InGaN/GaN multi‐quantum‐well solar cells under high solar concentration and elevated temperatures for hybrid solar thermal‐photovoltaic power plants

Moses, Gilad; Huang, Xuanqi; Zhao, Yuji; Maur, Matthias Auf der; Katz, Eugene A.; Gordon, Jeffrey M.

doi:10.1002/pip.3326

Cited by 25 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…It is important to study the behavior of solar cells as a function of temperature to deduce their optimum working conditions and optimized efficiencies. In the present solar cell design, the working temperature range was selected to be between 13 • C (260 K ) and 52 • C (325K ) and at elevated temperatures in the case of concentrator systems and space heating 48 . It has been noted that solar cell performance decreases with increased temperature 11 because, at high temperatures, the solar cell device suffers severe charge recombination and reduced lifetime.…”

Section: Effect Of Temperature On Cell Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Computational Simulation of a Highly Efficient Hole Transport-Free Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Based on Titanium Oxide (TiO2) and Zinc Oxysulfide (ZnOS) Electron Transport Layers

Korir

Kibet

Ngari

2021

J. Electron. Mater.

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In order to mitigate the current global energy and environmental challenges associated with the use of fossil fuels, there is a need for better energy alternatives such as the inexhaustible solar energy. Of great interest is the design and fabrication of low-cost photovoltaic devices which are the epitome of efficient solar energy harvesting. Herein, we report inexpensive hole transport layer (HTL)-free dye-sensitized solar cell architecture with robust photovoltaic (PV) performance. In the proposed solar cell model, expensive hole transport layers, CuI, CuSCN, Spiro-OMeTAD, and PEDOT:PSS, are not required, but instead, a metallic layer is used for dye regeneration. A thorough analysis of the effect of series and shunt resistances, conduction band offset, Schottky barriers, working temperature, the metal work function of the back contact, and the electron affinities of the electron transport layers (ETLs) on the performance of the proposed solar cell is presented. The Solar Capacitance Simulator (SCAPS-1D) is used to perform the numerical simulations of the proposed solar cell design. The study focused on modeling HTL-free dye-sensitized solar cells with the configuration: FTO/ETL/N719 dye/Au. The performance of two ETLs-ZnOS and TiO 2 are critically examined. The optimized model cell performance for the FTO/ZnOS/N719 dye/Au architecture gave an optimal power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 11.54%, 62.71% as the fill factor (FF), short circuit current (Jsc) of 18.50 mAcm −2 , and an open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 0.99 V. On the other hand, the cell architecture FTO/TiO 2 / N719 dye/Au gave an optimized performance of 10.22% as the PCE, 63.58% as the FF, a Voc of 0.97 V, and 16.50 mAcm −2 as the Jsc. Based on these results, ZnOS is a suitable ETL material that has better PV performance of the solar cell device under consideration. ZnOS is earth-abundant, has a tunable band gap, is less toxic, and is, therefore, a promising candidate to replace TiO 2 ETL in future designs and manufacture of HTL-free DSSCs for commercial production.

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Section: Effect Of Temperature On Cell Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Computational Simulation of a Highly Efficient Hole Transport-Free Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Based on Titanium Oxide (TiO2) and Zinc Oxysulfide (ZnOS) Electron Transport Layers

Korir

Kibet

Ngari

2021

J. Electron. Mater.

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“…Furthermore, in the case of InGaN, by modifying the Indium concentration it is possible to tune the energy gap in a wide range, thus allowing great flexibility 1,2 . As a consequence of all these excellent proprieties, GaN photovoltaic devices were proposed in concentrator solar harvesting systems 3,4 , for wireless power transfer system 5 , space applications 6 and as additional components for multi-junction (MJ) solar cells. Understanding the degradation mechanisms of GaN-based solar cells is therefore important to improve their performance under harsh scenario conditions, and will be useful for understanding the degradation dynamics of other GaN-based optoelectronics devices such as LEDs and laser diodes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Degradation of GaN-based InGaN-GaN MQWs solar cells caused by thermally-activated diffusion

Nicoletto

Caria²,

Santi

et al. 2023

Gallium Nitride Materials and Devices XVIII

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We investigate the degradation of high-periodicity GaN-based InGaN-GaN multiple quantum wells (MQWs) solar cells submitted to stress under high excitation intensity and high temperature; stress conditions are chosen to investigate cell behavior in a harsh scenario, such as wireless power transfer systems, space applications and concentrator harvesting systems. By examining the decrease in the short-circuit current and electroluminescence of these devices and the increase in the forward current at low bias, we suggest the presence of a thermally-activated diffusion process of impurities from the p-side of the device toward the active region. This process favors the increase in the Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) recombination rate. By employing the van Opdorp and t'Hooft model, we analyzed the time-variation of non-radiative Shockley-Read-Hall lifetime during aging, extracting the diffusion coefficient of the defect involved in the degradation; we also extracted the related activation energy by an appropriate fitting of the degradation kinetics according to Fick's second law of diffusion. The obtained values suggest that degradation originates from the diffusion of hydrogen, whose severity depends also on the thickness of the p-GaN layer of these devices. The proposed analysis methods and the obtained results are useful for understanding the physics of multiple quantum wells (MQWs) solar cells during degradation. The results can be used to increase the performance and reliability in novel applications where these devices are proposed, such us additional layer in multi-junction (MJ) solar cells, and the application in harsh environments.

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“…However, thanks to its extreme reliability and robustness, GaN could be a very promising material in specialty photovoltaic applications, like harsh photovoltaics 1 and space applications 2 . Multi-quantum wells structures, widely employed in LEDs, demonstrated to have a good performances under a wide range of conditions, such as high temperatures and high intensities 3 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental analysis of degradation of multi-quantum well GaN based solar cells under current stress

Caria¹,

Santi

Nicoletto³

et al. 2023

Gallium Nitride Materials and Devices XVIII

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GaN-based multi-quantum wells solar cells could be breakthrough devices for extreme applications like space environment and harsh photovoltaics. We performed a forward-bias stress on samples with 30 quantum wells with 15% indium content to better understand degradation mechanisms. DUTs were characterized by means of dark and illuminated IV, CV and Steady-State Photocapacitance measurements. First, we performed a step-stress experiment, by increasing current in 30 minutes steps up to 500 mA, when the device failed. We observed a variation in series resistance, a decrease in shunt resistance and a strong decrease in EQE, conversion efficiency and open-circuit voltage, especially at low excitation intensities. CV measurements showed an increase and then a decrease in free charge density in the device, that was correlated to the variation in trap-states density evaluated by SSPC. Based on the results of this step-stress experiment, we carried out a 100 hours constant-current stress at 40 mA. This stress showed a moderate decrease in series resistance and a decrease in EQE and conversion efficiency. An increase in charge density was observed and correlated with the decrease in conversion efficiency. The degradation of the device was related to the generation of defects, that may create a nearmidgap states, detected by SSPC measurement, and a shallow donor state that generates a change in free carrier density. These defects possibly migrate through the devices, as they are detected at different times by SSPC and CV measurements.

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InGaN/GaN multi‐quantum‐well solar cells under high solar concentration and elevated temperatures for hybrid solar thermal‐photovoltaic power plants

Cited by 25 publications

References 27 publications

Computational Simulation of a Highly Efficient Hole Transport-Free Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Based on Titanium Oxide (TiO2) and Zinc Oxysulfide (ZnOS) Electron Transport Layers

Computational Simulation of a Highly Efficient Hole Transport-Free Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Based on Titanium Oxide (TiO2) and Zinc Oxysulfide (ZnOS) Electron Transport Layers

Degradation of GaN-based InGaN-GaN MQWs solar cells caused by thermally-activated diffusion

Experimental analysis of degradation of multi-quantum well GaN based solar cells under current stress

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