Doping levels, trap density of states and the performance of co-doped CdTe(As,Cl) photovoltaic devices

Doping, compensation and photovoltaic performance have been investigated in all-metal-organic vapour-phase deposition (MOCVD) grown CdTe/CdS solar cells that were co-doped with arsenic and chlorine. Although arsenic chemical concentration is in the range of 1017–1.5×1019 cm−3, the maximum net acceptor concentration is only in the order of 1014 cm−3, as determined by capacitance–voltage characteristics. Admittance spectroscopy revealed shallow traps at 0.055 eV which were attributed to AsTe; its compensation by Cdi is discussed. Formation of the alloy CdSxTe1−x is linked to deep levels at EV+∼0.55 eV and EV+∼0.65 eV. Limits to the diffusion of photo-generated carriers were considered to be important in determining photovoltaic performance rather than carrier lifetime. Prospects for optimizing the performance of such co-doped MOCVD-grown devices are discussed

Impedance spectroscopy of thin-film CdTe/CdS solar cells under varied illumination

The electrical properties of CdTe/CdS solar cells grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition were investigated by a technique of impedance measurements under varied intensity of AM1.5 illumination. A generalized impedance model was developed and applied to a series of CdTe/CdS cells with variations in structure and doping. The light measurements were compared to the conventional ac measurements in dark under varied dc bias, using the same methodology for equivalent circuit analysis in both cases. Detailed information on the properties of the device structure was obtained, including the properties of the main p-n junction under light, minority carrier lifetime, back contact, as well as the effect of the blocking ZnO layer incorporated between the transparent conductor and CdS layers. In particular, the comparison between samples with different chemical concentrations of As has shown that the total device impedance and the series resistance are strongly increased at lower As densities, resulting in the lower collection current and efficiencies. At the same time the minority carrier lifetime was found to be one order of magnitude larger for the lowest value of As density, when compared to the optimized devices

T-cell activation by treatment of cancer patients with EMD 521873 (Selectikine), an IL-2/anti-DNA fusion protein.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: EMD 521873 (Selectikine or NHS-IL2LT) is a fusion protein consisting of modified human IL-2 which binds specifically to the high-affinity IL-2 receptor, and an antibody specific for both single- and double-stranded DNA, designed to facilitate the enrichment of IL-2 in tumor tissue. METHODS: An extensive analysis of pharmacodynamic (PD) markers associated with target modulation was assessed during a first-in-human phase I dose-escalation trial of Selectikine. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients with metastatic or locally advanced tumors refractory to standard treatments were treated with increasing doses of Selectikine, and nine further patients received additional cyclophosphamide. PD analysis, assessed during the first two treatment cycles, revealed strong activation of both CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells and only weak NK cell activation. No dose response was observed. As expected, Treg cells responded actively to Selectikine but remained at lower frequency than effector CD4+ T-cells. Interestingly, patient survival correlated positively with both high lymphocyte counts and low levels of activated CD8+ T-cells at baseline, the latter of which was associated with enhanced T-cell responses to the treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirm the selectivity of Selectikine with predominant T-cell and low NK cell activation, supporting follow-up studies assessing the clinical efficacy of Selectikine for cancer patients