Equipment for growing semiconductor heterostructures in outer space

Abstract

This article describes the features of the equipment developed at the Rzhanov Institute of Semiconductor Physics for conducting experiments on growing semiconductor heterostructures from molecular beams in outer space under the conditions of an orbital flight of the International Space Station. Working out the processes of epitaxy of semiconductor films in outer space will allow us to grow complex semiconductor structures with sharp boundaries, which serve as the basis for the creation of solar cells, as well as devices of modern microwave, optoand microelectronics. Cascade photovoltaic converters based on such multilayer heterostructures of A3B5 semiconductor compounds have high efficiency and radiation resistance and, therefore, are most widely used for the manufacture of space solar cells. The high efficiency of such batteries is due to the wide spectral range in which solar radiation is effectively absorbed and used in photovoltaic conversion.