Panasonic Corporation

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Akihiro Itoh

Nobuaki Nagao

Takahiro Hamada

Tohru Nakagawa

Hidetoshi Ishida

Akio Matsushita

Shinichi Wakabayashi

Jingo Adachi

Eiji Fujii

Tomoyuki Komori

A solar cell has a condenser lens and a solar cell element, the solar cell element including an n-type InGaAs layer, an n-type GaAs layer, an n-type InGaP layer, the first InGaAs peripheral part having a thickness (d2), and a width (w2), the second InGaAs peripheral part having a thickness (d3), and a width (w3), the first GaAs peripheral part having a thickness (d5), and a width (w4), the second GaAs peripheral part a thickness (d6), and a width (w5), the first InGaP peripheral part having a thickness (d8), and a width (w6), the second InGaP peripheral part having a thickness (d9), and a width (w7), the following inequation set being satisfied: 1 nm&#x2264;(d2, d3, d5, and d6)&#x2264;4 nm, 1 nm&#x2264;(d8 and d9)&#x2264;5 nm, 100 nm&#x2264;(w2, w3, w4, w5, w6, and w7), the InGaAs center part having a thickness (w1), a window layer has a range S irradiated by sunlight having a width (w8); w8&#x2264;w1.

Solar cell

A solar cell comprises an n-type semiconductor layer, a p-type semiconductor layer, a p-side electrode layer, an n-side electrode; and a ZnO transparent electrode layer. The n-side electrode layer consists of AgAu, and x represents a value of not less than 0.1 and not more than 0.5. The ZnO transparent electrode layer is composed of a plurality of ZnO columnar particles and each ZnO columnar particle has a longitudinal direction substantially parallel to a normal line of the ZnO transparent electrode layer. The cross-sectional area of each ZnO columnar particles that appears by cutting the ZnO columnar particles perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction increases from the upper surface of the n-side electrode layer to the upper surface of the ZnO transparent electrode layer.

Solar cell and method for fabricating the same

A solar cell includes a graphite substrate, an amorphous carbon layer having a thickness of not less than 20 nm and not more than 60 nm formed on the graphite substrate, an AlN layer formed on the amorphous carbon layer, a n-type nitride semiconductor layer formed on the AlN layer; a light-absorption layer including a nitride semiconductor layer formed on the n-type nitride semiconductor layer; a p-type nitride semiconductor layer formed on the light-absorption layer; a p-side electrode electrically connected to the p-type nitride semiconductor layer; and an n-side electrode electrically connected to the n-type nitride semiconductor layer. The amorphous carbon layer is obtained by oxidizing the surface of the graphite substrate.

A single crystal of zinc oxide which is c-axis oriented with use of electrolytic deposition method is formed on an amorphous carbon layer, after the amorphous carbon layer is provided on an inexpensive graphite substrate. The amorphous carbon layer is provided by oxidizing the surface of the graphite substrate.

Substrate and method for fabricating the same

A method for generating electric power with use of a solar cell includes steps of: (a) preparing the solar cell including a condensing lens and a solar cell element, wherein the following inequation set (I) is satisfied: d&#x3c;d, d&#x3c;d, 1 nanometer&#x2266;d&#x2266;4 nanometers, 1 nanometer&#x2266;d&#x2266;4 nanometers, 100 nanometers&#x2266;w, and 100 nanometers&#x2266;w. . . (I); and (b) irradiating a region S which is included in the surface of the p-type window layer through the condensing lens with light in such a manner that the following inequation (II) is satisfied so as to generate a potential difference between the n-side electrode () and the p-side electrode (): w&#x2266;w. . . (II).

A method for generating electric power including the steps of: (a) preparing a solar cell having a condensing lens and a solar cell element, wherein the solar cell element includes an n-type GaAs layer, a p-type GaAs layer, a quantum tunneling layer, an n-type InGaP layer, a p-type InGaP layer, a p-type window layer, an n-side electrode, and a p-side electrode, and satisfies the following equation (I): d&#x3c;d, d&#x3c;d, nanometer&#x2266;d&#x2266;4 nanometers, 1 nanometer&#x2266;d&#x2266;4 nanometers, d&#x3c;d, d&#x3c;d, 1 nanometer&#x2266;d5 nanometers, 1 nanometer&#x2266;d&#x2266;5 nanometers, 100 nanometers&#x2266;w, 100 nanometers&#x2266;w, 100 nanometers&#x2266;w, and 100 nanometers&#x2266;w. . . (I); and (b) irradiating a region S which is included in the surface of the p-type window layer through the condensing lens with light to satisfy the following equation (II) in order to generate a potential difference between the n-side electrode and the p-side electrode: w&#x2266;w. . . (II).

A method for joining a film onto a substrate comprises: a step (A) of floating the film on an interface between an aqueous liquid and a water-insoluble liquid; a step (B) of immersing the substrate into the aqueous liquid; a step (C) of stacking the substrate onto said one surface of the film in the aqueous liquid; a step (D) of immersing the stacked substrate and film into the water-insoluble liquid with maintaining the substrate being stacked on the film to adhere the film to the substrate; and a step (E) of drawing up the stacked substrate and film from the water-insoluble liquid with maintaining the substrate being stacked on the film to join the film onto the substrate.

Method for joining a film onto a substrate

A substrate for semiconductor device includes a graphite substrate, an amorphous carbon layer having a thickness of not less than 20 nm and not more than 60 nm formed on the graphite substrate and an AlN layer formed on the amorphous carbon layer. The amorphous carbon layer is obtained by oxidizing the surface of the graphite substrate.

Light-emitting diode element and method for fabricating the same

An encoder according to the present invention is an encoder for encoding an optical wavelength-multiplexed signal compliant with optical CDMA into a code having a code pattern, including: L optical fibersand(where L is an integer equal to or greater than two) each having a plurality of gratingsto; and a circulatorfor coupling the plurality of optical fibersand. The code pattern contains time bins tto t. A plurality of wavelengths &#x3bb;and &#x3bb;are assigned to the time bin t. If a sum of an optical path difference in each optical fiber from the grating which reflects the optical signal of the wavelength &#x3bb;to the grating which reflects the optical signal of the wavelength &#x3bb;is calculated for all of the optical fibersand, the sum equals zero.

Encoder/decoder for optical CDMA

There is provided an apparatus for performing, by optical code division multiplex access, at least one of encoding and decoding of wavelength-division-multiplexed light. The apparatus includes: an optical input/output sectionfor handling input/output of the wavelength-division-multiplexed light; and N fiber gratings (where N is an integer equal to or greater than two)to, which are in a series connection to the optical input/output section. Each of the N fiber gratings has a sampled grating structure having an alternating array of first regions (toto; andto) which provide a refractive index modulation with a relatively large amplitude and second regions () which provide a refractive index modulation with a relatively small amplitude, the first and second regions being disposed with a constant period P. Each sampled grating structure defines a plurality of reflection wavelength bands which are replicated with a period that is equal to the interval (&#x394;T) between the central wavelengths of wavelength bands contained in the wavelength-division-multiplexed light. The central values of the respective reflection wavelength bands differ from one fiber grating to another at least during operation.

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Kyoto, Japan

Akihiro Itoh