Current Approach in Surface Plasmons for Thin Film and  Wire Array Solar Cell Applications

Zhou, Keya; Guo, Zhongyi; Liu, Shutian; Lee, Jung-Ho

doi:10.3390/ma8074565

Cited by 12 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…Metallic ultrathin films have a wide variety of applications in microelectronics, energy storage, catalysis, and other areas. Specifically, multilayered structures of magnetic/nonmagnetic ultrathin films are being increasingly researched for their potential applications in next generation information storage devices, magnetic sensors, magneto‐optical devices, thermoelectric devices, and diluted magnetic semiconductors .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In Situ Synchrotron X‐Ray Diffraction Analysis of Phase Transformation in Epitaxial Metastable hcp Nickel Thin Films, Prepared via Plasma‐Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition

Motamedi

Bosnick

Cadien

et al. 2018

Adv Materials Inter

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thickness and the crystal structure are necessary requirements. [15,16] Epitaxial growth of magnetic thin films enables the precise control of strain and crystal orientation, both of which have critical effects on the magnetization of thin films. [17,18] Another important benefit of epitaxial growth is limiting the grain boundary diffusion, which is shown to play a critical role in interlayer diffusion of the multilayer ultrathin films. [19,20] In order to fully realize the benefits of the ultrathin magnetic films, they need to be grown in an epitaxial fashion with a fine-tuned crystal structure and orientation. This subject is explored in the present paper.Plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) is a method for the deposition of Ni films that offers several advantages over more mainstream deposition methods, such as sputtering and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). These advantages include precise thickness control, relatively low growth temperature, and conformality, i.e., the ability to deposit a film with a uniform thickness over a non-flat substrate. [21][22][23] All of these benefits make this method suitable for growing ultrathin films, where thickness and structure are critical parameters. [24] The authors have previously reported the plasma-enhanced ALD growth and characterization of nickel thin films with quasi-epitaxial crystal structure. [25] As reported, increasing the deposition temperature resulted in improving the crystallinity of the films. At deposition temperature of 360 °C, chemically pure nickel films were deposited. Crystal structure analysis showed the films had a polycrystalline textured structure with a strong out-of-plane orientation relationship with the sapphire substrate. However, full epitaxial growth was not achieved. This issue has been addressed in this paper.Apart from the above-mentioned publication, there have been other recent reports on nickel deposition. Park et al. [26] recently reported on PEALD of nickel thin films using [Ni(dpdab) 2 ] and NH 3 plasma, with the films reportedly having a fcc polycrystalline structure. In a separate study, Suturin et al. [27] demonstrated the deposition of epitaxial nickel islands on CaF 2 at 600 °C, using an electron beam source. The isolated islands had fcc crystal structure and crystallographic orientations dictated by that of the substrate. On a related subject, Tarachand et al. [28] investigated phase structure and magnetism in nickel nanoparticles grown by thermal decomposition, and reported that the Ultrathin metal films have a wide variety of applications, especially in microelectronics. A key method to deposit these films is plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD), which is known for its ability to deposit thin films conformally and at relatively low temperatures. Building on the recent work, an improved recipe is reported on for the development of nickel PEALD technology, through which fully epitaxial nickel thin films are deposited. The effect of continuous heating on the phase structure and agglomeration in the met...

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In Situ Synchrotron X‐Ray Diffraction Analysis of Phase Transformation in Epitaxial Metastable hcp Nickel Thin Films, Prepared via Plasma‐Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition

Motamedi

Bosnick

Cadien

et al. 2018

Adv Materials Inter

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“…Recently, the incorporation of metal nanostructures into thin-film SCs was considered as one of the ways of their improvement. The effectiveness of such structures is mainly explained by the plasmon effect that improves the light propagation, absorption and scattering in such photovoltaic cells [1][2][3][4][5]. Thus, the authors of [6] theoretically demonstrate that the existence of the direct absorption mechanism due to surface plasmons on metal nanoparticles (NPs) is an argument for placing the nanoparticles inside the silicon, rather than in front of, or at the rear of the cell.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Self-Organized Structuring of the Surface of a Metal–Semiconductor Composite by Femtosecond Laser Processing

Berezovska¹,

Dmitruk²,

Kalyuzhnyy³

et al. 2018

Ukr. J. Phys.

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Peculiarities of the laser treatment of a composite consisting of a thin film of a metal (gold) on the surface of a semiconductor substrate [silicon (100)] have been studied. Micro- and nanostructurings of the metal-semiconductor composite sample have been achieved by the irradiation of its initial surface with a Ti : sapphire femtosecond laser. Laser ablation leads to the patterning of the surface of the composite with laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) and the formation of semiconductor nanohills, metal nanoparticles, and/or nanowires on the top of hills. The presence of some nanoscale surface features is confirmed by a low-frequency shift of the silicon phonon band in Raman spectra. Prepared microstructured surface barrier solar cells are characterized by means of scanning electron microscopy, optical spectroscopy, and photoelectric measurements.

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“…We previously reported in a theoretical study that differently colored bulk heterojunction ST‐OSC with 30% transparency can reach maximum up to 12% PCE . To overcome this limitation, different light management strategies like up‐ or downconversion layers, patterned substrates, microcavities, plasmonic metal nanostructures, anti‐reflection coatings, or dielectric mirrors have been reported in the literature . The use of dielectric mirrors (also known as Bragg mirrors, 1D photonic crystals, or dichroic filters) which are based on thin‐film interference is an especially outstanding method.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Guideline for Efficiency Enhancement in Semi‐Transparent Thin‐Film Organic Photovoltaics with Dielectric Mirrors

Bronnbauer

Gasparini

Brabec

et al. 2016

Advanced Optical Materials

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Semi‐transparent organic solar cells (ST‐OSCs) show a unique potential to be integrated in windows due to their outstanding characteristics such as high transparency and color‐adjustability. In order to achieve both, high transparency and high efficiency, the use of dielectric mirrors is an excellent concept. However, such a mirror will not only improve the photocurrent generated by a solar cell but also cause losses in transparency. In this work, a theoretical model is developed that predicts the effect of the dielectric mirror on the balance between photocurrent enhancement and transparency loss depending on the spectral shape of the ST‐OSC absorption. Experimental investigations with three fully printed ST‐OSCs showing different absorption characteristics underline the validity of these studies. It is concluded that ST‐OSCs with broad absorption spectra ranging from the short wavelength region over the visible to at least 950 nm are most suitable for the implementation of a dielectric mirror. A narrower absorption spectrum or a shift of the spectrum toward longer wavelengths makes an increase in photoactive layer thickness more beneficial than the attachment of a dielectric mirror. Moreover, the dielectric mirror approach is an excellent strategy to obtain high photocurrents for materials which cannot be processed at high active layer thicknesses.

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Current Approach in Surface Plasmons for Thin Film and Wire Array Solar Cell Applications

Cited by 12 publications

References 73 publications

In Situ Synchrotron X‐Ray Diffraction Analysis of Phase Transformation in Epitaxial Metastable hcp Nickel Thin Films, Prepared via Plasma‐Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition

In Situ Synchrotron X‐Ray Diffraction Analysis of Phase Transformation in Epitaxial Metastable hcp Nickel Thin Films, Prepared via Plasma‐Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition

Self-Organized Structuring of the Surface of a Metal–Semiconductor Composite by Femtosecond Laser Processing

Guideline for Efficiency Enhancement in Semi‐Transparent Thin‐Film Organic Photovoltaics with Dielectric Mirrors

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