Approaches to Future Generation Photovoltaics and Solar Fuels: Quantum Dots, Arrays, and Quantum Dot Solar Cells
One potential, long-term approach to more efficient and lower cost future generation solar cells for solar electricity and solar fuels is to utilize the unique properties of quantum dots (QDs) to control the relaxation pathways of excited states to enhance multiple exciton generation (MEG). We have studied MEG in close-packed PbSe QD arrays where the QDs are electronically coupled in the films and thus exhibit good transport while still maintaining quantization and MEG. We have developed simple, all-inorganic solution-processable QD solar cells that produce large short-circuit photocurrents and power conversion efficiencies above 5% via nanocrystalline p-n junctions. These solar cells show QYs for photocurrent that exceed 100% in the photon energy regions where MEG is possible; the photocurrent MEG QYs as a function of photon energy match those determined via time-resolved spectroscopy Recent analyses of the major effect of MEG combined with solar concentration on the conversion efficiency of solar cells will also be discussed.
- Research Organization:
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC36-08GO28308
- OSTI ID:
- 1087224
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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