The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 30, 2018
Filed:
Nov. 21, 2014
Jesse A. Frantz, Landover, MD (US);
Jasbinder S. Sanghera, Ashburn, VA (US);
Robel Y. Bekele, Washington, DC (US);
Vinh Q. Nguyen, Fairfax, VA (US);
Ishwar D. Aggarwal, Charlotte, NC (US);
Allan J. Bruce, Scotch Plains, NJ (US);
Michael Cyrus, Summit, NJ (US);
Sergey V. Frolov, Murray Hill, NJ (US);
Jesse A. Frantz, Landover, MD (US);
Jasbinder S. Sanghera, Ashburn, VA (US);
Robel Y. Bekele, Washington, DC (US);
Vinh Q. Nguyen, Fairfax, VA (US);
Ishwar D. Aggarwal, Charlotte, NC (US);
Allan J. Bruce, Scotch Plains, NJ (US);
Michael Cyrus, Summit, NJ (US);
Sergey V. Frolov, Murray Hill, NJ (US);
The United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy, Washington, DC (US);
Sunlight Photonics Inc., South Plainfield, NJ (US);
Abstract
A method and apparatus for forming a thin film of a copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS)-type material are disclosed. The method includes providing first and second targets in a common sputtering chamber. The first target includes a source of CIGS material, such as an approximately stoichiometric polycrystalline CIGS material, and the second target includes a chalcogen, such as selenium, sulfur, tellurium, or a combination of these elements. The second target provides an excess of chalcogen in the chamber. This can compensate, at least in part, for the loss of chalcogen from the CIGS-source in the first target, resulting in a thin film with a controlled stoichiometry which provides effective light absorption when used in a solar cell.