LIGHTER MORE RADIATION RESISTANT GAAS SOLAR CELL ASSEMBLIES THROUGH ELECTROSTATIC COVERGLASS BONDING

THE GOAL OF THIS PROGRAM IS TO DEVELOP A NOVEL ELECTROSTATIC BONDING (ESB) PROCESS FOR ATTACHING COVERGLASSES TO SPACE GALLIUM ARSENIDE (GAAS) SOLAR CELLS. IN THIS PROCESS, DIRECT CHEMICAL BONDS ARE FORMED BETWEEN THE GLASS AND THE TOP SURFACE OF THE CELL. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION WOULD LEAD TO THE WORLD'S FIRST ADHESIVE-FREE GAAS CELL-GLASS ASSEMBLIES. SUCH ASSEMBLIES PROMISE TO PROVIDE SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENTS IN RADIATION HARDNESS AND THERMAL STABILITY OVER CONVENTIONALLY GLASSED CELLS. DIRECT BONDING IS ALSO AMENABLE TO CERTAIN TECHNIQUES FOR REDUCING CELL POWER LOSS DUE TO FRONT SURFACE METALLIZATION SHADOWING. SURFACE GROOVES FORMED IN THE GLASS CAN BE USED TO REFLECT OR REFRACT LIGHT ONTO THE CELL'S ACTIVE AREA, THEREBY INCREASING CELL CONVERSION EFFICIENCY. RESEARCH IN PHASE I WILL TEST FEASIBILITY OF THE ESB PROCESS BY EXPERIMENTALLY INVESTIGATION THE BOND FORMATION PROCESS, TESTING THE BOND'S INTEGRITY AND STABILITY, AND MEASURING THE POST-BOND CELL PERFORMANCE.PHASE II WILL INVESTIGATE ASPECTS OF THE PROCESS REQUIRING MORE IN-DEPTH RESEARCH, AS IDENTIFIED IN THE PHASE I PROGRAM.