Stion Corporation

Intevac, Inc.

Scivac

Steven Aragon

Robert D Wieting

Chester A Farris, Iii

Paul Alexander

William A Lewis

An apparatus for uniform reactive thermal treatment of thin-film materials includes a chamber enclosing a tube shaped space filled with a work gas and heaters disposed outside the chamber. The apparatus further includes a loading configuration for subjecting a plurality of planar substrates to the work gas in the tube shaped space. Baffles are disposed above and below the loading configuration.

Apparatus and method utilizing forced convection for uniform thermal treatment of thin film devices

The method and system for selenization in fabricating CIS and/or CIGS based thin film solar cell overlaying cylindrical glass substrates. The method includes providing a substrate, forming an electrode layer over the substrate and depositing a precursor layer of copper, indium, and/or gallium over the electrode layer. The method also includes disposing the substrate vertically in a furnace. Then a gas including a hydrogen species, a selenium species and a carrier gas are introduced into the furnace and heated to between about 350&#xb0; C. and about 450&#xb0; C. to at least initiate formation of a copper indium diselenide film from the precursor layer.

Method and system for selenization in fabricating CIGS/CIS solar cells

A method of sodium doping in fabricating CIGS/CIS based thin film solar cells includes providing a shaped substrate member. The method includes forming a barrier layer over the surface region followed by a first electrode layer, and then a sodium bearing layer. A precursor layer of copper, indium, and/or gallium materials having an atomic ratio of copper/group III species no greater than 1.0 is deposited over the sodium bearing layer. The method further includes transferring the shaped substrate member to a second chamber and subjecting it to a thermal treatment process within an environment comprising gas-phase selenium species, followed by an environment comprising gas-phase sulfur species with the selenium species being substantially removed to form an absorber layer.

Sodium doping method and system for shaped CIGS/CIS based thin film solar cells

An inverted field circular planar magnetron sputtering device is described that produces coatings with a high degree of thickness uniformity on round wafer-like substrates. It is a compact source with no moving mechanical parts. DC signals applied to low power electromagnetic coils provide control of the coating thickness uniformity throughout the life of the target. AC signals applied to the coils oscillate the sputtering rings to improve target utilization and maintain a clean target surface. Utilization of target material is about 40% for both magnetic and non-magnetic target materials. The design accommodates versions for both direct and indirect water cooling.

Inverted field circular magnetron sputtering device

Apparatus for depositing a film on a substrate includes a housing that encloses a sputtering chamber, a substrate holder for positioning a substrate in the sputtering chamber and a sputtering gun, including a sputtering target, for depositing a film of atoms of the target on a surface of the substrate. The chamber contains a gas which forms a plasma. An electrical potential is applied to the substrate for accelerating ions from the plasma toward the substrate. The apparatus includes a substrate electrode for controlling trajectories of ions accelerated from the plasma toward the substrate. The substrate electrode permits movement of the substrate by the substrate holder and establishes a substantially uniform electrical potential around the periphery of the substrate as viewed from the plasma. The substrate electrode may be biased so that ions substantially uniformly bombard the surface of the substrate.

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Campbell, CA, United States of America

Steven Aragon