Carbon Nanotubes for Quantum Dot Photovoltaics with Enhanced Light Management and Charge Transport
Abstract
Colloidal quantum dot (CQD)-based photovoltaics are an emerging low-cost solar cell technology with power conversion efficiencies exceeding 10%, i.e., high enough to be interesting for commercialization. Well-controlled and understood charge carrier transport through the device stack is required to make the next step in efficiency improvements. In this work, polymer-wrapped single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) films embedded in an insulating poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) matrix and capped by a thermally evaporated Au electrode are investigated as a composite hole transport layer and optical spacer. Employing transient absorption spectroscopy we show that the SWNTs enhance the charge transfer rate from CQD to CQD, ZnO, or SWNT. In order to pinpoint the underlying mechanism for the improvement, we investigate the energetics of the junction by measuring the relative alignment of the band edges, using Kelvin probe and cyclic voltammetry. Measuring the external quantum efficiency and absorption we find that the improvement is not mainly from electronic improvements but from enhanced absorption of the CQD absorber. We demonstrate experimentally and theoretically, by employing a transfer-matrix model, that the transparent PMMA matrix acts as an optical spacer, which leads to an enhanced absorption in the absorber layer. Lastly, with these electronic and optical enhancements, the efficiencymore »
- Authors:
-
- Univ. of Oxford (United Kingdom)
- Univ. of Oxford (United Kingdom); National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Rua Sérgio Buarque de Holanda (Brazil)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1489327
- Report Number(s):
- NREL/JA-5900-73019
Journal ID: ISSN 2330-4022
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC36-08GO28308
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- ACS Photonics
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 5; Journal Issue: 12; Journal ID: ISSN 2330-4022
- Publisher:
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 14 SOLAR ENERGY; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; charge carrier transfer; colloidal quantum dots; hole transport layer; optical spacer effect; photovoltaics; single-walled carbon nanotube
Citation Formats
Tazawa, Yujiro, Habisreutinger, Severin N., Zhang, Nanlin, Gregory, Daniel A. F., Nagamine, Gabriel, Kesava, Sameer V., Mazzotta, Giulio, Assender, Hazel E., Riede, Moritz, Padilha, Lazaro A., Nicholas, Robin J., and Watt, Andrew A. R. Carbon Nanotubes for Quantum Dot Photovoltaics with Enhanced Light Management and Charge Transport. United States: N. p., 2018.
Web. doi:10.1021/acsphotonics.8b00982.
Tazawa, Yujiro, Habisreutinger, Severin N., Zhang, Nanlin, Gregory, Daniel A. F., Nagamine, Gabriel, Kesava, Sameer V., Mazzotta, Giulio, Assender, Hazel E., Riede, Moritz, Padilha, Lazaro A., Nicholas, Robin J., & Watt, Andrew A. R. Carbon Nanotubes for Quantum Dot Photovoltaics with Enhanced Light Management and Charge Transport. United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsphotonics.8b00982
Tazawa, Yujiro, Habisreutinger, Severin N., Zhang, Nanlin, Gregory, Daniel A. F., Nagamine, Gabriel, Kesava, Sameer V., Mazzotta, Giulio, Assender, Hazel E., Riede, Moritz, Padilha, Lazaro A., Nicholas, Robin J., and Watt, Andrew A. R. Thu .
"Carbon Nanotubes for Quantum Dot Photovoltaics with Enhanced Light Management and Charge Transport". United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsphotonics.8b00982. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1489327.
@article{osti_1489327,
title = {Carbon Nanotubes for Quantum Dot Photovoltaics with Enhanced Light Management and Charge Transport},
author = {Tazawa, Yujiro and Habisreutinger, Severin N. and Zhang, Nanlin and Gregory, Daniel A. F. and Nagamine, Gabriel and Kesava, Sameer V. and Mazzotta, Giulio and Assender, Hazel E. and Riede, Moritz and Padilha, Lazaro A. and Nicholas, Robin J. and Watt, Andrew A. R.},
abstractNote = {Colloidal quantum dot (CQD)-based photovoltaics are an emerging low-cost solar cell technology with power conversion efficiencies exceeding 10%, i.e., high enough to be interesting for commercialization. Well-controlled and understood charge carrier transport through the device stack is required to make the next step in efficiency improvements. In this work, polymer-wrapped single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) films embedded in an insulating poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) matrix and capped by a thermally evaporated Au electrode are investigated as a composite hole transport layer and optical spacer. Employing transient absorption spectroscopy we show that the SWNTs enhance the charge transfer rate from CQD to CQD, ZnO, or SWNT. In order to pinpoint the underlying mechanism for the improvement, we investigate the energetics of the junction by measuring the relative alignment of the band edges, using Kelvin probe and cyclic voltammetry. Measuring the external quantum efficiency and absorption we find that the improvement is not mainly from electronic improvements but from enhanced absorption of the CQD absorber. We demonstrate experimentally and theoretically, by employing a transfer-matrix model, that the transparent PMMA matrix acts as an optical spacer, which leads to an enhanced absorption in the absorber layer. Lastly, with these electronic and optical enhancements, the efficiency of the PbS CQD solar cells improved from 4.0% to 6.0%.},
doi = {10.1021/acsphotonics.8b00982},
journal = {ACS Photonics},
number = 12,
volume = 5,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Nov 08 00:00:00 EST 2018},
month = {Thu Nov 08 00:00:00 EST 2018}
}
Search WorldCat to find libraries that may hold this journalWeb of Science