neox 3D Optical Profiler
Application ENERGY. Thin film, silicon solar cells, power cells, ceramics
His researchers are making hybrid solar cells, part semiconductor quantum dots and part organic semiconductor. This is because they want the two different components to have complementary absorption spectrum. The problem they face is that, whether it is molecules, polymers or quantum dots they all have a limited width of absorption. They absorb over a much narrower spectral range than the solar spectrum and so the cell absorbs much less of the incident light than would be preferable. ‘So by having materials that absorb slightly different areas of the solar spectrum we could absorb more of it and that is the idea we are pursuing in our grant,’ says Samuel. For a single junction solar cell an energy gap of around 1.5eV is optimal, absorption in the near infrared is desirable and quantum dots are a route to achieving that.’
As well as using inkjet printing to manufacture such cells, spin coating is another method being investigated. An active layer of the solar cell is created by mixing up the constituents in a solution and spin coating the solution onto a substrate. A few drops of the active layer material to become the coating is placed on top of the substrate and the machine spins the substrate at a couple of thousand revolutions per minute. This spreads the solution uniformly over the substrate delivering a very uniform thickness on the order of 100nm. ‘That’s basically the solution process, that is the aim, very cheap manufacture. This is what we require for organic optoelectronic devices,’ says
Samuel. ‘Our project is exploring new classes of materials, so really it’s about exploring alternative approaches and unfortunately any approach, even a good one, needs many years of development to compete with long established approaches.’
This is what we require for organic optoelectronic devices
Samuel expects these materials to be used to make solar cells so flexible they can be applied to curved surfaces such as rucksacks. Soldiers could have rucksacks that charge up the batteries that are needed by the warfighter for equipment such as nightvision goggles. 3D-Micromac develops and manufactures complete production lines as well as integrated modules for the production of organic photovoltaics. Flexible organic solar
cells are made up of carbon compounds. The structure of the solar cells is either generated by a printing process or highly precise laser scribing, already successfully used elsewhere in photovoltaics. Flexible organic solar cells are made up of carbon compounds. Flexible organic solar cells constitute an alternative to common mono and polycrystalline solar cells as well as the thin-film technologies. And the production of organic solar cells is much less problematic in this context.
Eventually Samuel expects his quantum dot using hybrid cells to deliver above 10 per cent efficiency, which is just below the 12 per cent commercial cells achieve today. Bagnall foresees plasmonics as a key component for the 30 per cent efficient device that would mean solar power would be available for all. ‘It would be a simple structure based on a mature technology.’ l
Four different solar cells
PLu neox is a major breakthrough in non-contact optical 3D profiling, featuring a dual core 3D measuring microscope combined with confocal and interferometric capabilities.
PLu neox is ideal for surfaces, contacts and structures on bulk and thin film silicon solar cells and on ceramics.
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