Search results for "Solar cell"
showing 10 items of 410 documents
Review on up/down conversion materials for solar cell application
2012
The present paper reviews the methods of photon up- and down conversion strategies for improving the efficiency of solar cells. Photons with a lower energy than the band gap will be lost in a normal solar cell. The principle of the up conversion technique is that two or more photons are converted into a photon with energy higher than the band gap energy. High energy photons will lose the energy above the band gap energy limit. Down conversion is a process where a high energy photon is converted into several lower energy photons with energies above the band gap. A description is given of the most common methods and materials for these conversions resulting in higher solar cell efficiencies.
THE LIMITING EFFICIENCY OF FOUR-BAND CELLS REVISITED
2014
The limiting theoretical efficiency of four-band solar cells is revisited. In previous work, researchers have looked at the theoretical efficiency of four band cells where the smallest of the three sub-band gaps is closest to the valence band and the largest closest to the conduction band. In this work, limits are calculated also for other possible band configurations. In multi-band cells, photon selectivity can be assured by adjusting the band widths. The present work shows that previous authors have put too rigid constraints on the band structure to achieve spectral selectivity. Relieving these constraints gives a considerably higher limiting efficiency for cells with band width restricti…
Light trapping by plasmonic nanoparticles
2020
Abstract Metallic nanoparticles sustaining localized surface plasmon resonances are of great interest for enhancing light trapping in thin film photovoltaics. In this chapter, we explore the correlation between the structural and optical properties of self-assembled silver nanostructures fabricated by a solid-state dewetting process on various substrates relevant for silicon photovoltaics and later integrated into plasmonic back reflectors. Our study allows us to optimize the performance of nanostructures by identifying the fabrication conditions in which desirable circular and uniformly spaced nanoparticles are obtained. Second, we introduce a novel optoelectronic spectroscopic method that…
Size dependent light absorption modulation and enhanced carrier transport in germanium quantum dots devices
2015
Quantum confinement in closely packed arrays of Ge quantum dots (QDs) was studied for energy applications. In this work, we report an efficient tuning mechanism of the light harvesting and detection of Ge QDs. Thin films of SiGeO alloys, produced by rf-magnetron sputtering, were annealed at 600 degrees C in N-2 to induce precipitation of small amorphous Ge QDs into the oxide matrix. Varying the Ge content, the QD size was tailored between 2 and 4 nm, as measured by high resolution transmission electron microscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements indicate the formation of pure SiO2, as well as the presence of a sub-stoichiometric Ge oxide shell at the QD interface. Light …
Solar pavements: A critical review
2021
Abstract Resilient, smart and sustainable: these are the keywords for the next generation of road infrastructures. As a renewable and environment-friendly energy harvesting pavement, the concept of a solar pavement has become one of the most researched new highway transportation infrastructures with a goal to transform the road system from the energy consumer to the energy provider, and eliminate or alleviate pollution from the source of energy. At present, the commercial technology through photovoltaic is limited by space installation requirements, which restricts its popularization and application. On the other hand, applying photovoltaic power generation technology to the pavement can pr…
Hybrid-Functional Calculations on the Incorporation of Na and K Impurities into the CuInSe 2 and CuIn 5 Se 8 Solar-Cell Materials
2015
International audience; We have studied the energetics, atomic, and electronic structure of Na and K point defects, as well as the (Na-Na), (K-K), and (Na-K) dumbbells in CuInSe2 and CuIn5Se8 solar cell materials by hybrid functional calculations. We found that although Na and K behaves somewhat similar; there is a qualitative difference between the inclusion of Na and K impurities. Namely, Na will be mostly incorporated into CuInSe2 and CuIn5Se8 either as an interstitial defect coordinated by cations, or two Na impurities will form (Na-Na) dumbbells in the Cu sublattice. In contrast to Na, K impurities are less likely to form interstitial defects. Instead, it is more preferable to accommod…
Interpretation of the photoluminescence decay kinetics in metal halide perovskite nanocrystals and thin polycrystalline films
2020
Abstract In this paper we present critical analysis of different points of view on interpretation of the photoluminescence (PL) decay kinetics in lead halide perovskites prepared in the form of well passivated nanocrystals (PNCs) or thin polycrystalline layers. In addition to the literature data, our own measurements are also considered. For PNCs, a strong dependence of the PL lifetimes on the type of passivating ligand was observed with a consistently high PL quantum yield. It is shown that such ligand effects, as well as a decrease in the PL lifetime with decreasing temperature, are well qualitatively explained by the phenomenological model of thermally activated delayed luminescence, in …
Fast determination of impurities in metallurgical grade silicon for photovoltaics by instrumental neutron activation analysis
2010
Standard wafer solar cells are made of near-semiconductor quality silicon. This high quality material makes up a significant part of the total costs of a solar module. Therefore, new concepts with less expensive so called solar grade silicon directly based on physiochemically upgraded metallurgical grade silicon are investigated. Metallurgical grade silicon contains large amounts of impurities, mainly transition metals like Fe, Cr, Mn, and Co, which degrade the minority carrier lifetime and thus the solar cell efficiency. A major reduction of the transition metal content occurs during the unidirectional crystallization due to the low segregation coefficient between the solid and liquid phas…
Efficient vacuum deposited p-i-n and n-i-p perovskite solar cells employing doped charge transport layers
2016
Methylammonium lead halide perovskites have emerged as high performance photovoltaic materials. Most of these solar cells are prepared via solution-processing and record efficiencies (>20%) have been obtained employing perovskites with mixed halides and organic cations on (mesoscopic) metal oxides. Here, we demonstrate fully vacuum deposited planar perovskite solar cells by depositing methylammonium lead iodide in between intrinsic and doped organic charge transport molecules. Two configurations, one inverted with respect to the other, p-i-n and n-i-p, are prepared and optimized leading to planar solar cells without hysteresis and very high efficiencies, 16.5% and 20%, respectively. It is t…
Intrinsic Organic Semiconductors as Hole Transport Layers in p–i–n Perovskite Solar Cells
2021
Thin polymeric and small-molecular-weight organic semiconductors are widely employed as hole transport layers (HTLs) in perovskite solar cells. To ensure ohmic contact with the electrodes, the use of doping or additional high work function (WF) interlayer is common. In some cases, however, intrinsic organic semiconductors can be used without any additive or buffer layers, although their thickness must be tuned to ensure selective and ohmic hole transport. Herein, the characteristics of thin HTLs in vacuum-deposited perovskite solar cells are studied, and it is found that only very thin (<5 nm) HTLs readily result inhigh-performing devices, as the HTL acts as a WF enhancer while still ens…