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Plasmonic nanoparticle enhanced light absorption in GaAs solar cells

Nakayama, Keisuke and Tanabe, Katsuaki and Atwater, Harry A. (2008) Plasmonic nanoparticle enhanced light absorption in GaAs solar cells. Applied Physics Letters, 93 (12). Art. No. 121904. ISSN 0003-6951. doi:10.1063/1.2988288. https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechAUTHORS:NAKapl08

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Abstract

We demonstrate an improvement in efficiency of optically thin GaAs solar cells decorated with size-controlled Ag nanoparticles fabricated by masked deposition through anodic aluminum oxide templates. The strong scattering by the interacting surface plasmons in densely formed high aspect-ratio nanoparticles effectively increases the optical path of the incident light in the absorber layers resulting in an 8% increase in the short circuit current density of the cell. The nanoparticle array sheet conductivity also reduces the cell surface sheet resistance evidenced by an improved fill factor. This dual function of plasmonic nanoparticles has potential to enable thinner photovoltaic layers in solar cells.


Item Type:Article
Related URLs:
URLURL TypeDescription
http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.2988288DOIArticle
http://link.aip.org/link/?APPLAB/93/121904/1PublisherArticle
ORCID:
AuthorORCID
Atwater, Harry A.0000-0001-9435-0201
Additional Information:© 2008 American Institute of Physics. Received 24 July 2008; accepted 31 August 2008; published 22 September 2008. This work was supported by the Department of Energy, Basic Energy Sciences under Grant No. DE-FG02-07ER46405, and Nippon Oil Corporation. We also acknowledge support from the Center for Science and Engineering of Materials (CSEM), a NSF Material Research Science and Engineering Center at Caltech, for facilities use.
Funders:
Funding AgencyGrant Number
Department of Energy (DOE)DE-FG02-07ER46405
Nippon Oil CorporationUNSPECIFIED
NSFUNSPECIFIED
Subject Keywords:current density, gallium arsenide, III-V semiconductors, nanoparticles, nanotechnology, short-circuit currents, solar cells, surface plasmons, surface resistance
Issue or Number:12
DOI:10.1063/1.2988288
Record Number:CaltechAUTHORS:NAKapl08
Persistent URL:https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechAUTHORS:NAKapl08
Usage Policy:No commercial reproduction, distribution, display or performance rights in this work are provided.
ID Code:11799
Collection:CaltechAUTHORS
Deposited By: Archive Administrator
Deposited On:29 Sep 2008 23:29
Last Modified:08 Nov 2021 22:02

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