Nanowires for High-Efficiency, Low-Cost Solar Photovoltaics

Zhang, Yunyan; Liu, Huiyun

doi:10.3390/cryst9020087

Cited by 73 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 218 publications

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“…To realize advanced devices in a NW configuration successfully, dopant incorporation with abrupt interfaces in a well-controlled manner is essential and enables one to modulate work functions. Unfortunately, the thin film studies on dopant incorporation and carrier concentration cannot be directly translated to NWs due to the dopant’s influence on the growth kinetics and different growth mechanisms along with the axial and radial directions 3 . Also, the commonly used measurement techniques in thin films for the determination of carrier concentration, namely Hall effect, field-effect, capacitance–voltage, and thermoelectric measurements, require highly sophisticated lithography steps 4 – 10 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study of dopant incorporation in Te-doped GaAsSb nanowires using a combination of XPS/UPS, and C-AFM/SKPM

Ramaswamy

Devkota

Pokharel

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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We report the first study on doping assessment in Te-doped GaAsSb nanowires (NWs) with variation in Gallium Telluride (GaTe) cell temperature, using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS), conductive-atomic force microscopy (C-AFM), and scanning Kelvin probe microscopy (SKPM). The NWs were grown using Ga-assisted molecular beam epitaxy with a GaTe captive source as the dopant cell. Te-incorporation in the NWs was associated with a positive shift in the binding energy of the 3d shells of the core constituent elements in doped NWs in the XPS spectra, a lowering of the work function in doped NWs relative to undoped ones from UPS spectra, a significantly higher photoresponse in C-AFM and an increase in surface potential of doped NWs observed in SKPM relative to undoped ones. The carrier concentration of Te-doped GaAsSb NWs determined from UPS spectra are found to be consistent with the values obtained from simulated I–V characteristics. Thus, these surface analytical tools, XPS/UPS and C-AFM/SKPM, that do not require any sample preparation are found to be powerful characterization techniques to analyze the dopant incorporation and carrier density in homogeneously doped NWs.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study of dopant incorporation in Te-doped GaAsSb nanowires using a combination of XPS/UPS, and C-AFM/SKPM

Ramaswamy

Devkota

Pokharel

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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“…This S-shape of the JÀV curve is a sign of non-optimal carrier collection in the device that results from the defects in the solar cell layers [36][37][38]. Many different solar cell designs based on nanomaterials and nanotextures have been reported that decouple light absorption and carrier extraction leading to increased efficiency [39]. In the case of the IP-SC and other such rough textures, the intended optical benefit is obtained due to the increased scattering induced by the textures, but it is often at the cost of the electrical performance due to shunts and defects associated with the rough interfaces of the solar cell layers.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nanomolded buried light-scattering (BLiS) back-reflectors using dielectric nanoparticles for light harvesting in thin-film silicon solar cells

Desta

Rizzoli²,

Summonte³

et al. 2020

EPJ Photovolt.

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The article presents a nanoparticle-based buried light-scattering (BLiS) back-reflector design realized through a simplified nanofabrication technique for the purpose of light-management in solar cells. The BLiS structure consists of a flat silver back-reflector with an overlying light-scattering bilayer which is made of a TiO2 dielectric nanoparticles layer with micron-sized inverted pyramidal cavities, buried under a flat-topped silicon nanoparticles layer. The optical properties of this BLiS back-reflector show high broadband and wide angular distribution of diffuse light-scattering. The efficient light-scattering by the buried inverted pyramid back-reflector is shown to effectively improve the short-circuit-current density and efficiency of the overlying n-i-p amorphous silicon solar cells up to 14% and 17.5%, respectively, compared to the reference flat solar cells. A layer of TiO2 nanoparticles with exposed inverted pyramid microstructures shows equivalent light scattering but poor fill factors in the solar cells, indicating that the overlying smooth growth interface in the BLiS back-reflector helps to maintain a good fill factor. The study demonstrates the advantage of spatial separation of the light-trapping and the semiconductor growth layers in the photovoltaic back-reflector without sacrificing the optical benefit.

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“…It should be noted that currently nanowire solar cells have achieved high efficiency: 10.2 % for horizontal structures and 40.0 % for vertical ones [10], which contributes to the development of new high-efficiency and low-cost nanowire photovoltaic converters [10][11][12], in particular, tandem or axially tandem, branched, inorganic/organic hybrid, on flexible substrates and substrates of glass, amorphous silicon, graphene, carbon nanotubes, etc.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The constant search for improving solar energy collection methods using photovoltaic converters causes considerable interest in coaxial p-i-n structures based on nanowires and in the study of their properties and characteristics [10][11][12]. Nanowire arrays have optimal capture of a wide part of the solar spectrum, which provides efficient collection of solar energy and the minimum diffusion path length of charges, etc.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulation of Parameters of Coaxial Solar Cells Based on Si and InP Nanowires

Buryk¹,

Odnodvorets²,

Khyzhnya³

2021

J. Nano- Electron. Phys.

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The use of photovoltaic solar energy converters with nanowire solar cells is a promising direction for further development of photovoltaics. Along with this, significant interest in the properties of Si, InP, GaAs, InGaN nanowires as elements of high-efficiency photoconverters has formed a new direction of nanowire photovoltaics. The most relevant is the study of structural, optical, electrical, temperature and other characteristics of semiconductor nanowires. The paper presents the results of numerical simulation of coaxial p-in structures of solar cells based on Si and InP nanowires. The geometry of the 3D structures, light and dark current-voltage characteristics are designed using Silvaco TCAD tools. Within the framework of the drift-diffusion transport model with Fermi-Dirac statistics, the admissible values of the electrical parameters such as the open-circuit voltage UOC, short-circuit current density JSC, maximum power Pm, fill-factor FF, photovoltaic efficiency  and others are obtained. The temperature dependence of the current-voltage characteristics and electrical parameters is investigated. The temperature coefficients of the open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density, fill-factor and efficiency for coaxial nanowire solar cells based on Si and InP are determined in the temperature range from 300 to 400 K. It is concluded that the thermal stability of the electrical parameters for InP-based photovoltaic converter is high, which is characteristic of direct band gap semiconductors. The obtained results of numerical simulation are in good agreement with the experimental data and can be used to predict the properties of nanowire solar cells.

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Nanowires for High-Efficiency, Low-Cost Solar Photovoltaics

Cited by 73 publications

References 218 publications

A study of dopant incorporation in Te-doped GaAsSb nanowires using a combination of XPS/UPS, and C-AFM/SKPM

A study of dopant incorporation in Te-doped GaAsSb nanowires using a combination of XPS/UPS, and C-AFM/SKPM

Nanomolded buried light-scattering (BLiS) back-reflectors using dielectric nanoparticles for light harvesting in thin-film silicon solar cells

Simulation of Parameters of Coaxial Solar Cells Based on Si and InP Nanowires

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