Black silicon solar thin-film microcells integrating top nanocone structures for broadband and omnidirectional light-trapping

Xu, Zhida; Yao, Yuan; Brueckner, Eric P.; Li, Lanfang; Jiang, Jing; Nuzzo, Ralph G.; Liu, Gang Logan

doi:10.1088/0957-4484/25/30/305301

Black silicon solar thin-film microcells integrating top nanocone structures for broadband and omnidirectional light-trapping

Journal Article · Wed Jul 09 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Nanotechnology

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/0957-4484/25/30/305301· OSTI ID:1875082

Xu, Zhida ^[1]; Yao, Yuan ^[2]; Brueckner, Eric P. ^[2]; Li, Lanfang ^[2]; Jiang, Jing ^[2]; Nuzzo, Ralph G. ^[2]; Liu, Gang Logan ^[2]

Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States); University of Illinois
Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)

Recently developed classes of monocrystalline silicon solar microcells (μ-cell) can be assembled into modules with characteristics (i.e., mechanically flexible forms, compact concentrator designs, and high-voltage outputs) that would be impossible to achieve using conventional, wafer-based approaches. In this paper, we describe a highly dense, uniform and non-periodic nanocone forest structure of black silicon (bSi) created on optically-thin (30 μm) μ-cells for broadband and omnidirectional light-trapping with a lithography-free and high-throughput plasma texturizing process. With optimized plasma etching conditions and a silicon nitride passivation layer, black silicon μ-cells, when embedded in a polymer waveguiding layer, display dramatic increases of as much as 65.7% in short circuit current, as compared to a bare silicon device. Here, the conversion efficiency increases from 8.1% to 11.5% with a small drop in open circuit voltage and fill factor.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division; NSF

Grant/Contract Number:: FG02-07ER46471; SC0001293

OSTI ID:: 1875082

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1210695
OSTI ID: 22377404
OSTI ID: 1385342

Journal Information:: Nanotechnology, Journal Name: Nanotechnology Journal Issue: 30 Vol. 25; ISSN 0957-4484

Publisher:: IOP PublishingCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
black silicon
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photovoltaics
solar microcell
thin film

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