Novel silicon structure, used for solar cells or LCD TFTs, comprises a crystalline textured silicon thin film over a biaxially textured lattice-matched diffusion barrier buffer layer on a thermal expansion-matched inert substrate

摘要

A structure (2) comprises a crystalline textured silicon thin film (5) over a biaxially textured lattice-matched diffusion barrier buffer layer (4) on a thermal expansion-matched inert substrate (3). In the structure (2): (a) the substrate (3) consists of a material which has a thermal expansion coefficient of not more than 3 times that of the silicon material, has a structure not affecting the buffer layer texture and is chemically and mechanically resistant to buffer layer and silicon layer deposition; and (b) the buffer layer (4) has a biaxial texture with one crystal axis perpendicular to the substrate surface, forms a diffusion barrier between the silicon layer and the substrate and exhibits lattice structure and lattice constant matching with the silicon layer material. An Independent claim is also included for production of the above structure. Preferred Features: The substrate consists of a glass or a preferably nickel -based metallic material.