Ge nanopillar solar cells epitaxially grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Kim, Young-Jo; Lâm, Nguyễn Đình; Kim, Kangho; Park, Won-Kyu; Lee, Jaejin

doi:10.1038/srep42693

Cited by 16 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…It is important to note that Pt nanoparticles play a key role in catalyzing water reduction reaction efficiently, see the Supplementary Experimental Section, and such GaN nanostructures provide enormous catalytic sites for Pt deposition that significantly facilitate water reduction reaction of platinized GaN/3J samples. Considering the small photovoltage of ∼0.3 V provided by the bottom Ge junction, − compared to the large photo voltage in the presented device, we can reasonably conclude that a GaN-protected GaInP 2 /GaAs double-junction tandem structure can drive unassisted solar water splitting with significantly improved (light-limited) efficiency. In addition, the use of RuO x , IrO x , or other high-performance counter electrodes can lead to improved performance. ,,− …”

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confidence: 52%

Stable Unassisted Solar Water Splitting on Semiconductor Photocathodes Protected by Multifunctional GaN Nanostructures

et al. 2019

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Producing hydrogen by unassisted solar water splitting is one essential step to make direct solar fuel conversion a viable energy source. To date, however, there has been no demonstration of stable photoelectrodes for high-efficiency photoelectrochemical water splitting. In this work, we report that a GaInP 2 /GaAs/Ge triple-junction (3J) photocathode protected by multifunctional GaN nanostructures can enable both efficient and relatively stable solar water splitting. A 12.6% solar-to-hydrogen (STH) efficiency is measured without any external bias. Of particular importance, we demonstrate relatively stable solar water splitting for 80 h in three-electrode configuration and 57 h in twoelectrode measurement at zero bias. This is the best reported stability for multijunction III-V semiconductor photocathodes in two-electrode configuration to our knowledge. The multifunctional GaN nanostructure significantly reduces the charge transfer resistance at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface and protects III−V materials against corrosion. Such multifunctional GaN photocatalytic nanostructures provide a new pathway to improve the performance of conventional photoelectrodes to achieve both efficient and stable unassisted solar water splitting.

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confidence: 52%

Stable Unassisted Solar Water Splitting on Semiconductor Photocathodes Protected by Multifunctional GaN Nanostructures

et al. 2019

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“…However, based on additional simulation work upon completing the multi-dimensional optimization, an effective thickness higher than 8 μm (up to 18 μm) will only increase the efficiency by an average of about 1% for various blackbody temperatures due to the sharp decline of the absorption coefficient for λ ≥ 1.63 µm. Other than that, the light trapping method such as Lambertian rear reflector and textured surface can be used to improve the light absorption in the cell 74 , 84 .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-dimensional optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As thermophotovoltaic cell using real coded genetic algorithm

Gamel

Ker

Lee

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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The optimization of thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cell efficiency is essential since it leads to a significant increase in the output power. Typically, the optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell has been limited to single variable such as the emitter thickness, while the effects of the variation in other design variables are assumed to be negligible. The reported efficiencies of In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell mostly remain < 15%. Therefore, this work develops a multi-variable or multi-dimensional optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell using the real coded genetic algorithm (RCGA) at various radiation temperatures. RCGA was developed using Visual Basic and it was hybridized with Silvaco TCAD for the electrical characteristics simulation. Under radiation temperatures from 800 to 2000 K, the optimized In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell efficiency increases by an average percentage of 11.86% (from 8.5 to 20.35%) as compared to the non-optimized structure. It was found that the incorporation of a thicker base layer with the back-barrier layers enhances the separation of charge carriers and increases the collection of photo-generated carriers near the band-edge, producing an optimum output power of 0.55 W/cm2 (cell efficiency of 22.06%, without antireflection coating) at 1400 K radiation spectrum. The results of this work demonstrate the great potential to generate electricity sustainably from industrial waste heat and the multi-dimensional optimization methodology can be adopted to optimize semiconductor devices, such as solar cell, TPV cell and photodetectors.

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“…However, based on additional simulation work upon completing the multi-dimensional optimization, an effective thickness higher than 8 μm (up to 18 μm) will only increase the efficiency by an average of about 1% for various blackbody temperatures due to the sharp decline of the absorption coefficient for ≥ 1.63 µm. Other than that, the light trapping method such as Lambertian rear reflector and textured surface can be used to improve the light absorption in the cell 70,80 .…”

Section: Multi-dimensional Optimization Using Real Coded Genetic Algomentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-Dimensional Optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As Thermophotovoltaic Cell using Real Coded Genetic Algorithm

Gamel

Ker

Lee

et al. 2020

Preprint

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The optimization of thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cell efficiency is essential since it leads to a significant increase in the output power. Typically, the optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell has been limited to single variable such as the emitter thickness, while the effects of the variation in other design variables are assumed to be negligible. The reported efficiencies of In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell mostly remain < 15%. Therefore, this work develops a multi-variable or multi-dimensional optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell using the real coded genetic algorithm (RCGA) under various radiation temperatures. RCGA was developed using Visual Basic and it was hybridized with Silvaco TCAD for the electrical characteristics simulation. Under radiation temperatures from 800 K to 2000 K, the optimized In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell efficiency increases by an average percentage of 11.86% (from 8.5% to 20.35%) as compared to the non-optimized structure. It was found that the incorporation of a thicker base layer with the back-barrier layers enhances the separation of charge carriers and increases the collection of photo-generated carriers near the band-edge, producing an optimum output power of 0.55 W/cm2 (cell efficiency of 22.06%, without antireflection coating) at 1400 K radiation spectrum. The results of this work demonstrate the great potential to generate electricity sustainably from industrial waste heat and the multi-dimensional optimization methodology can be adopted to optimize semiconductor devices, such as solar cell, TPV cell and photodetectors.

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Ge nanopillar solar cells epitaxially grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Cited by 16 publications

References 48 publications

Stable Unassisted Solar Water Splitting on Semiconductor Photocathodes Protected by Multifunctional GaN Nanostructures

Stable Unassisted Solar Water Splitting on Semiconductor Photocathodes Protected by Multifunctional GaN Nanostructures

Multi-dimensional optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As thermophotovoltaic cell using real coded genetic algorithm

Multi-Dimensional Optimization of In0.53Ga0.47As Thermophotovoltaic Cell using Real Coded Genetic Algorithm

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