Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2011.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 22-23).A furnace was designed and its heat transfer properties were analyzed for use in annealing thin-film tins-ulfide solar cells. Tin sulfide has been explored as an earth abundant solar cell material, and the furnace was developed to test the properties of annealed tin-sulfide thin films. Annealing is a highly temperature and time dependent process so the furnace must be able to reach the temperature to be tested quickly, maintain that temperature and once finished, cool down quickly. The furnace is composed of a quartz tube with two heated zones, both heated with nichrome wire and cooled with fans. The two zones were designed to reach temperatures of 600 C and 200 C and to be cooled at a rate of 10 C per minute.by Raymond Lewis.S.B
