Journal ArticleDOI
Enhancing solar cell efficiency: the search for luminescent materials as spectral converters
TLDR
This review will survey recent progress in the development of spectral converters, with a particular emphasis on lanthanide-based upconversion, quantum-cutting and down-shifting materials, for PV applications, and present technical challenges that arise in developing cost-effective high-performance solar cells based on these luminescent materials.Abstract:
Photovoltaic (PV) technologies for solar energy conversion represent promising routes to green and renewable energy generation. Despite relevant PV technologies being available for more than half a century, the production of solar energy remains costly, largely owing to low power conversion efficiencies of solar cells. The main difficulty in improving the efficiency of PV energy conversion lies in the spectral mismatch between the energy distribution of photons in the incident solar spectrum and the bandgap of a semiconductor material. In recent years, luminescent materials, which are capable of converting a broad spectrum of light into photons of a particular wavelength, have been synthesized and used to minimize the losses in the solar-cell-based energy conversion process. In this review, we will survey recent progress in the development of spectral converters, with a particular emphasis on lanthanide-based upconversion, quantum-cutting and down-shifting materials, for PV applications. In addition, we will also present technical challenges that arise in developing cost-effective high-performance solar cells based on these luminescent materials.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Controlling upconversion nanocrystals for emerging applications
TL;DR: This work highlights the advances in functionalization strategies that enable the broad utility of upconversion nanocrystals for multimodal imaging, cancer therapy, volumetric displays and photonics.
Journal ArticleDOI
Recent progress in metal–organic complexes for optoelectronic applications
Hui Xu,Hui Xu,Runfeng Chen,Runfeng Chen,Qiang Sun,Wen-Yong Lai,Qianqian Su,Wei Huang,Wei Huang,Xiaogang Liu,Xiaogang Liu +10 more
TL;DR: An overview of recent development in metal-organic complexes with controlled molecular structures and tunable properties is presented, including advances in extending the control of molecular structures to solid materials for energy conversion and information technology applications.
Journal ArticleDOI
Lanthanide Nanoparticles: From Design toward Bioimaging and Therapy
Hailiang Dong,Shuo-Ren Du,Xiao-Yu Zheng,Guang-Ming Lyu,Ling-Dong Sun,Lin-Dong Li,Pei-Zhi Zhang,Chao Zhang,Chun-Hua Yan +8 more
Journal ArticleDOI
Energy transfer in lanthanide upconversion studies for extended optical applications
TL;DR: A fundamental understanding of energy transfer in lanthanide-supported photon upconversion is presented and the emerging progress in excitation selection based on the energy transfer within lanthanides ions or activation from antennae is introduced.
Journal ArticleDOI
Semiconductor-based photocatalysts and photoelectrochemical cells for solar fuel generation: a review
Jiangtian Li,Nianqiang Wu +1 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the barrier, progress and future direction of research on the correlation of the chemical constituent, size, dimensionality, architecture, crystal structure, microstructure and electronic band structure of photocatalysts (or photoelectrodes) with five vital processes including light absorption, charge separation, migration and recombination as well as surface redox reactions.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Detailed Balance Limit of Efficiency of p‐n Junction Solar Cells
TL;DR: In this article, an upper theoretical limit for the efficiency of p−n junction solar energy converters, called the detailed balance limit of efficiency, has been calculated for an ideal case in which the only recombination mechanism of holeelectron pairs is radiative as required by the principle of detailed balance.
Journal ArticleDOI
Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells
TL;DR: Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) offer the possibilities to design solar cells with a large flexibility in shape, color, and transparency as mentioned in this paper, and many DSC research groups have been established around the world.
Journal ArticleDOI
Plasmonics for improved photovoltaic devices
Harry A. Atwater,Albert Polman +1 more
TL;DR: Recent advances at the intersection of plasmonics and photovoltaics are surveyed and an outlook on the future of solar cells based on these principles is offered.
Journal ArticleDOI
Opportunities and challenges for a sustainable energy future
Steven Chu,Arun Majumdar +1 more
TL;DR: This Perspective provides a snapshot of the current energy landscape and discusses several research and development opportunities and pathways that could lead to a prosperous, sustainable and secure energy future for the world.
Journal ArticleDOI
A Theory of Sensitized Luminescence in Solids
TL;DR: In this article, the resonance theory of Forster, which involves only allowed transitions, is extended to include transfer by means of forbidden transitions which, it is concluded, are responsible for the transfer in all inorganic systems yet investigated.
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