1. A photovoltaic article comprising a first photovoltaic cell having a photoelectrically active region which is located between a topside electrode and a backside electrode, and an electrical connector in contact with the backside electrode on the backside of the cell and is connected to the backside electrode by use of an electrically conductive adhesive or solder, wherein an electrically conductive patch is located over at least a portion of and in electrical contact with both the backside electrode and the connector.
2. The photovoltaic article of claim 1 further comprising an additional photovoltaic cell adjacent to the first photovoltaic cell where the additional photovoltaic cell has a photoelectrically active region which is located between a topside electrode and a backside electrode, wherein the electrical connector in contact with the backside of the first photovoltaic cell is in contact with an electrically conducting element of the second photovoltaic cell.
3. The article of claim 2 wherein the electrical connector in contact with the backside of the first photovoltaic cell is in contact with the topside electrode of the second photovoltaic cell.
4. The photovoltaic article of claim 3 wherein there are one or more additional photovoltaic cells each adjacent to another photovoltaic cell, each cell having a photoelectrically active region which is located between a topside electrode and a backside electrode and connecting each adjacent cell is one or more electrical connector in contact with the topside electrode of one cell and the backside electrode of the adjacent cell to form a series of interconnected cells, where at least a portion of the backside electrode and the electrical connector in contact with it are covered by a conductive patch.
5. The photovoltaic article of claim 1, wherein the conductive patch comprises one or more of conductive tape, electrically conductive adhesive or low melting metal or solder material.
6. The photovoltaic article of claim 5, wherein the conductive patch comprises a metallic or intermetallic composition with a melting temperature lower than about 300\xb0 C.
7. The photovoltaic article of claim 5, wherein the conductive patch comprises an electrically conductive epoxy adhesive.
8. The photovoltaic article of claim 6 wherein the conductive patch comprises indium.
9. The photovoltaic article of claim 1, wherein the electrical connectors are attached to the topside electrode andor the backside electrode using electrically conductive adhesive.
10. The photovoltaic article of claim 1, wherein the electrical connector comprises a wire mesh.
11. A photovoltaic article according to claim 1, further comprising
a backside support, a frontside transparent barrier material, and electrical connections to enable transfer of electricity generated in the photovoltaic cell to other electrical devices.
12. The article of claim 11 further comprising an encapsulant material between the backside support and the backside electrode and an encapsulant material between the topside electrode and the frontside transparent barrier.
13. The article of claim 11 wherein the frontside transparent barrier is flexible.
14. The article of claim 11 wherein the frontside transparent barrier is glass.
15. The photovoltaic article of claim 11 further comprising a polymeric frame around at least a portion of the stack comprising the backside support, photovoltaic cell and electrical connectors and frontside transparent barrier material.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A semiconductor device comprising:
a semiconductor layer comprising an element region and an insulating region; and
a semiconductor element formed in the element region,
wherein the insulating region comprises an insulating film formed in the semiconductor layer to define a void.
2. The semiconductor device of claim 1, further comprising a cover film disposed on the void.
3. The semiconductor device of claim 1, further comprising an electrode pad connected to the semiconductor element and disposed on the insulating region.
4. The semiconductor device of claim 1, further comprising an additional void defined by the insulating film.
5. The semiconductor device of claim 2, wherein the cover film comprises another insulating film or a metal film.
6. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising:
providing a semiconductor layer;
forming a trench in the semiconductor layer;
forming an insulating film in the trench so as not to fill the trench completely so that a void is formed in the trench;
forming a cover film on the trench; and
forming an semiconductor element in the semiconductor layer outside the trench.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the insulating film is formed by thermally oxidizing the semiconductor layer.
8. The method of claim 6, further comprising forming an electrode pad on the insulating film so as to be connected to the semiconductor element.
9. The method of claim 6, wherein the cover film comprises another insulating film formed by a deposition method.
10. The method of claim 6, wherein the cover film comprises a metal film formed by a physical deposition method.
11. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising:
providing a semiconductor layer;
forming a plurality of trenches in the semiconductor layer;
thermally oxidizing inside walls of the trenches so as to grow an insulating film so that voids are formed in the trenches;
forming a cover film on the trenches; and
forming an semiconductor element in the semiconductor layer outside the trenches,
wherein the oxidation of the inside walls of the trenches is performed so that portions of the semiconductor layer between the trenches are completely oxidized.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising forming an electrode pad on the trenches so as to be connected to the semiconductor element.
13. The method of claim 11, wherein the cover film comprises another insulating film formed by a deposition method.
14. The method of claim 11, wherein the cover film comprises a metal film formed by a physical deposition method.
15. The method of claim 11, wherein the trenches are formed so that a distance between neighboring edges of a pair of neighboring trenches is shorter than a width of the trenches at an opening thereof.
16. A semiconductor device comprising:
a semiconductor substrate;
a semiconductor element formed on the substrate;
an electrode pad formed on the substrate and connected to the semiconductor element; and
an insulating region formed in the substrate under the electrode pad and comprising an insulating portion and an void portion defined by the insulating portion.