Efficient plasmonic nanostructures for thin film solar cells

Valeria Marrocco; Marco Grande; Maria Antonietta Vincenti; Giovanna Calò; Vincenzo Petruzzelli; Antonella D'Orazio

doi:10.1117/12.854495

18 May 2010 Efficient plasmonic nanostructures for thin film solar cells

Valeria Marrocco, Marco Grande, Maria Antonietta Vincenti, Giovanna Calò, Vincenzo Petruzzelli, Antonella D'Orazio

Proceedings Volume 7725, Photonics for Solar Energy Systems III; 77250L (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.854495
Event: SPIE Photonics Europe, 2010, Brussels, Belgium

Abstract

Recent scientific publications have highlighted the possibility of enhancing solar conversion efficiency in thin film solar cells using surface plasmon (SP) waves and resonances. One main strategy is to deposit layers of metal nanoparticles on the top of a thin film silicon solar cell which can increase light absorption and consequently the energy conversion in the frequency range where the silicon intrinsic absorptance is low. In this paper, we investigate the effects produced on the light absorption and scattering by silver nanoparticles, arranged in a periodic pattern, placed on the top of amorphous silicon (α-Si) thin layer. We propose different geometry of metal objects, quantifying the scattering (back and forward) determined by the nanoparticles in dependence of their shapes and Si thickness. The analysis reveals that the thickness of the substrate has huge influence on the scattering, in particular on the back one, when the nanoparticles have corners, whereas it seems less dramatic when rounded profiles are considered (nanospheres).

Citation Download Citation

Valeria Marrocco, Marco Grande, Maria Antonietta Vincenti, Giovanna Calò, Vincenzo Petruzzelli, and Antonella D'Orazio "Efficient plasmonic nanostructures for thin film solar cells", Proc. SPIE 7725, Photonics for Solar Energy Systems III, 77250L (18 May 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.854495

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