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Kim BJ, Jo MS, Yang JS, Chung MK, Kim SH, Yoon JB. Quintic refractive index profile-based funnel-shaped silicon antireflective structures for enhanced photodetector performance. Sci Rep 2024; 14:10410. [PMID: 38710917 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-61156-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 05/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Antireflection, vital in optoelectronics devices such as solar cells and photodetectors, reduces light reflection and increases absorption. Antireflective structures (ARS), a primary method by which to realize this effect, control the refractive index (RI) profile based on their shape. The antireflection efficiency depends on the refractive index profile, with the quintic RI profile being recognized as ideal for superior antireflection. However, fabricating nano-sized structures with a desired shape, particularly in silicon with a quintic RI profile, has been a challenge. In this study, we introduce a funnel-shaped silicon (Si) ARS with a quintic RI profile. Its antireflective properties are demonstrated through reflectance measurements and by an application to a photodetector surface. Compared to the film Si and cone-shaped ARS types, which are common structures to achieve antireflection, the funnel-shaped ARS showed reflectance of 4.24% at 760 nm, whereas those of the film Si and cone-shaped ARS were 32.8% and 10.6%, respectively. Photodetectors with the funnel-shaped ARS showed responsivity of 0.077 A/W at 950 nm, which is 19.54 times higher than that with the film Si and 2.45 times higher than that with the cone-shaped ARS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beom-Jun Kim
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Min-Seung Jo
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
- Center for Bio-Integrated Electronics, Northwestern University, 633 Clark St, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Jae-Soon Yang
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Myung-Kun Chung
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Sung-Ho Kim
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Jun-Bo Yoon
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34141, Republic of Korea.
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Briones E, Gutierrez A, Tapia-Contreras M, Cortes-Mestizo I, Briones J. Antireflective properties of Al 2O 3/SiO 2 multilayer stacks for GaAs solar cells. APPLIED OPTICS 2023; 62:6007-6015. [PMID: 37706955 DOI: 10.1364/ao.487452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
Multilayer (ML) thin films are an optical engineering strategy to address reflectivity losses in GaAs photovoltaic devices, enhancing the power conversion of light around a single wavelength. Inspired by the enhanced response of periodic ML Bragg mirrors, the authors introduce quite simple antireflective designs based on two periods and single periods of A l 2 O 3/S i O 2 bilayer stacks. The reflectivity losses of the systems are evaluated with the aid of numerical simulations, and their dimensions are optimized to enhance the transmission of plane waves towards GaAs substrates. Reflectivity losses are evaluated at angles off the normal for s- and p-polarized light, exhibiting gains at broader angles and the quenching of undesired s-t o-p optical anisotropy, inherent to GaAs substrates. ML stacks were fabricated by RF sputtering deposition on G a A s-n and p+ type substrates and characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy techniques to evaluate the role of carriers on coating performance.
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Metamaterial Solar Absorber Based on Refractory Metal Titanium and Its Compound. COATINGS 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/coatings12070929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Metamaterials refers to a class of artificial materials with special properties. Through its unique geometry and the small size of each unit, the material can acquire unique electromagnetic field properties that conventional materials do not have. Based on these factors, we put forward a kind of high absorption near-ultraviolet to near-infrared electromagnetic wave absorber of the solar energy. The surface structure of the designed absorber is composed of TiN-TiO2-Al2O3 with rectangles and disks, and the substrate is Ti-Al2O3-Ti layer. In the study band range (0.1–3.0 μm), the solar absorber’s average absorption is up to 96.32%, and the designed absorber absorbs more than 90% of the electromagnetic wave with a wavelength width of 2.577 μm (0.413–2.990 μm). Meanwhile, the designed solar absorber has good performance under different angles of oblique incident light. Ultra-wideband solar absorbers have great potential in light absorption related applicaitions because of their wide spectrum high absorption properites.
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Ko M, Choi HS, Baek SH, Cho CH. Polarization-insensitive broadband omni-directional anti-reflection in ZnO nanoneedle array for efficient solar energy harvesting. NANOSCALE ADVANCES 2022; 4:1074-1079. [PMID: 36131757 PMCID: PMC9417785 DOI: 10.1039/d1na00809a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Broadband omni-directional anti-reflection characteristics have been an important issue because they can maximize the optical absorption in photovoltaic devices. Here, we investigate the optical properties of ZnO nanoneedle arrays to demonstrate broadband anti-reflection, omni-directionality, and polarization insensitivity using optical simulations and experimental approaches. The results of this work clarify that the ZnO nanoneedle array plays an important role as a broadband anti-reflection layer due to its spatially graded refractive index, omni-directionality and polarization insensitivity. To take advantage of these structures, we prepared a ZnO nanoneedle array on the surface of conventional SiN x /planar Si solar cells to prove the broadband omni-directional anti-reflection for solar energy harvesting. Current density-voltage results show that SiN x /planar Si solar cells with ZnO nanoneedle arrays lead to a nearly 20% increase in power conversion efficiency compared to SiN x /planar Si solar cells, and a 9.3% enhancement in external quantum efficiency is obtained under identical conditions. Moreover, the photocurrent results of SiN x /planar Si solar cells with ZnO nanoneedle arrays clearly demonstrate the incident angle- and polarization-insensitive characteristics compared to those of typical SiN x /planar Si solar cells. Our results demonstrate the optical multi-functionality of ZnO nanoneedle arrays and pave the way for high-performance optoelectronic devices that require broadband omni-directional anti-reflection and polarization insensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minjee Ko
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 South Korea
| | - Hyeon-Seo Choi
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 South Korea
| | - Seong-Ho Baek
- Department of Energy Engineering, Dankook University Cheonan 31116 South Korea
| | - Chang-Hee Cho
- Department of Emerging Materials Science, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 South Korea
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Omrani M, Malekmohammad M, Zabolian H. Wide-angle broadband antireflection coatings based on boomerang-like alumina nanostructures in visible region. Sci Rep 2022; 12:904. [PMID: 35042946 PMCID: PMC8766437 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-04928-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
A novel boomerang-like alumina based antireflective coating with ultra-low reflectance has been produced for light incidence angles form 0 up to 45°. Boomerang-like alumina nanostructures have been fabricated on the BK7 glass substrates by dip-coating and surface modification via hot water treatment. To achieve the lowest residual reflectance, the effect of dip-coating rate and hot-water temperature in the treatment process has been investigated and optimized. To further investigate the boomerang-like alumina nanostructure and extract its graded refractive index profile by fitting the measured reflectance spectrum with the simulated one, a simulation based on the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method has been performed. The average reflectance measured at normal incidence for double-sided coated BK7 glass substrates is only 0.3% in the visible spectral region. Considering both sides, the average reflectance of the substrate decreased in the spectral range of 400-700 nm down to 0.4% at incidence angles of 45° by applying the boomerang-like alumina antireflection coatings. The optimized single layer boomerang-like alumina coating on the curved aspheric lens exhibited a low average reflectance of less than 0.14% and an average transmittance of above 99.3% at normal incidence. The presented process is a simple and cost-effective route towards broadband and omnidirectional antireflection coatings, which have promising potential to be applied on substrates having large scales with complex geometric shapes.
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Affiliation(s)
- MirKazem Omrani
- Department of Physics, University of Isfahan, P.O. Box 81746-7344, Isfahan, Iran.
| | | | - Hosein Zabolian
- Department of Physics, University of Isfahan, P.O. Box 81746-7344, Isfahan, Iran
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Elshorbagy MH, Sánchez PA, Cuadrado A, Alda J, Esteban Ó. Resonant nano-dimer metasurface for ultra-thin a-Si:H solar cells. Sci Rep 2021; 11:7179. [PMID: 33785847 PMCID: PMC8009869 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-86738-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Low-cost hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells (a-Si:H) can perform better and be more competitive by including nanostructures. An optimized nano-dimer structure embedded in close contact with the back electrode of an aSi:H ultra-thin solar cells can enhance the deliverable short-circuit current up to 27.5 %. This enhancement is the result of an increase in the absorption at the active layer, that is the product of an efficient scattering from the nanostructure. From our calculations, the nano-dimer structure must be made out of a high-index of refraction material, like GaP. The evaluation of the scattering and absorption cross section of the structure supports the calculated enhancement in short-circuit current, that is always accompanied by a decrease in the total reflectance of the cell, which is reduced by about 50 %.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahmoud H Elshorbagy
- Photonics Engineering Group, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, 28801, Madrid, Spain.,Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Minia University, El Minya, 61519, Egypt
| | - Pablo A Sánchez
- Photonics Engineering Group, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, 28801, Madrid, Spain
| | - Alexander Cuadrado
- Escuela de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología, University Rey Juan Carlos, Móstoles, 28933, Madrid, Spain
| | - Javier Alda
- Applied Optics Complutense Group, University Complutense of Madrid, Arcos de Jalón, 118, 28037, Madrid, Spain
| | - Óscar Esteban
- Photonics Engineering Group, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, 28801, Madrid, Spain.
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