Kanegafuchi Kagaku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Kanegafuchi Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.

Jun Takada

Yoshihisa Tawada

Minori Yamaguchi

Keizo Asaoka

Katsuhiko Hayashi

The invention provides a temperature switch material capable of detecting a very low temperature not higher than 150 K. It also provides a light switch material for detecting light in the ultraviolet region. It further provides a switch material suited for use as a substrate for thin oxide layer formation thereon. The switching material utilizes an abrupt change in photoelectric current as produced upon phase transition of SrTiO.sub.3 at a low temperature. The photoelectric switch or temperature switch utilizes the change in photoconduction spectrum upon irradiation of SrTiO.sub.3 with light in the 3 eV-5 eV ultraviolet region. A switch is available by varying the intensity of irradiating light thereby controlling the transition temperature.

Photoconductive material

This invention relates to a photovoltaic device, such as a solar cell or a photosensor, which comprises an amorphous silicon semiconductor photosensitive layer and, as disposed on respective sides thereof, a transparent electrode and a rear electrode. The rear electrode is a multi-layer structure constructed by alternately successive depositions, each in a thickness of 0.3 to 50 nm, of two or more metals selected from the group consisting of Cu, Ag, and Au. In using such a Cu/Ag multi-layer structure or an Au/Ag multi-layer structure as the rear electrode, the thickness of each Cu or Au layer is controlled at 0.3 to 20 nm and that of each Ag layer at 1 to 50 nm. The total thickness of the rear electrode is 20 nm to 1 .mu.m. This construction insures improved photoelectric conversion efficiency and improved reliability of the device.

Photovoltaic device

A heat-resistant multijunction semiconductor device comprising a p-layer, a n-layer and a diffusion-blocking layer, the diffusion-blocking layer being provided between the p-layer and the n-layer. The semiconductor device can reduce the deterioration in quality which is caused by the diffusion of dopant atoms in the p-layer and n-layer, respectively, into the other layer.

Semiconductor tandem solar cells with metal silicide barrier

An optical memory comprising a doping modulated multilayer made of amorphous semiconductor, and at least two electrodes, one of the electrodes being transparent and the multilayer being sandwiched between two electrodes. Data is written by increasing the electrical conductance of the amorphous semiconductor by irradiating it with light. Data is erased by the application of a bias voltage to the electrodes and also by irradiating the amorphous semiconductor with light having photon energy of approximately half or less of the optical energy band gap of the amorphous semiconductor. The memory effect can be maintained for a week or longer, and the memory can be erased without heating the memory device, whereby the lifetime of the device is lengthened.

Optical storage apparatus including a reversible, doping modulated,

A heat-resistant thin film photoelectric converter, comprising a semiconductor layer, a front transparent electrode, a rear metal electrode, and a diffusion-blocking layer, said diffusion-blocking layer being provided between the semiconductor layer and the rear metal electrode and being a layer of metal silicide having a thickness of 5 .ANG. to 200 .ANG.. The converter of the present invention can avoid the reduction in the efficiency due to the diffusion of metal or metallic compound from the electrode into the semiconductor.

Heat-resistant thin film photoelectric converter

A heat-resistant thin film photoelectric converter comprising a semiconductor layer, front and back electrodes, and a diffusion-blocking layer, the diffusion-blocking layer being provided between the semiconductor and at least one said electrode, and its preparation. The diffusion-blocking layer is of a metal selected from the Group IVA metals and Group VA metals of the Periodic Table. The converter avoids the reduction in efficiency due to the diffusion of metal or metallic compound from the electrode into the semiconductor.

Growing community of inventors

Hyogo, Japan

Jun Takada