US 11,935,975 B2
Methods of producing a photovoltaic junction including ligand exchange of quantum dots of a film
Mathew Kelley, Columbia, SC (US); Andrew B. Greytak, Columbia, SC (US); Mvs Chandrashekhar, Lexington, SC (US); and Joshua Letton, Columbia, SC (US)
Assigned to UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA, Columbia, SC (US)
Filed by UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA, Columbia, SC (US)
Filed on Dec. 5, 2022, as Appl. No. 18/074,665.
Application 18/074,665 is a division of application No. 16/857,687, filed on Apr. 24, 2020, granted, now 11,538,948.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/866,857, filed on Jun. 26, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2023/0223485 A1, Jul. 13, 2023
Int. Cl. H01L 31/0352 (2006.01); H01L 31/0224 (2006.01); H01L 31/0304 (2006.01); H01L 31/0312 (2006.01); H01L 31/032 (2006.01); H01L 31/0336 (2006.01); H01L 31/07 (2012.01); H01L 31/108 (2006.01); H01L 31/18 (2006.01); H10K 30/00 (2023.01)
CPC H01L 31/035218 (2013.01) [H01L 31/022408 (2013.01); H01L 31/03048 (2013.01); H01L 31/0312 (2013.01); H01L 31/0324 (2013.01); H01L 31/0336 (2013.01); H01L 31/07 (2013.01); H01L 31/108 (2013.01); H01L 31/18 (2013.01); H01L 31/1848 (2013.01); H10K 30/00 (2023.02)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for producing a photovoltaic junction, the method comprising:
applying a metallic contact to a first surface area of a semiconductor layer to form a first physical junction between a first surface area of the metallic contact and the first surface area of the semiconductor layer, the first physical junction forming a Schottky diode;
coating a second surface area of the semiconductor layer and a second surface area of the metallic contact with a composition including a plurality of ligand-protected quantum dots;
carrying out a ligand-exchange with the ligand-protected quantum dots to form a light absorbing layer, wherein a second physical junction exists between a first surface area of the light absorbing layer and the second surface area of the semiconductor layer and a third physical junction exists between a second surface area of the light absorbing layer and the second surface area of the metallic contact, the second physical junction forming a diode that exhibits Shockley-Read Hall trap-assisted recombination, and the third physical junction forming an ohmic contact; wherein
the photovoltaic junction exhibits absorption across one or more wavelengths in the range from about 200 nm to about 2000 nm.