A method of forming a multijunction solar cell comprising an upper subcell, a middle subcell, and a lower subcell by providing a first substrate for the epitaxial growth of semiconductor material; forming a first solar subcell on said substrate having a first band gap; forming a second solar subcell over said first subcell having a second band gap smaller than said first band gap; forming a grading interlayer over said second subcell having a third band gap larger than said second band gap; forming a third solar subcell having a fourth band gap smaller than said second band gap such that said third subcell is lattice mismatched with respect to said second subcell; and etching a via from the top of the third subcell to the substrate to enable both anode and cathode contacts to be placed on the backside of the solar cell.