Procedure to decouple reflectance and down-shifting effects in luminescent down-shifting enhanced photovoltaics

Abstract

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Combined Experimental and Modeling Analysis for the Development of Optical Materials Suitable to Enhance the Implementation of Plasmonic-Enhanced Luminescent Down-Shifting Solutions on Existing Silicon-Based Photovoltaic Devices

“…1 The encapsulating materials, typically a combination of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and/or tempered glass derivatives, impinge upon the conversion dynamics of the underlying PV technology. 2−4 Consequently, the addition of the encapsulants has a great influence on the spectral response 5 and short-circuit current density 6 generated within a PV device, particularly within the ultraviolet region (300−400 nm), where PMMA exhibits a sharp spectral cutoff. 8 To counteract these additional losses, the fundamental architecture of the photoconductive material is drastically altered through surface passivation, surface texturing, or by tailoring the material band gap dynamics through selectively doping the crystal lattice.…”

“…Consequently, the extent to which each one of these contributions imparts the electrical conversion efficiency of the PV architecture has been typically overlooked in the pursuit of examining their combined influence. 6,7 However, by decoupling the various optical interactions and investigating their individual influence on the optical behavior and corresponding conversion performance of PV devices, the premises to further optimize any collaborative and complementary interactions that may arise among the individual elements (PV structure, encapsulant, luminophore, MNPs) can be offered. 7 Various modeling approaches allowing the influence of the PLDS layer optical properties on the electrical characteristics of a pristine PV have been developed over the years to explore the interactions that can occur within these complex optical structures.…”

“…. The encapsulating materials, typically a combination of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and/or tempered glass derivatives, impinge upon the conversion dynamics of the underlying PV technology. − Consequently, the addition of the encapsulants has a great influence on the spectral response and short-circuit current density generated within a PV device, particularly within the ultraviolet region (300–400 nm), where PMMA exhibits a sharp spectral cutoff . To counteract these additional losses, the fundamental architecture of the photoconductive material is drastically altered through surface passivation, surface texturing, or by tailoring the material band gap dynamics through selectively doping the crystal lattice. ,,, However, for each additional processing stage implemented into the device design, the fabrication costs grow. , To continue the reductions experienced in PV pricing, − alongside with the continuous improvement of the conversion efficiencies, − various alternative intricate architectures have been suggested. , As the complexity of the PV architecture continues to grow, optical modeling starts to become the preferred tool to resolve and decouple the complex physical phenomena affecting the energy harvesting.…”

Spray Coating Luminescence Layers on Glass for Si Solar Cells Efficiency Enhancement

“…However, the concept of DS (the enhancement of photovoltaic device based on using high-energy photons from UV range) appeared a little earlier in so-called luminescent solar concentrators [14][15][16]. During the decades, researchers estimated that DS could enhance solar cell efficiency at the level of about 10% [17][18][19]. The idea of the process is presented in Figure 1.…”

Photovoltaic Performance Enhancement of Silicon Solar Cells Based on Combined Ratios of Three Species of Europium-Doped Phosphors

“…The conversion efficiency of crystalline silicon solar cells at ultraviolet-blue (UV–blue) wavelengths remains relatively low due to high surface recombination losses and low responsivity within the UV–blue wavelength band. Numerous methods have been devised to enhance conversion efficiency at short wavelengths, including the down-conversion (DC) or luminescent down-shifting (LDS) of the incident spectrum [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ]. DC materials are able to convert high-energy incident photons into two or more photons of lower energy.…”