n-CdO films were deposited by activated reactive evaporation on Coming 7059 glass substrates maintained at 473 K. p-CdTe films were electron beam evaporated onto n-CdO films at 548 K. A typical Coming 7059 glass/n-CdO/p-CdTe/Cu-Au heterojunction was fabricated and its current-voltage, capacitance-voltage characteristics and spectral response were studied. An electrical conversion efficiency of about 7.7%, with an open-circuit voltage of 695 mV and short-circuit current density of 17.3 mA cm(-2), was observed for the cell of an active area of 1 cm(2) under a solar input of 85 mW cm(-2).