanced beyond each station. This is a useful way of manufacturing arrays of photovoltaic cells, since the desired arrangement can be cut from the sheet. In addition, the amusing conditioning of the chamber and the exchange time between depositions of the layers are avoided and the material is cut off from the total time to manufacture the arrangement.

According to another aspect, the photovoltaic device according to the invention includes a plurality of photovoltaic cells according to the invention. The device is relatively easy to manufacture, and also has a good energy conversion efficiency. The invention will now be described in greater detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows schematically the development of an example of a photovoltaic cell, not to scale; Figure 2 shows an energy diagram of a variant of the photovoltaic cell; Figure 3 shows an energy diagram of another variant of the photovoltaic cell, and Figure 4 schematically shows a production line for manufacturing arrays of photovoltaic cells. A photovoltaic cell 1 is shown in figure 1 only as necessary to illustrate the invention. In a current photovoltaic device, the photovoltaic cell 11 can be encapsulated in additional layers, including one or more layers of conventional sheet to seal the surrounding photovoltaic cell and / or glass sheets. In the illustrated embodiment, the photovoltaic cell 1 is a tandem cell, i.e. a stack of component cells. In this case, the individual cells in the stack are electrically connected in series. The parallel connection is an alternative, but more complicated.

The illustrated photovoltaic cell 1 is a two-terminal device, and includes an upper electrode 2 and a rear electrode 3. The upper electrode is made of a transparent conductive material, for example SnÜ2 (tin oxide), ITO (indium-oxide) tin), ZnO (zinc oxide), Zn2Sn04 (zinc stannate), Cd2Sn04 (cadmium stannate) or InTiO (indium-titanium oxide). The rear electrode 3 is at least partly made of a metal, such as Al (aluminum) or Ag (silver), a metallic alloy or a transparent conductive material. In one embodiment, the rear electrode 3 is made from a combination of a metal and a transparent conductive material, the former being located towards the external part of the photovoltaic cell 1. The photovoltaic cell 1 in the embodiment of FIG. 1 comprises semiconductor regions 4 -9. In other modalities, there may be fewer or more such regions. Of each pair of semiconductor regions, one functions as an efficient transport region for electrodes and the other is arranged to function as an efficient transport region for the orifices. In the embodiment of Figure 1, each of the semiconductor regions 4-9 comprises a superreticle. Semi-conductors based on superlattices are known in the art. In the text herein, the term superreticle will be used to denote both known variants: those comprising layers of a first material interspersed with layers of a second material, both sufficiently thin to affect the band space and those where the nanocrystals are they form from a semiconductor layer, in which the size of the nanocrystals, or quantum dots, affect the effective band space of the superreticle. An example of the latter type of superreticle is set in its entirety in Green, MA, "Silicon nanostructures for all-silicon tandem solar cells", 19th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, Paris, June 7th-1 1th, 2004. of the stratified type are included in the embodiment described herein in greater detail. The stratified superlattices comprise a periodically repeated combination of a layer of a lower band gap semiconductor material, called the well, with a layer of a broad band gap material, called the barrier. Thus, in Figure 1, a first semiconductor region 4 includes a repeating combination of the first barrier layers 10a-10c and first well layers 1 1 a-11c. A second semiconductor region 5 includes a repeat combination of second barrier layers 12a-12c and second well layers 13a-13c, whereby a third semiconductor region 6 includes a repeating combination of the third barrier layers 14a-14c and the third well layers 15a-15c. Fourth, the fifth and sixth semiconductor regions 7-9 include the fourth, fifth and sixth barrier layers 16a-16c, 17a-17c and 18a-18c, respectively, alternating with the fourth, fifth and sixth well layers 19a- 19c, 20a-20c and 21 a-21c, respectively. The thickness values of layers 10-21 are on the scale of 1 -2 nm, at least below 10 nm. Each of the semiconductor regions 4-9 has a total thickness in the order of hundreds nm, at least below 200 nm. Layers 10-21 of the example herein are made of hydrogenated or fluorinated amorphous semiconductor materials. Suitable examples include hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si: H), hydrogenated amorphous silicon germanium (aSiGe: H), hydrogenated amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC: H), hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride (a-SiN: H) and hydrogenated amorphous silicon oxide (a-SiO: H). The band space of a-Si: H depends on the deposition conditions and varies from 1.6 eV to 1.9 eV. The a-Si: H alloy with carbon, oxygen or nitrogen broadens the band gap of the alloys, so the incorporation of germanium decreases band space. Suitable modalities can be made by using a-Si: H and a-SiGe: H as material for the wells, that is, the well layers 11, 13, 15, 19, 21 and using a-SiC: H, a-SiN: H or a-SiO: H as the material for the barriers, ie, the barrier layers. , 12, 14, 16, 18. The non-periodic structure of layers based on a-Si: H and the ability of hydrogen to claim coordination defects eliminate the strict requirements for the reticle adjustment that applies to crystalline superlattices. . To form the superreticles, one or more techniques can be used. These techniques include chemical vapor deposition, reactive electronic deposition (co-), reactive evaporation (co-), etc. To make the illustrated example, a useful technique is chemical vapor deposition enhanced with plasma (PECVD). This technique is useful since the a-Si: H alloy can be easily achieved by adding appropriate gases to the silicon carrier gas such as silane. It has been shown that superreticles can be manufactured which do not fit by reticle or epitaxially, even if they are essentially free of defects and almost atomically sharp. The adjacent semiconductor regions 4-9 of different pairs are separated by tunnel recombination junctions 22, 23 which include N-type and P-type regions. Tunnel recombination junctions 22, 23 provide internal serial connections where it is carried out the recombination of oppositely charged carriers arriving from adjacent pairs of semiconductor regions. Tunnel formation of the carriers through the layers that form the tunnel recombination junction facilitates recombination. The effective recombination of the photo-generated carriers is carried out through the defect states in the center of the junction. The recombination of the photo-generated carriers in the center of the junction keeps the current flowing through the solar cell. Of each pair of semiconductor regions, one is arranged to function as an efficient transport region for orifices and the other as an efficient transport region for electrons. In the illustrated embodiment of Figure 1, the superreticles are fixed to a N-type semiconductor region and a P-type semiconductor region, ie doped semiconductor regions that form a part of the tunnel recombination junctions 22, 23. It should be noted that the Doped regions can also comprise super-sections. As is well known, the space charge in differently contaminated semiconductors generated due to the external diffusion of most charge carriers of the contaminated charges gives rise to an internal electric field. This causes a separation of the mobile charge carriers created by excitation. The combination of the first and second semiconductor regions 4, 5 converts solar energy into a first scale of the solar spectrum, the combination of the third and fourth semiconductor regions 6, 7 converts the second, different but possibly overlapping region of the solar spectrum, and the combination of the fifth and sixth semiconductor regions 8? 9 even another scale. The recombination junctions of the tunnel 22, 23 ensure that the three pairs of semiconductor regions are electrically connected in series. The semiconductor regions 4-9 have effective bandgaps that progressively decrease. Thus, a first and second semiconductor region 4, 5 has a larger effective band gap, to capture photons on a higher scale (frequency) of the solar spectrum. The intermediate semiconductor regions 6, 7 have effective band space on an intermediate scale of the solar spectrum. The lower semiconductor regions 8, 9 have effective band space on a lower scale of the solar spectrum. The upper semiconductor regions 4, 5 are located near the upper electrode 2. The upper electrode 2 is exposed to incoming light in use, which in this way passes through the semiconductor regions 4-9 in order to decrease the band gap cash. This configuration provides improved efficiency of solar energy conversion, due to the suppression of thermalization of load carriers. As a result of the incorporation of the first, second and third respective absorption layers 24-26 of materials for absorption of radiation between the upper, intermediate and lower pairs of semiconductor regions 4-9, the absorption of incident radiation is largely justified for the absorption layers. As a consequence, the thickness of the semiconducting regions can be limited by reducing the number of well layers and barrier layers which is useful from the manufacturing perspective. The absorption layers 24-26 of materials for radiation absorption enclose the respective superreticles that form a pair. They are so thick that excitation levels are determined by their composition. Suitable values for the thickness are on a scale of about fifty nm, preferably on a scale of ten nm. The absorption layers 24-26 may comprise a direct semiconductor material. Said material has a relatively high absorption coefficient of 104 to 106 cm'1 so that the absorption layers 24-26 can be kept thin. For example, Cds with band space of 2.45 eV has the absorption coefficient at 500 nm around 105 cm'1, Cu (ln.Ga) (Se, S) 2, whose bandwidth can vary on a wide scale of 1.0 to 1.7 eV, taking an absorption coefficient between 104 and 105 cm "in this energy scale." 1 Absorption implies the excitation of electrons from the valence to the conduction band, and the relatively high absorption coefficients also characterize an alternative, mainly organic materials These materials are used in the example described herein In organic molecular materials, excited charge carriers are commonly referred to as excitons Suitable organic molecular materials include porphyrins and phthalocyanines.These have narrow absorption bands around The frequencies correspond to a photon energy level of approximately 2.9 eV and 1.77 eV, respectively. Cyanine in particular are chemically very stable and can be deposited by vacuum evaporation. The levels of excitation of the materials in the absorption layers 24-26 are selected to allow them to adjust the effective bands of the attached superlattices. Since the band spaces thereof can be designed through thin layer dimensions 10-21, such adjustment can be achieved with a relatively high degree of accuracy. Charge carriers in the absorption layers 24-26 are excited at a level at or above the lower limit of the effective conduction band of the enclosed superreticle. This allows the transfer of charge carriers to the superreticle with relatively high efficiency. The efficiency is high due to the low losses of thermalization that are incurred when the load carriers are transferred to the conduction band. The setting is preferably accurate for a value on the scale of tenths of an electronvolt, for example 0.1 or 0.2 eV. In a molecular material, the charge carriers are excited to the Lower Unemployed Molecular Orbital (LUMO), which thus adjusts the lower limit of the effective driving band of the attached super-cell. Preferably, the state from which the charge carrier is excited, this state is termed the Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital (HOMO) in the molecular material to absorb radiation, the band adjusts the effective valence, minus its upper limit, to the same degree of accuracy. Fig. 2 illustrates the general concept of the photovoltaic cell 1 by means of an energy diagram. The first and second absorption layers 27, 28 enclose portions of the superreticle 29-32. The superlattices 29-32 substantially have the properties of intrinsic semiconductor materials. Form layers of selective energy transports, having a conduction or valence band substantially adjusted with the stable or exciting level of the adjacent absorbent layer 27, 28. In fact, as illustrated in Figure 2, the conduction bands of the superlattices 30-32, found slightly below the excitation levels of the adjacent absorption layers 27, 28, whereby the valence bands of the superlattices 29, 31 are slightly above the stable levels of the adjacent absorber layers 27, 28. The portions of the superframe 30 attached to the first absorption layer 27 and a superlattice 31 attached to the second absorption layer 28 form semiconductor regions having different effective bandwidths. If a portion of superreticle 29, 32 functions as an effective transport of electrons or holes, it is determined by the nature of the adjacent semiconductor region of one of the three tunnel recombination junctions 33-35. The tunnel recombination junctions 33-35 each comprise a pair of semiconductor layers, one of which is doped to make it a P-type semiconductor layer, the other to make it a type N semiconductor layer. The function of the recombination junctions of tunnel is to provide a series of connections between the respective superreticles 29-32 with integrated absorber layers 27, 28 and to fix an internal electric field within the active region of the photovoltaic cell 1. Figure 3 illustrates a variant of the general concept of the figure 2 of the photovoltaic cell 1 by means of an energy diagram. Again, the first and second absorber layers 27, 28 join parts of the superlattices 29-32. However, the superparticles 29-32 of an individual pair are different in the embodiment of Figure 3. The superparticles 29-32 are selected to have different effective bandgaps within a pair. The band spaces are designed in such a way that the negative charge carriers, excited in the superreticle 19, are forced towards the tunnel recombination junction 34, whereby the positively charged carriers, excited in the superreticle 30, are driven towards the tunnel recombination junction 33.

Figure 4 shows a production line 36 for manufacturing a solar cell arrangement with the configuration of the solar cell 1 that has been described. The production line 36 in the example comprises two stations 37-38, beyond which a length of the sheet is advanced. The arrangement of the solar cells is formed in the sheet as it is transferred from the first roll 39 to a second roll 40. The two stations 37, 38 are exemplary only, and there may be more of them. In particular where PEVCD is used, solar cells can be produced very efficiently by forming the layers 10-21, 24-26 in succession in one or more stations 37, 38 that are placed along the path of the sheet . Pattern formation, using a laser or other cutting technique, is applied to form the individual cells. Due to the use of the first and second rollers 38, 39, near continuous production is possible, limited mainly by the maximum practicable diameter of the rollers 39, 40. Arrangements of a suitable size can be formed from the length of the sheet after additional processing, such as the application of protective plastic layers, the removal of a backing layer, etc. The arrangement is then incorporated into a photovoltaic device that includes suitable connectors and optional additional circuits. The use of selective spectrum absorbing material units in conjunction with superlattices with effective strip spaces designed to adjust the absorption bands of the material, especially in a tandem cell configuration, makes the photovoltaic device efficient and relatively uncomplicated to produce. The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, which may vary within the scope of the appended claims. For example, the absorption bands of the materials for absorption of radiation can partially overlap. Also, embodiments are possible where one of each pair of semiconductor regions attached to a layer for selective absorption of radiation spectrum is made of an inorganic semiconductor material, direct or indirect, instead of comprising a superreticle. In addition, the pairs of semiconductor regions forming a multi-junction cell can be separated by layers of inorganic semiconductor material, or said layer can be provided between an electrode and a superreticle.

Claims (11)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION CLAIMS

1. - A photovoltaic cell, including at least one first junction between a pair of semiconductor regions (4-9), wherein at least one of the pair of semiconductor regions includes at least part of a superreticle comprising a first material interspersed with formations of a second material, whose formations have sufficiently small dimensions so that the effective band gap between the effective energy bands of the superreticle is determined at least partially by the dimensions, wherein the absorption layer (24-26) is provided between the semiconductor regions and wherein the absorption layer comprises a material for absorption of radiation to result in the excitation of charge carriers and has such a thickness that the levels of excitation are determined by the material itself, characterized in that at least one of the bands of effective energy of the superreticle and one of the excitation levels of the layer material of bsorption is selected to adjust at least one of the excitation levels of the material of the absorption layer and the effective energy band of the superreticle, respectively.

2. The photovoltaic cell according to claim 1, further characterized in that it comprises a series of pairs of semiconductor regions (4-9), separated by joints and having effective bandgaps decreasing with each pair, wherein at least two of the semiconductor regions (4-9) include a superreticle and an attached layer (24-26) of a material for absorption of radiation that results in the excitation of the charge carriers, of said thickness that the levels of excitation are they determine by the material itself.

3. - The photovoltaic cell according to claim 1 or 2, further characterized in that the superreticle comprises a combination of periodic repetition of layers (10-21) of different semiconductor materials, sufficiently thin to provide the superreticle with effective band gap different from that of any of the semiconductor materials in the individual layers of the superreticle.

4. - The photovoltaic cell according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that the superreticle is comprised of intrinsic semiconductor materials and the photovoltaic cell further comprises at least one pair of differently doped N-type and P-type semiconductor regions, arranged for give rise to the internal electric field inside the photovoltaic cell.

5. - The photovoltaic cell according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that the absorption layer is sandwiched between said semiconductor regions and said semiconductor regions have different effective bandgaps.

6. - The photovoltaic cell according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that the material for absorption of radiation comprises at least one of a direct semiconductor, an organic molecular material and a material comprising nanocrystals.

7. The photovoltaic cell according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that the superreticle comprises a periodic combination of repeating layers (10-21) of different amorphous semiconductor materials.

8. - The photovoltaic cell according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that the superreticle comprises a periodically repeated combination of layers (10-21) of hydrogenated semiconductor materials.

9. - A method for manufacturing a photovoltaic cell arrangement, which includes depositing layers (10-26) of material in a sheet length and forming patterns of at least some of the layers to form an array of photovoltaic cells (1), wherein a cell array according to any of claims 1-8 is formed.

10. The method according to claim 9, further characterized in that the layers are deposited in at least one station (19, 20) in a production line (18), wherein the almost continuous length of the sheet is advanced beyond each station (19, 20).

11. - The photovoltaic device that includes a plurality of photovoltaic cells (1) according to any of the claims