Photovoltaic cell and laminate metallization

1. A method for metallization for a photovoltaic laminate, the method comprising:

placing a first encapsulant on a substantially transparent layer;

placing a first solar cell on the first encapsulant;

placing a metal foil on the first solar cell, wherein a first surface of the metal foil uniformly contacts the first solar cell;

forming a metal bond that couples the metal foil to the first solar cell; and

after forming the metal bond that couples the metal foil to the first solar cell, placing another layer directly on a second surface of the metal foil.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the other layer comprises a backing material, and the method further comprises:

placing the backing material on the second surface of the metal foil;

forming a back layer on the backing material; and

bonding the substantially transparent layer, the first encapsulant, the first solar cell, the metal foil, the backing material and the back layer to form a photovoltaic laminate.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising placing a second solar cell on the first encapsulant.

4. The method of claim 3 , further comprising before placing the first solar cell on the first encapsulant, sorting a plurality of solar cells, wherein placing the first and second solar cells is performed according to the sorting.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the metal bond includes forming a metal contact region using a laser source, wherein the formed metal contact region electrically couples the metal foil to the first solar cell.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the metal bond comprises:

performing a patterning process resulting in a patterned metal foil and an excess metal foil;

forming the metal bond that couples the patterned metal foil to the first solar cell; and

removing the excess metal foil.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the metal bond comprises:

forming the metal bond that couples the metal foil attached to a carrier medium to the first solar cell, wherein the metal foil is pre-patterned; and

after forming the metal bond, removing the carrier medium.

8. The method of claim 2 , wherein bonding the substantially transparent layer, the first encapsulant, the first solar cell, the metal foil, the backing material and the back layer to form the photovoltaic laminate includes performing a method selected from the group consisting of curing, thermal curing, curing with Ultra Violet light and performing a standard lamination process to form a photovoltaic laminate.

9. A method for metallization for a photovoltaic laminate, the photovoltaic laminate having a front side which faces the sun during normal operation and a back side opposite the front side, the method comprising:

placing a first encapsulant on a substantially transparent layer that comprises the front side of the photovoltaic laminate;

placing a first solar cell on the first encapsulant;

placing a metal foil on the first solar cell, wherein a first surface of the metal foil uniformly contacts a back side of the first solar cell;

forming a metal bond that couples the metal foil to the first solar cell;

after forming the metal bond that couples the metal foil to the first solar cell, placing a backing material directly on a second surface of the metal foil;

forming a back layer on the backing material layer; and

curing the substantially transparent layer, the first encapsulant, the first solar cell, the metal foil, the backing material and the back layer to form a photovoltaic laminate.