A gold surface plasmon enhanced mesoporous titanium dioxide photoelectrode for the plastic-based flexible dye-sensitized solar cells

Light management has gained wide interest for various types of solar cells. This paper reviews the application of nanostructures for light management to chalcopyrite (CIGSe) type solar cells. Firstly, the relevance of light management for CIGSe solar cells will be introduced and applicable concepts of nanostructures for absorption enhancement discussed. The development of ultra-thin CIGSe solar cells and examples for nanoparticle fabrication techniques together with their chances and challenges for application to CIGSe will be presented. Particular attention will be paid to nanostructures that have been applied to CIGSe solar cells, revealing many theoretical and some experimental results. Metallic and dielectric nanostructures as well as intrinsic nanotextures will be covered. For the future, combined considerations of optical and electrical properties will gain in importance.

Review on light management by nanostructures in chalcopyrite solar cells

Herein, the photovoltaic (PV) effect of ferroelectric Bi0.85La0.15FeO3 (BLFO) films fabricated through a sol–gel method is investigated. The ferroelectric properties of the BLFO films improve compared to the undoped BiFeO3 films. The application of Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) increases the open circuit voltage (VOC) and short circuit current density (JSC) from 0.2 V to 0.3 V and 5.3 μA cm−2 to 18.5 μA cm−2, respectively, which could be attributed to Au surface-plasmon effects. The PV output for the BLFO film can be modulated after applying external poling voltages. Considering the ferroelectric polarization and plasmonic effects, a plausible theoretical model is constructed to depict the physical mechanism of PV enhancement for the BLFO film in detail. This work not only presents a new approach to improve the PV effect of ferroelectric films but also provides important insights into the PV mechanism of ferroelectric films.

Photovoltaic enhancement by Au surface-plasmon effect for La doped BiFeO3 films

This work studies the use of gold (Au) and silver (Ag) nanoparticles in multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) and copper-indium-gallium-diselenide (CIGS) solar cells. Au and Ag nanoparticles are deposited by spin-coating method, which is a simple and low cost process. The random distribution of nanoparticles by spin coating broadens the resonance wavelength of the transmittance. This broadening favors solar cell applications. Metal shadowing competes with light scattering in a manner that varies with nanoparticle concentration. Experimental results reveal that the mc-Si solar cells that incorporate Au nanoparticles outperform those with Ag nanoparticles. The incorporation of suitable concentration of Au and Ag nanoparticles into mc-Si solar cells increases their efficiency enhancement by 5.6% and 4.8%, respectively. Incorporating Au and Ag nanoparticles into CIGS solar cells improve their efficiency enhancement by 1.2% and 1.4%, respectively. The enhancement of the photocurrent in mc-Si solar cells is lower than that in CIGS solar cells, owing to their different light scattering behaviors and material absorption coefficients.

Improving Efficiency of Multicrystalline Silicon and CIGS Solar Cells by Incorporating Metal Nanoparticles.

The effects of alkali post-deposition treatments and device properties for polycrystalline thin film Cu(In,Ga)Se2 have been investigated. It is reported that these surface treatments lead to differences in interface chemistry and device properties. The behavior of defects in the space charge region as a function of different growth parameters is investigated by correlative analytical microscopy. The latter combines electron microscopy based imaging, Kelvin probe force microscopy, and atom probe tomography. Alkali treatments lead to copper depletion and consequent sharpening of the compositional profiles, and the measured electric potential differences of exposed Cu(In1–x,Gax)Se2 surfaces. Measurable differences in resistivity and potential have also been observed, which are expected to relate to the improved open-circuit voltage, fill-factor, and device efficiency. This study frames one perspective as to why post-deposition alkaline treatments lead to copper depletion, a mildly n-type semiconductor interface, and higher efficiency for a Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin-film photovoltaic device.

Revealing Surface Modifications of Potassium-Fluoride-Treated Cu(In,Ga)Se2: A Study of Material Structure, Chemistry, and Photovoltaic Performance

A study on composition, structure and optical properties of copper-poor CIGS thin film deposited by sequential sputtering of CuGa/In and In/(CuGa+In) precursors

Seong-Un Park

Papers

A study on composition, structure and optical properties of copper-poor CIGS thin film deposited by sequential sputtering of CuGa/In and In/(CuGa+In) precursors

Development of gold induced surface plasmon enhanced CIGS absorption layer on polyimide substrate