Improved photovoltaic performance of monocrystalline silicon solar cell through luminescent down‐converting Gd₂O₂S:Tb³⁺ phosphor

Abstract

This work reports on efforts to enhance the photovoltaic performance of standard ptype monocrystalline silicon solar cell (mono-Si) through the application of ultraviolet spectral down-converting phosphors. Terbium-doped gadolinium oxysulfide phosphor and undoped-gadolinium oxysulfide precursor powders were prepared by a controlled hydrothermal decomposition of a urea homogeneous precipitation method.The resulting rare-earth element hydroxycarbonate precursor powders were then converted to the oxysulfide by annealing at 900°C in a sulfur atmosphere. The asprepared phosphors were encapsulated in ethylene vinyl acetate co-polymer resin and applied on the textured surface of solar cell using rotary screen printing. Comparative results from X-ray powder diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy studies on the microstructure and luminescent properties of the materials are reported. We also compared the optical reflectance and external quantum efficiency response of the cells with and without a luminescent phosphor layer. The results obtained on the terbium-doped gadolinium oxysulfide phosphor show clearly that the down-conversion effect induced by the terbium dopant play a crucial role in enhancing the photovoltaic cells' performance. Under an empirical one-sun illumination, the modified cells showed an optimum enhancement of 3.6% (from 16.43% to 17.02%) in conversion efficiency relative to bare cells. In the concentration range of 1 to 2.5 mg/mL, EVA/Gd 2 O 2 S (blank) composites also improve electrical efficiency, but not as much as EVA/Gd 2 O 2 S:Tb 3+ composites.This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

In Situ Generating YVO4:Eu3+,Bi3+ Downshifting Phosphors in SiO2 Antireflection Coating for Efficiency Enhancement and Ultraviolet Stability of Silicon Solar Cells

“…The transmittance spectra were weighed by the AM1.5 solar spectrum from 280 to 1,200 nm to obtain the average transmittance values, as shown in Figure 4c. [ 22,48 ] The average transmittance of the glass with the optimal coating in the 280–1,200 nm band reaches 94.99%, corresponding to a coating thickness of 123 nm and refractive index of 1.25 (Sample SY3), which is 1.30% higher than that of the reference glass with pure SiO 2 ARC and 1.68% higher than that of bare glass.…”

“…However, it should be noted that although the UVID was reduced, there was no gain in the cell efficiency due to the side effect of shading (light scattering and absorption) caused by direct and simple coating on the cell surfaces. [20] To avoid the disadvantage of direct coating on top of solar cells, other application approaches of combining downconversion materials with solar cells or modules, mainly including integration into SiN x antireflection coating (ARC), [21] ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) encapsulation layer, [22,23] or cover glass, [24] are also being studied by researchers and technicians. From the perspective of the most efficient utilization of UV light, the integration of downconversion materials with the outermost glass of solar modules has excellent application potential.…”

Advances in the Applications of Graphene-Based Nanocomposites in Clean Energy Materials

“…where d is the average particle size (nm); B2θ is the full width of the diffraction peak at half maximum in radians; λ denotes the wavelength and θ stands for the angle at the position of the peak maximum [144].…”

Synthesis of Green-Emitting Gd2O2S:Pr3+ Phosphor Nanoparticles and Fabrication of Translucent Gd2O2S:Pr3+ Scintillation Ceramics

“…The gaseous sulfuration method results in superfine GOS powders, but harmful vapors such as H 2 S, CS 2 , or S can be simultaneously produced [30]. The wet chemical route is an environmentally friendly way for the synthesis of morphology-controllable oxysulfide particles, including hydrothermal reaction [20,33], homogenous precipitation [6,[34][35][36][37], and direct precipitation [38], among which direct precipitation is preferred for its higher batch yield, time saving, and simple operation.…”