Showing papers on "Shockley–Queisser limit published in 2003"
TL;DR: In this article, an efficiency analysis of ideal photovoltaic solar cells based on multi-intermediate band structures is presented, and it is shown that the difference between the thermodynamic limit of PV conversion and the limit of efficiency of traditional bulk semiconductor solar cells can be gradually bridged if an optimum energy band structure is achieved.
Abstract: We present an efficiency analysis of ideal photovoltaic solar cells based on multi-intermediate band structures. It is shown that the difference between the thermodynamic limit of photovoltaic conversion and the limit of efficiency of traditional bulk semiconductor solar cells can be gradually bridged if an optimum energy band structure is achieved. Efficiency enhancement originates from photonic excitations among multiple energy bands. Several possible ways to design the optimum energy band structures are proposed.
32 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a scheme whereby ambient thermal energy is coupled to sub-band-gap photons through the creation and recombination of electron hole pairs, thereby increasing the short-circuit current and the efficiency of a solar cell is presented.
Abstract: A scheme is presented whereby ambient thermal energy is coupled to sub-band-gap photons through the creation and recombination of electron hole pairs, thereby increasing the short-circuit current and the efficiency of a solar cell. The necessary photon-phonon coupling is demonstrated experimentally, through the observation of anti-Stokes luminescence from QW p-i-n devices. A modest efficiency enhancement is possible for a constrained PV device, but the maximum efficiency does not exceed that of the Shockley-Queisser limit. Only when a temperature difference between the PV device and QW thermal up-convertor is established, can the system exceed the Shockley-Queisser limit.
23 citations