Praseodymium Cuprate Thin Film Cathodes for Intermediate Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cells: Roles of Doping, Orientation, and Crystal Structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Mukherjee, Kunal; Hayamizu, Yoshiaki; Kim, Chang Sub; Kolchina, Liudmila M; Mazo, Galina N; Istomin, Sergey Ya; Bishop, Sean R; Tuller, Harry L

2016-12-21

Highly textured thin films of undoped, Ce-doped, and Sr-doped Pr 2 CuO 4 were synthesized on single crystal YSZ substrates using pulsed laser deposition to investigate their area-specific resistance (ASR) as cathodes in solid-oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The effects of T' and T* crystal structures, donor and acceptor doping, and a-axis and c-axis orientation on ASR were systematically studied using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy on half cells. The addition of both Ce and Sr dopants resulted in improvements in ASR in c-axis oriented films, as did the T* crystal structure with the a-axis orientation. Pr 1.6 Sr 0.4 CuO 4 is identified as a potential cathode material with nearly an order of magnitude faster oxygen reduction reaction kinetics at 600 °C compared to thin films of the commonly studied cathode material La 0.6 Sr 0.4 Co 0.8 Fe 0.2 O 3-δ . Orientation control of the cuprate films on YSZ was achieved using seed layers, and the anisotropy in the ASR was found to be less than an order of magnitude. The rare-earth doped cuprate was found to be a versatile system for study of relationships between bulk properties and the oxygen reduction reaction, critical for improving SOFC performance.

Thin-film photovoltaic technology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhattacharya, R.N. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO (United States)

2010-07-01

The high material and processing costs associated with single-crystal and polycrystalline silicon wafers that are commonly used in photovoltaic cells render these modules expensive. This presentation described thin-film solar cell technology as a promising alternative to silicon solar cell technology. Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin films along with copper, indium, gallium, and selenium (CIGS) thin films have become the leaders in this field. Their large optical absorption coefficient can be attributed to a direct energy gap that allows the use of thin layers (1-2 {mu}m) of active material. The efficiency of thin-film solar cell devices based on CIGS is 20 per cent, compared to 16.7 per cent for thin-film solar cell devices based on CdTe. IBM recently reported an efficiency of 9.7 per cent for a new type of inorganic thin-film solar cell based on a Cu{sub 2}ZnSn(S, Se){sub 4} compound. The efficiency of an organic thin-film solar cell is 7.9 per cent. This presentation included a graph of PV device efficiencies and discussed technological advances in non-vacuum deposited, CIGS-based thin-film solar cells. 1 fig.

MATERIAL AND PROCESS DEVELOPMENT LEADING TO ECONOMICAL HIGH-PERFORMANCE THIN-FILM SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELLS. Final Technical Report (October 2000 - December 2003)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jie Guan; Nguyen Minh

2003-01-01

This report summarizes the results of the work conducted under the program: ''Material and Process Development Leading to Economical High-Performance Thin-Film Solid Oxide Fuel Cells'' under contract number DE-AC26-00NT40711. The program goal is to advance materials and processes that can be used to produce economical, high-performance solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) capable of achieving extraordinary high power densities at reduced temperatures. Under this program, anode-supported thin electrolyte based on lanthanum gallate (LSMGF) has been developed using tape-calendering process. The fabrication parameters such as raw materials characteristics, tape formulations and sintering conditions have been evaluated. Dense anode supported LSGMF electrolytes with thickness range of 10-50 micron have been fabricated. High performance cathode based on Sr 0.5 Sm 0.5 CoO 3 (SSC) has been developed. Polarization of ∼0.23 ohm-cm 2 has been achieved at 600 C with Sr 0.5 Sm 0.5 CoO 3 cathode. The high-performance SSC cathode and thin gallate electrolyte have been integrated into single cells and cell performance has been characterized. Tested cells to date generally showed low performance because of low cell OCVs and material interactions between NiO in the anode and lanthanum gallate electrolyte

Thin film solar cells from earth abundant materials growth and characterization of Cu2(ZnSn)(SSe)4 thin films and their solar cells

CERN Document Server

Kodigala, Subba Ramaiah

2013-01-01

The fundamental concept of the book is to explain how to make thin film solar cells from the abundant solar energy materials by low cost. The proper and optimized growth conditions are very essential while sandwiching thin films to make solar cell otherwise secondary phases play a role to undermine the working function of solar cells. The book illustrates growth and characterization of Cu2ZnSn(S1-xSex)4 thin film absorbers and their solar cells. The fabrication process of absorber layers by either vacuum or non-vacuum process is readily elaborated in the book, which helps for further developm

Recent progress in Si thin film technology for solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Kuwano, Yukinori; Nakano, Shoichi; Tsuda, Shinya

1991-11-01

Progress in Si thin film technology 'specifically amorphous Si (a-Si) and polycrystalline Si (poly-Si) thin film' for solar cells is summarized here from fabrication method, material, and structural viewpoints. In addition to a-Si, primary results on poly-Si thin film research are discussed. Various applications for a-Si solar cells are mentioned, and consumer applications and a-Si solar cell photovoltaic systems are introduced. New product developments include see-through solar cells, solar cell roofing tiles, and ultra-light flexible solar cells. As for new systems, air conditioning equipment powered by solar cells is described. Looking to the future, the proposed GENESIS project is discussed.

Study of neural cells on organic semiconductor ultra thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bystrenova, Eva; Tonazzini, Ilaria; Stoliar, Pablo; Greco, Pierpaolo; Lazar, Adina; Dutta, Soumya; Dionigi, Chiara; Cacace, Marcello; Biscarini, Fabio [ISMN-CNR, Bologna (Italy); Jelitai, Marta; Madarasz, Emilia [IEM- HAS, Budapest (Hungary); Huth, Martin; Nickel, Bert [LMU, Munich (Germany); Martini, Claudia [Dept. PNPB, Univ. of Pisa (Italy)

2008-07-01

Many technological advances are currently being developed for nano-fabrication, offering the ability to create and control patterns of soft materials. We report the deposition of cells on organic semiconductor ultra-thin films. This is a first step towards the development of active bio/non bio systems for electrical transduction. Thin films of pentacene, whose thickness was systematically varied, were grown by high vacuum sublimation. We report adhesion, growth, and differentiation of human astroglial cells and mouse neural stem cells on an organic semiconductor. Viability of astroglial cells in time was measured as a function of the roughness and the characteristic morphology of ultra thin organic film, as well as the features of the patterned molecules. Optical fluorescence microscope coupled to atomic force microscope was used to monitor the presence, density and shape of deposited cells. Neural stem cells remain viable, differentiate by retinoic acid and form dense neuronal networks. We have shown the possibility to integrate living neural cells on organic semiconductor thin films.

Thin Film Solar Cells and their Optical Properties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stanislav Jurecka

2006-01-01

Full Text Available In this work we report on the optical parameters of the semiconductor thin film for solar cell applications determination. The method is based on the dynamical modeling of the spectral reflectance function combined with the stochastic optimization of the initial reflectance model estimation. The spectral dependency of the thin film optical parameters computations is based on the optical transitions modeling. The combination of the dynamical modeling and the stochastic optimization of the initial theoretical model estimation enable comfortable analysis of the spectral dependencies of the optical parameters and incorporation of the microstructure effects on the solar cell properties. The results of the optical parameters ofthe i-a-Si thin film determination are presented.

Cell culture arrays using micron-sized ferromagnetic ring-shaped thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, Chen-Yu; Wei, Zung-Hang, E-mail: wei@pme.nthu.edu.tw [Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu City 300, Taiwan (China); Lai, Mei-Feng; Ger, Tzong-Rong [Institute of NanoEngineering and MicroSystems, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu City 300, Taiwan (China)

2015-05-07

Cell patterning has become an important technology for tissue engineering. In this research, domain walls are formed at the two ends of a ferromagnetic ring thin film after applying a strong external magnetic field, which can effectively attract magnetically labeled cells and control the position for biological cell. Magnetophoresis experiment was conducted to quantify the magnetic nanoparticle inside the cells. A ring-shaped magnetic thin films array was fabricated through photolithography. It is observed that magnetically labeled cells can be successfully attracted to the two ends of the ring-shaped magnetic thin film structure and more cells were attracted and further attached to the structures. The cells are co-cultured with the structure and kept proliferating; therefore, such ring thin film can be an important candidate for in-vitro biomedical chips or tissue engineering.

Cell culture arrays using micron-sized ferromagnetic ring-shaped thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Chen-Yu; Wei, Zung-Hang; Lai, Mei-Feng; Ger, Tzong-Rong

2015-01-01

Cell patterning has become an important technology for tissue engineering. In this research, domain walls are formed at the two ends of a ferromagnetic ring thin film after applying a strong external magnetic field, which can effectively attract magnetically labeled cells and control the position for biological cell. Magnetophoresis experiment was conducted to quantify the magnetic nanoparticle inside the cells. A ring-shaped magnetic thin films array was fabricated through photolithography. It is observed that magnetically labeled cells can be successfully attracted to the two ends of the ring-shaped magnetic thin film structure and more cells were attracted and further attached to the structures. The cells are co-cultured with the structure and kept proliferating; therefore, such ring thin film can be an important candidate for in-vitro biomedical chips or tissue engineering

Influence of annealing on texture properties of cerium oxide thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arunkumar, P.; Suresh Babu, K.; Ramaseshan, R.; Dash, S.

2013-01-01

Future power demand needs an energy source with higher efficiency, better power density, clean energy and fuel flexibility. Solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is one of the potential sources for future needs. Though the polymer and direct methanol based electrolyte are much suitable, for versatile applications (portable devices) they are having major challenges such as design, platinum based catalyst, lower power density and fuel flexibility (free from hydrocarbons). However, in SOFC the high operating temperature is the only major issue. Operating temperature of SOFC could be reduced by proper selection of electrolyte material which should have minimum ionic conductivity of 0.1 Scm -1 at reduced activation energy. This can be achieved by thin film based doped cerium oxide electrolyte for SOFC, leads to Intermediate Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (ITSOFC). In the present work, we focus on the synthesis of cerium oxide and 20 mol % samarium doped cerium oxide (SDC) nanoparticles by co-precipitation method and to synthesis thin films of the same. Pellets of those powders were heat treated at different temperatures and used as targets for e-beam evaporation to fabricate thin film based electrolyte. Stoichiometry of both powders and thin films were confirmed by XRF and EPMA. GIXRD profiles of ceria and SDC thin films are shown below and a preferred orientation effect is observed in SDC films. In SDC films the X-ray peaks have a shift towards lower angles, due to the difference in ionic radii of Ce 4+ and Sm 3+ . The band gap of CeO 2 (2.88 eV) from optical absorption technique indicates the presence of Ce 3+ with Ce 4+ , indirectly shows the concentration of oxygen vacancies which is required for the thin film electrolyte

Sputtered molybdenum thin films and the application in CIGS solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, D.; Zhu, H., E-mail: hongbing1982@hotmail.com; Liang, X.; Zhang, C.; Li, Z.; Xu, Y.; Chen, J.; Zhang, L.; Mai, Y., E-mail: yaohuamai@hbu.edu.cn

2016-01-30

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Mo thin films are prepared by magnetron sputtering. • The dynamic deposition rate increases with the increasing discharge power. • The surface structure of Mo films varies with discharge power and working pressure. • High efficiency CIGS thin film solar cell of 15.2% has been obtained. - Abstract: Molybdenum (Mo) thin films are prepared by magnetron sputtering with different discharge powers and working pressures for the application in Cu(In, Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGS) thin film solar cells as back electrodes. Properties of these Mo thin films are systematically investigated. It is found that the dynamic deposition rate increases with the increasing discharge power while decreases with the increasing working pressure. The highest dynamic deposition rate of 15.1 nm m/min is achieved for the Mo thin film deposited at the discharge power of 1200 W and at the working pressure of 0.15 Pa. The achieved lowest resistivity of 3.7 × 10{sup −5} Ω cm is attributed to the large grains in the compact thin film. The discharge power and working pressure have great influence on the sputtered Mo thin films. High efficiency of 12.5% was achieved for the Cu(In, Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGS) thin film solar cells with Mo electrodes prepared at 1200 W and low working pressures. By further optimizing material and device properties, the conversion efficiency has reached to 15.2%.

Copper zinc tin sulfide-based thin film solar cells

CERN Document Server

Ito, Kentaro

2014-01-01

Beginning with an overview and historical background of Copper Zinc Tin Sulphide (CZTS) technology, subsequent chapters cover properties of CZTS thin films, different preparation methods of CZTS thin films, a comparative study of CZTS and CIGS solar cell, computational approach, and future applications of CZTS thin film solar modules to both ground-mount and rooftop installation. The semiconducting compound (CZTS) is made up earth-abundant, low-cost and non-toxic elements, which make it an ideal candidate to replace Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) and CdTe solar cells which face material scarcity and tox

Surface composition of magnetron sputtered Pt-Co thin film catalyst for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vorokhta, Mykhailo, E-mail: vorohtam@gmail.com [Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague (Czech Republic); Khalakhan, Ivan; Václavů, Michal [Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague (Czech Republic); Kovács, Gábor; Kozlov, Sergey M. [Departament de Química Física and Institut de Química Teòrica i Computacional (IQTCUB), Universitat de Barcelona, c/ Martí i Franquès 1, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Kúš, Peter; Skála, Tomáš; Tsud, Natalia; Lavková, Jaroslava [Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague (Czech Republic); Potin, Valerie [Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire Carnot de Bourgogne, UMR 6303 CNRS-Université Bourgogne, 9 Av. A. Savary, BP 47870, F-21078 Dijon Cedex (France); and others

2016-03-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Nanostructured Pt-Co thin catalyst films were grown on carbon by magnetron sputtering. • The surface composition of the nanostructured Pt-Co films was investigated by surface analysis techniques. • We carried out modeling of Pt-Co nanoalloys by computational methods. • Both experiment and modeling based on density functional theory showed that the surface of Pt-Co nanoparticles is almost exclusively composed of Pt atoms. - Abstract: Recently we have tested a magnetron sputtered Pt-Co catalyst in a hydrogen-fed proton exchange membrane fuel cell and showed its high catalytic activity for the oxygen reduction reaction. Here we present further investigation of the magnetron sputtered Pt-Co thin film catalyst by both experimental and theoretical methods. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy experiments confirmed the nanostructured character of the catalyst. The surface composition of as-deposited and annealed at 773 K Pt-Co films was investigated by surface analysis techniques, such as synchrotron radiation photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Modeling based on density functional theory showed that the surface of 6 nm large 1:1 Pt-Co nanoparticles is almost exclusively composed of Pt atoms (>90%) at typical operation conditions and the Co content does not exceed 20% at 773 K, in agreement with the experimental characterization of such films annealed in vacuum. According to experiment, the density of valence states of surface atoms in Pt-Co nanostructures is shifted by 0.3 eV to higher energies, which can be associated with their higher activity in the oxygen reduction reaction. The changes in electronic structure caused by alloying are also reflected in the measured Pt 4f, Co 3p and Co 2p photoelectron peak binding energies.

Deposition and characterisation of epitaxial oxide thin films for SOFCs

KAUST Repository

Santiso, José ; Burriel, Mó nica

2010-01-01

This paper reviews the recent advances in the use of thin films, mostly epitaxial, for fundamental studies of materials for solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) applications. These studies include the influence of film microstructure, crystal orientation

Large Area Thin Film Silicon: Synergy between Displays and Solar Cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schropp, R.E.I.

2012-01-01

Thin-film silicon technology has changed our society, owing to the rapid advance of its two major application fields in communication (thin-film displays) and sustainable energy (thin-film solar cells). Throughout its development, advances in these application fields have always benefitted each

High efficiency thin-film solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schock, Hans-Werner [Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (Germany). Solar Energy

2012-11-01

Production of photovoltaics is growing worldwide on a gigawatt scale. Among the thin film technologies, Cu(In,Ga)S,Se{sub 2} (CIS or CIGS) based solar cells have been the focus of more and more attention. This paper aims to analyze the success of CIGS based solar cells and the potential of this technology for future photovoltaics large-scale production. Specific material properties make CIS unique and allow the preparation of the material with a wide range of processing options. The huge potential lies in the possibility to take advantage of modern thin film processing equipment and combine it with very high efficiencies beyond 20% already achieved on the laboratory scale. A sustainable development of this technology could be realized by modifying the materials and replacing indium by abundant elements. (orig.)

In and Ga Codoped ZnO Film as a Front Electrode for Thin Film Silicon Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Duy Phong Pham

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Doped ZnO thin films have attracted much attention in the research community as front-contact transparent conducting electrodes in thin film silicon solar cells. The prerequisite in both low resistivity and high transmittance in visible and near-infrared region for hydrogenated microcrystalline or amorphous/microcrystalline tandem thin film silicon solar cells has promoted further improvements of this material. In this work, we propose the combination of major Ga and minor In impurities codoped in ZnO film (IGZO to improve the film optoelectronic properties. A wide range of Ga and In contents in sputtering targets was explored to find optimum optical and electrical properties of deposited films. The results show that an appropriate combination of In and Ga atoms in ZnO material, followed by in-air thermal annealing process, can enhance the crystallization, conductivity, and transmittance of IGZO thin films, which can be well used as front-contact electrodes in thin film silicon solar cells.

Method for producing textured substrates for thin-film photovoltaic cells

Science.gov (United States)

Lauf, Robert J.

1994-01-01

The invention pertains to the production of ceramic substrates used in the manufacture of thin-film photovoltaic cells used for directly converting solar energy to electrical energy. Elongated ribbon-like sheets of substrate precursor containing a mixture of ceramic particulates, a binder, and a plasticizer are formed and then while green provided with a mechanically textured surface region used for supporting the thin film semiconductor of the photovoltaic cell when the sheets of the substrate precursor are subsequently cut into substrate-sized shapes and then sintered. The textured surface pattern on the substrate provides enhanced light trapping and collection for substantially increasing the solar energy conversion efficiency of thin-film photovoltaic cells.

Oxygen Reduction Reaction Activity of Platinum Thin Films with Different Densities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ergul, Busra; Begum, Mahbuba; Kariuki, Nancy; Myers, Deborah J.; Karabacak, Tansel

2017-08-24

Platinum thin films with different densities were grown on glassy carbon electrodes by high pressure sputtering deposition and evaluated as oxygen reduction reaction catalysts for polymer electrolyte fuel cells using cyclic voltammetry and rotating disk electrode techniques in aqueous perchloric acid electrolyte. The electrochemically active surface area, ORR mass activity (MA) and specific activity (SA) of the thin film electrodes were obtained. MA and SA were found to be higher for low-density films than for high-density film.

Plasma Deposited Thin Iron Oxide Films as Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Reduction Reaction in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lukasz JOZWIAK

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The possibility of using plasma deposited thin films of iron oxides as electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC was examined. Results of energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS analysis indicated that the plasma deposit consisted mainly of FeOX structures with the X parameter close to 1.5. For as deposited material iron atoms are almost exclusively in the Fe3+ oxidation state without annealing in oxygen containing atmosphere. However, the annealing procedure can be used to remove the remains of carbon deposit from surface. The single cell test (SCT was performed to determine the suitability of the produced material for ORR. Preliminary results showed that power density of 0.23 mW/cm2 could be reached in the tested cell.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ms.23.1.14406

Thin films and nanomaterials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jayakumar, S.; Kannan, M.D.; Prasanna, S.

2012-01-01

The objective of this book is to disseminate the most recent research in Thin Films, Nanomaterials, Corrosion and Metallurgy presented at the International Conference on Advanced Materials (ICAM 2011) held in PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore, India during 12-16 December 2011. The book is a compilation of 113 chapters written by active researchers providing information and critical insights into the recent advancements that have taken place. Important new applications are possible today in the fields of microelectronics, opto-electronics, metallurgy and energy by the application of thin films on solid surfaces. Recent progress in high vacuum technology and new materials has a remarkable effect in thin film quality and cost. This has led to the development of new single or multi-layered thin film devices with diverse applications in a multitude of production areas, such as optics, thermal barrier coatings and wear protections, enhancing service life of tools and to protect materials against thermal and atmospheric influence. On the other hand, thin film process techniques and research are strongly related to the basic research activities in nano technology, an increasingly important field with countless opportunities for applications due to the emergence of new properties at the nanoscale level. Materials and structures that are designed and fabricated at the nano scale level, offer the potential to produce new devices and processes that may enhance efficiencies and reduce costs in many areas, as photovoltaic systems, hydrogen storage, fuel cells and solar thermal systems. In the book, the contributed papers are classified under two sections i) thin films and ii) nanomaterials. The thin film section includes single or multi layer conducting, insulating or semiconducting films synthesized by a wide variety of physical or chemical techniques and characterized or analyzed for different applications. The nanomaterials section deals with novel or exciting materials

Disorder improves nanophotonic light trapping in thin-film solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paetzold, U. W., E-mail: u.paetzold@fz-juelich.de; Smeets, M.; Meier, M.; Bittkau, K.; Merdzhanova, T.; Smirnov, V.; Carius, R.; Rau, U. [IEK5—Photovoltaik, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich (Germany); Michaelis, D.; Waechter, C. [Fraunhofer Institut für Angewandte Optik und Feinmechanik, Albert Einstein Str. 7, D-07745 Jena (Germany)

2014-03-31

We present a systematic experimental study on the impact of disorder in advanced nanophotonic light-trapping concepts of thin-film solar cells. Thin-film solar cells made of hydrogenated amorphous silicon were prepared on imprint-textured glass superstrates. For periodically textured superstrates of periods below 500 nm, the nanophotonic light-trapping effect is already superior to state-of-the-art randomly textured front contacts. The nanophotonic light-trapping effect can be associated to light coupling to leaky waveguide modes causing resonances in the external quantum efficiency of only a few nanometer widths for wavelengths longer than 500 nm. With increasing disorder of the nanotextured front contact, these resonances broaden and their relative altitude decreases. Moreover, overall the external quantum efficiency, i.e., the light-trapping effect, increases incrementally with increasing disorder. Thereby, our study is a systematic experimental proof that disorder is conceptually an advantage for nanophotonic light-trapping concepts employing grating couplers in thin-film solar cells. The result is relevant for the large field of research on nanophotonic light trapping in thin-film solar cells which currently investigates and prototypes a number of new concepts including disordered periodic and quasi periodic textures.

Cell adhesion on NiTi thin film sputter-deposited meshes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Loger, K. [Inorganic Functional Materials, Institute for Materials Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel (Germany); Engel, A.; Haupt, J. [Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel (Germany); Li, Q. [Biocompatible Nanomaterials, Institute for Materials Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel (Germany); Lima de Miranda, R. [Inorganic Functional Materials, Institute for Materials Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel (Germany); ACQUANDAS GmbH, Kiel (Germany); Quandt, E. [Inorganic Functional Materials, Institute for Materials Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel (Germany); Lutter, G. [Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel (Germany); Selhuber-Unkel, C. [Biocompatible Nanomaterials, Institute for Materials Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel (Germany)

2016-02-01

Scaffolds for tissue engineering enable the possibility to fabricate and form biomedical implants in vitro, which fulfill special functionality in vivo. In this study, free-standing Nickel–Titanium (NiTi) thin film meshes were produced by means of magnetron sputter deposition. Meshes contained precisely defined rhombic holes in the size of 440 to 1309 μm{sup 2} and a strut width ranging from 5.3 to 9.2 μm. The effective mechanical properties of the microstructured superelastic NiTi thin film were examined by tensile testing. These results will be adapted for the design of the holes in the film. The influence of hole and strut dimensions on the adhesion of sheep autologous cells (CD133 +) was studied after 24 h and after seven days of incubation. Optical analysis using fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy showed that cell adhesion depends on the structural parameters of the mesh. After 7 days in cell culture a large part of the mesh was covered with aligned fibrous material. Cell adhesion is particularly facilitated on meshes with small rhombic holes of 440 μm{sup 2} and a strut width of 5.3 μm. Our results demonstrate that free-standing NiTi thin film meshes have a promising potential for applications in cardiovascular tissue engineering, particularly for the fabrication of heart valves. - Highlights: • Freestanding NiTi thin film scaffolds were fabricated with magnetron sputtering process. • Effective mechanical properties of NiTi scaffolds can be adapted by the mesh structure parameters. • Cell adhesion on the NiTi thin film scaffold is controlled by the structure parameters of the mesh. • Cells strongly adhere after seven days and form a confluent layer on the mesh.

Cell adhesion on NiTi thin film sputter-deposited meshes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loger, K.; Engel, A.; Haupt, J.; Li, Q.; Lima de Miranda, R.; Quandt, E.; Lutter, G.; Selhuber-Unkel, C.

2016-01-01

Scaffolds for tissue engineering enable the possibility to fabricate and form biomedical implants in vitro, which fulfill special functionality in vivo. In this study, free-standing Nickel–Titanium (NiTi) thin film meshes were produced by means of magnetron sputter deposition. Meshes contained precisely defined rhombic holes in the size of 440 to 1309 μm 2 and a strut width ranging from 5.3 to 9.2 μm. The effective mechanical properties of the microstructured superelastic NiTi thin film were examined by tensile testing. These results will be adapted for the design of the holes in the film. The influence of hole and strut dimensions on the adhesion of sheep autologous cells (CD133 +) was studied after 24 h and after seven days of incubation. Optical analysis using fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy showed that cell adhesion depends on the structural parameters of the mesh. After 7 days in cell culture a large part of the mesh was covered with aligned fibrous material. Cell adhesion is particularly facilitated on meshes with small rhombic holes of 440 μm 2 and a strut width of 5.3 μm. Our results demonstrate that free-standing NiTi thin film meshes have a promising potential for applications in cardiovascular tissue engineering, particularly for the fabrication of heart valves. - Highlights: • Freestanding NiTi thin film scaffolds were fabricated with magnetron sputtering process. • Effective mechanical properties of NiTi scaffolds can be adapted by the mesh structure parameters. • Cell adhesion on the NiTi thin film scaffold is controlled by the structure parameters of the mesh. • Cells strongly adhere after seven days and form a confluent layer on the mesh.

High efficiency copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) thin film solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Rajanikant, Ray Jayminkumar

The generation of electrical current from the solar radiation is known as the photovoltaic effect. Solar cell, also known as photovoltaic (PV) cell, is a device that works on the principle of photovoltaic effect, and is widely used for the generation of electricity. Thin film polycrystalline solar cells based on copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) are admirable candidates for clean energy production with competitive prices in the near future. CIGS based polycrystalline thin film solar cells with efficiencies of 20.3 % and excellent temperature stability have already been reported at the laboratory level. The present study discusses about the fabrication of CIGS solar cell. Before the fabrication part of CIGS solar cell, a numerical simulation is carried out using One-Dimensional Analysis of Microelectronic and Photonic Structures (AMPS-ID) for understanding the physics of a solar cell device, so that an optimal structure is analyzed. In the fabrication part of CIGS solar cell, Molybdenum (Mo) thin film, which acts as a 'low' resistance metallic back contact, is deposited by RF magnetron sputtering on organically cleaned soda lime glass substrate. The major advantages for using Mo are high temperature, (greater than 600 °C), stability and inertness to CIGS layer (i.e., no diffusion of CIGS into Mo). Mo thin film is deposited at room temperature (RT) by varying the RF power and the working pressure. The Mo thin films deposited with 100 W RF power and 1 mTorr working pressure show a reflectivity of above average 50 % and the low sheet resistance of about 1 O/□. The p-type CIGS layer is deposited on Mo. Before making thin films of CIGS, a powder of CIGS material is synthesized using melt-quenching method. Thin films of CIGS are prepared by a single-stage flash evaporation process on glass substrates, initially, for optimization of deposition parameters and than on Mo coated glass substrates for device fabrication. CIGS thin film is deposited at 250 °C at a

Characterization of thin-film silicon materials and solar cells through numerical modeling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pieters, B.E.

2008-01-01

At present most commercially available solar cells are made of crystalline silicon (c-Si). The disadvantages of crystalline silicon solar cells are the high material cost and energy consumption during production. A cheaper alternative can be found in thin-film silicon solar cells. The thin-film

On the Preparation and Testing of Fuel Cell Catalysts Using the Thin Film Rotating Disk Electrode Method.

Science.gov (United States)

Inaba, Masanori; Quinson, Jonathan; Bucher, Jan Rudolf; Arenz, Matthias

2018-03-16

We present a step-by-step tutorial to prepare proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) catalysts, consisting of Pt nanoparticles (NPs) supported on a high surface area carbon, and to test their performance in thin film rotating disk electrode (TF-RDE) measurements. The TF-RDE methodology is widely used for catalyst screening; nevertheless, the measured performance sometimes considerably differs among research groups. These uncertainties impede the advancement of new catalyst materials and, consequently, several authors discussed possible best practice methods and the importance of benchmarking. The visual tutorial highlights possible pitfalls in the TF-RDE testing of Pt/C catalysts. A synthesis and testing protocol to assess standard Pt/C catalysts is introduced that can be used together with polycrystalline Pt disks as benchmark catalysts. In particular, this study highlights how the properties of the catalyst film on the glassy carbon (GC) electrode influence the measured performance in TF-RDE testing. To obtain thin, homogeneous catalyst films, not only the catalyst preparation, but also the ink deposition and drying procedures are essential. It is demonstrated that an adjustment of the ink's pH might be necessary, and how simple control measurements can be used to check film quality. Once reproducible TF-RDE measurements are obtained, determining the Pt loading on the catalyst support (expressed as Pt wt%) and the electrochemical surface area is necessary to normalize the determined reaction rates to either surface area or Pt mass. For the surface area determination, so-called CO stripping, or the determination of the hydrogen underpotential deposition (Hupd) charge, are standard. For the determination of the Pt loading, a straightforward and cheap procedure using digestion in aqua regia with subsequent conversion of Pt(IV) to Pt(II) and UV-vis measurements is introduced.

Crystalline silicon thin film growth by ECR plasma CVD for solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Licai Wang

1999-07-01

This thesis describes the background, motivation and work carried out towards this PhD programme entitled 'Crystalline Silicon Thin Film Growth by ECR Plasma CVD for Solar Cells'. The fundamental principles of silicon solar cells are introduced with a review of silicon thin film and bulk solar cells. The development and prospects for thin film silicon solar cells are described. Some results of a modelling study on thin film single crystalline solar cells are given which has been carried out using a commercially available solar cell simulation package (PC-1D). This is followed by a description of thin film deposition techniques. These include Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) and Plasma-Assisted CVD (PACVD). The basic theory and technology of the emerging technique of Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) PACVD, which was used in this research, are introduced and the potential advantages summarised. Some of the basic methods of material and cell characterisation are briefly described, together with the work carried out in this research. The growth by ECR PACVD at temperatures 2 illumination. The best efficiency in the ECR grown structures was 13.76% using an epitaxial emitter. Cell performance was analysed in detail and the factors controlling performance identified by fitting self-consistently the fight and dark current-voltage and spectral response data using PC-1D. Finally, the conclusions for this research and suggestions for further work are outlined. (author)

Dielectric Scattering Patterns for Efficient Light Trapping in Thin-Film Solar Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

van Lare, Claire; Lenzmann, Frank; Verschuuren, Marc A; Polman, Albert

2015-08-12

We demonstrate an effective light trapping geometry for thin-film solar cells that is composed of dielectric light scattering nanocavities at the interface between the metal back contact and the semiconductor absorber layer. The geometry is based on resonant Mie scattering. It avoids the Ohmic losses found in metallic (plasmonic) nanopatterns, and the dielectric scatterers are well compatible with nearly all types of thin-film solar cells, including cells produced using high temperature processes. The external quantum efficiency of thin-film a-Si:H solar cells grown on top of a nanopatterned Al-doped ZnO, made using soft imprint lithography, is strongly enhanced in the 550-800 nm spectral band by the dielectric nanoscatterers. Numerical simulations are in good agreement with experimental data and show that resonant light scattering from both the AZO nanostructures and the embedded Si nanostructures are important. The results are generic and can be applied on nearly all thin-film solar cells.

Polycaprolactone Thin-Film Micro- and Nanoporous Cell-Encapsulation Devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Nyitray, Crystal E; Chang, Ryan; Faleo, Gaetano; Lance, Kevin D; Bernards, Daniel A; Tang, Qizhi; Desai, Tejal A

2015-06-23

Cell-encapsulating devices can play an important role in advancing the types of tissue available for transplantation and further improving transplant success rates. To have an effective device, encapsulated cells must remain viable, respond to external stimulus, and be protected from immune responses, and the device itself must elicit a minimal foreign body response. To address these challenges, we developed a micro- and a nanoporous thin-film cell encapsulation device from polycaprolactone (PCL), a material previously used in FDA-approved biomedical devices. The thin-film device construct allows long-term bioluminescent transfer imaging, which can be used for monitoring cell viability and device tracking. The ability to tune the microporous and nanoporous membrane allows selective protection from immune cell invasion and cytokine-mediated cell death in vitro, all while maintaining typical cell function, as demonstrated by encapsulated cells' insulin production in response to glucose stimulation. To demonstrate the ability to track, visualize, and monitor the viability of cells encapsulated in implanted thin-film devices, we encapsulated and implanted luciferase-positive MIN6 cells in allogeneic mouse models for up to 90 days. Lack of foreign body response in combination with rapid neovascularization around the device shows promise in using this technology for cell encapsulation. These devices can help elucidate the metrics required for cell encapsulation success and direct future immune-isolation therapies.

Indium sulfide thin films as window layer in chemically deposited solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lugo-Loredo, S. [Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, UANL, Fac. de Ciencias Químicas, Av. Universidad S/N Ciudad Universitaria San Nicolás de Los Garza Nuevo León, C.P. 66451 (Mexico); Peña-Méndez, Y., E-mail: yolapm@gmail.com [Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, UANL, Fac. de Ciencias Químicas, Av. Universidad S/N Ciudad Universitaria San Nicolás de Los Garza Nuevo León, C.P. 66451 (Mexico); Calixto-Rodriguez, M. [Universidad Tecnológica Emiliano Zapata del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad Tecnológica No. 1, C.P. 62760 Emiliano Zapata, Morelos (Mexico); Messina-Fernández, S. [Universidad Autónoma de Nayarit, Ciudad de la Cultura “Amado Nervo” S/N, C.P. 63190 Tepic, Nayarit (Mexico); Alvarez-Gallegos, A. [Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Centro de Investigación en Ingeniería y Ciencias Aplicadas, Av. Universidad 1001, C.P. 62209, Cuernavaca Morelos (Mexico); Vázquez-Dimas, A.; Hernández-García, T. [Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, UANL, Fac. de Ciencias Químicas, Av. Universidad S/N Ciudad Universitaria San Nicolás de Los Garza Nuevo León, C.P. 66451 (Mexico)

2014-01-01

Indium sulfide (In{sub 2}S{sub 3}) thin films have been synthesized by chemical bath deposition technique onto glass substrates using In(NO{sub 3}){sub 3} as indium precursor and thioacetamide as sulfur source. X-ray diffraction studies have shown that the crystalline state of the as-prepared and the annealed films is β-In{sub 2}S{sub 3}. Optical band gap values between 2.27 and 2.41 eV were obtained for these films. The In{sub 2}S{sub 3} thin films are photosensitive with an electrical conductivity value in the range of 10{sup −3}–10{sup −7} (Ω cm){sup −1}, depending on the film preparation conditions. We have demonstrated that the In{sub 2}S{sub 3} thin films obtained in this work are suitable candidates to be used as window layer in thin film solar cells. These films were integrated in SnO{sub 2}:F/In{sub 2}S{sub 3}/Sb{sub 2}S{sub 3}/PbS/C–Ag solar cell structures, which showed an open circuit voltage of 630 mV and a short circuit current density of 0.6 mA/cm{sup 2}. - Highlights: • In{sub 2}S{sub 3} thin films were deposited using the Chemical Bath Deposition technique. • A direct energy band gap between 2.41 to 2.27 eV was evaluated for the In{sub 2}S{sub 3} films. • We made chemically deposited solar cells using the In{sub 2}S{sub 3} thin films.

Thin film solar cells: research in an industrial perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Edoff, Marika

2012-01-01

Electricity generation by photovoltaic conversion of sunlight is a technology in strong growth. The thin film technology is taking market share from the dominant silicon wafer technology. In this article, the market for photovoltaics is reviewed, the concept of photovoltaic solar energy conversion is discussed and more details are given about the present technological limitations of thin film solar cell technology. Special emphasis is given for solar cells which employ Cu(In,Ga)Se(2) and Cu(2)ZnSn(S,Se)(4) as the sunlight-absorbing layer.

High efficiency thin-film solar cells for space applications: challenges and opportunities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leest, R.H. van

2017-01-01

In theory high efficiency thin-film III-V solar cells obtained by the epitaxial lift-off (ELO) technique offer excellent characteristics for application in space solar panels. The thesis describes several studies that investigate the space compatibility of the thin-film solar cell design developed

Synthesis of Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films by a precursor solution paste for thin film solar cell applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Jin Woo; Ismail, Agus; Park, Se Jin; Kim, Woong; Yoon, Sungho; Min, Byoung Koun

2013-05-22

Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) is a very promising semiconductor material when used for the absorber layer of thin film solar cells because it consists of only abundant and inexpensive elements. In addition, a low-cost solution process is applicable to the preparation of CZTS absorber films, which reduces the cost when this film is used for the production of thin film solar cells. To fabricate solution-processed CZTS thin film using an easily scalable and relatively safe method, we suggest a precursor solution paste coating method with a two-step heating process (oxidation and sulfurization). The synthesized CZTS film was observed to be composed of grains of a size of ~300 nm, showing an overall densely packed morphology with some pores and voids. A solar cell device with this film as an absorber layer showed the highest efficiency of 3.02% with an open circuit voltage of 556 mV, a short current density of 13.5 mA/cm(2), and a fill factor of 40.3%. We also noted the existence of Cd moieties and an inhomogeneous Zn distribution in the CZTS film, which may have been triggered by the presence of pores and voids in the CZTS film.

Deposition and characterisation of epitaxial oxide thin films for SOFCs

KAUST Repository

Santiso, José

2010-10-24

This paper reviews the recent advances in the use of thin films, mostly epitaxial, for fundamental studies of materials for solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) applications. These studies include the influence of film microstructure, crystal orientation and strain in oxide ionic conducting materials used as electrolytes, such as fluorites, and in mixed ionic and electronic conducting materials used as electrodes, typically oxides with perovskite or perovskite-related layered structures. The recent effort towards the enhancement of the electrochemical performance of SOFC materials through the deposition of artificial film heterostructures is also presented. These thin films have been engineered at a nanoscale level, such as the case of epitaxial multilayers or nanocomposite cermet materials. The recent progress in the implementation of thin films in SOFC devices is also reported. © 2010 Springer-Verlag.

Cell behaviors on micro-patterned porous thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Phong, Ho Quoc; Wang Shuling; Wang, Meng-Jiy

2010-01-01

Thin polymer films with patterned surfaces have drawn tremendous attention in manufacturing advanced electronic, mechanical devices and in biomaterials due to the advantageous properties such as mechanical strength, chemical resistance and optic transparency. The applications can be extended to the fields such as catalysts, antireflection coatings, template for inorganic growth masks, and substrates for cell culturing providing the patterned surface containing micron-sized features. Various methods have been used to fabricate polymers with micro-patterned surfaces such as photolithographic, ink-jet printing, nonsolvent, spin coating in a dry environment, self-organization, and the condensation of monodisperse water droplet on the polymer solution. The physiological functions of mature cells depend on the microenvironment/niche surrounding which can provide proper factors to regulate cell proliferation and differentiation. While designing appropriate scaffolds for tissue engineering, the microstructure is one of the most important factors to be considered. In this work, a facile single-step phase separation method was used to create micro-patterned polymer thin films with concaves or convexes with sizes ranged from 7 to 70 μm. The effects of water content, casting volume and the addition of surfactant on the distribution of pores and substrate morphology were examined. Moreover, detailed observations of fibroblast cells on the micro-patterned thin films were presented to compare and elucidate the roles of surface micro-features and chemical functionalities.

Atomic Layer Deposited Thin Films for Dielectrics, Semiconductor Passivation, and Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Runshen

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) utilizes sequential precursor gas pulses to deposit one monolayer or sub-monolayer of material per cycle based on its self-limiting surface reaction, which offers advantages, such as precise thickness control, thickness uniformity, and conformality. ALD is a powerful means of fabricating nanoscale features in future nanoelectronics, such as contemporary sub-45 nm metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors, photovoltaic cells, near- and far-infrared detectors, and intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells. High dielectric constant, kappa, materials have been recognized to be promising candidates to replace traditional SiO2 and SiON, because they enable good scalability of sub-45 nm MOSFET (metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor) without inducing additional power consumption and heat dissipation. In addition to high dielectric constant, high-kappa materials must meet a number of other requirements, such as low leakage current, high mobility, good thermal and structure stability with Si to withstand high-temperature source-drain activation annealing. In this thesis, atomic layer deposited Er2O3 doped TiO2 is studied and proposed as a thermally stable amorphous high-kappa dielectric on Si substrate. The stabilization of TiO2 in its amorphous state is found to achieve a high permittivity of 36, a hysteresis voltage of less than 10 mV, and a low leakage current density of 10-8 A/cm-2 at -1 MV/cm. In III-V semiconductors, issues including unsatisfied dangling bonds and native oxides often result in inferior surface quality that yields non-negligible leakage currents and degrades the long-term performance of devices. The traditional means for passivating the surface of III-V semiconductors are based on the use of sulfide solutions; however, that only offers good protection against oxidation for a short-term (i.e., one day). In this work, in order to improve the chemical passivation efficacy of III-V semiconductors

Thin film solar cell technology in Germany

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diehl, W.; Sittinger, V.; Szyszka, B.

2005-01-01

Within the scope of limited nonrenewable energy resources and the limited capacity of the ecosystem for greenhouse gases and nuclear waste, sustainability is one important target in the future. Different energy scenarios showed the huge potential for photovoltaics (PV) to solve this energy problem. Nevertheless, in the last decade, PV had an average growth rate of over 20% per year. In 2002, the solar industry delivered more than 500 MWp/year of photovoltaic generators [A. Jaeger-Waldau, A European Roadmap for PV R and D, E-MRS Spring Meeting, (2003)]. More than 85% of the current production involves crystalline silicon technologies. These technologies still have a high cost reduction potential, but this will be limited by the silicon feedstock. On the other hand the so-called second generation thin film solar cells based on a-Si, Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S 2 (CIGS) or CdTe have material thicknesses of a few microns as a result of their direct band gap. Also, the possibility of circuit integration offers an additional cost reduction potential. Especially in Germany, there are a few companies who focus on thin film solar cells. Today, there are two manufacturers with production lines: the Phototronics (PST) division of RWE-Schott Solar with a-Si thin film technology and the former Antec Solar GmbH (now Antec Solar Energy GmbH) featuring the CdTe technology. A pilot line based on CIGS technology is run by Wuerth Solar GmbH. There is also a variety of research activity at other companies, namely, at Shell Solar, Sulfurcell Solartechnik GmbH, Solarion GmbH and the CIS-Solartechnik GmbH. We will give an overview on research activity on various thin film technologies, as well as different manufacturing and production processes in the companies mentioned above. (Author)

Progress in Polycrystalline Thin-Film Cu(In,GaSe2 Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Udai P. Singh

2010-01-01

Full Text Available For some time, the chalcopyrite semiconductor CuInSe2 and its alloy with Ga and/or S [Cu(InGaSe2 or Cu(InGa(Se,S2], commonly referred as CIGS, have been leading thin-film material candidates for incorporation in high-efficiency photovoltaic devices. CuInSe2-based solar cells have shown long-term stability and the highest conversion efficiencies among all thin-film solar cells, reaching 20%. A variety of methods have been reported to prepare CIGS thin film. Efficiency of solar cells depends upon the various deposition methods as they control optoelectronic properties of the layers and interfaces. CIGS thin film grown on glass or flexible (metal foil, polyimide substrates require p-type absorber layers of optimum optoelectronic properties and n-type wideband gap partner layers to form the p-n junction. Transparent conducting oxide and specific metal layers are used for front and back contacts. Progress made in the field of CIGS solar cell in recent years has been reviewed.

Quadruple-Junction Thin-Film Silicon-Based Solar Cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Si, F.T.

2017-01-01

The direct utilization of sunlight is a critical energy source in a sustainable future. One of the options is to convert the solar energy into electricity using thin-film silicon-based solar cells (TFSSCs). Solar cells in a triple-junction configuration have exhibited the highest energy conversion

Operating method of amorphous thin film semiconductor element

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mori, Koshiro; Ono, Masaharu; Hanabusa, Akira; Osawa, Michio; Arita, Takashi

1988-05-31

The existing technologies concerning amorphous thin film semiconductor elements are the technologies concerning the formation of either a thin film transistor or an amorphous Si solar cell on a substrate. In order to drive a thin film transistor for electronic equipment control by the output power of an amorphous Si solar cell, it has been obliged to drive the transistor weth an amorphous solar cell which was formed on a substrate different from that for the transistor. Accordingly, the space for the amorphous solar cell, which was formed on the different substrate, was additionally needed on the substrate for the thin film transistor. In order to solve the above problem, this invention proposes an operating method of an amorphous thin film semiconductor element that after forming an amorphous Si solar cell through lamination on the insulation coating film which covers the thin film transistor formed on the substrate, the thin film transistor is driven by the output power of this solar cell. The invention eliminates the above superfluous space and reduces the size of the amorphous thin film semiconductor element including the electric source. (3 figs)

Development of CIGS2 thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dhere, Neelkanth G.; Gade, Vivek S.; Kadam, Ankur A.; Jahagirdar, Anant H.; Kulkarni, Sachin S.; Bet, Sachin M.

2005-01-01

Research and development of CuIn 1-x Ga x Se 2-y S y (CIGSS) thin-film solar cells on ultralightweight flexible metallic foil substrates is being carried out at FSEC PV Materials Lab for space applications. Earlier, the substrate size was limited to 3 cm x 2.5 cm. Large-area sputtering systems and scrubber for hydrogen selenide and sulfide have been designed and constructed for preparation of CIGSS thin-films on large (15 cm x 10 cm) substrates. A selenization/sulfurization furnace donated by Shell (formerly Siemens) Solar has also been refurbished and upgraded. The sputtering target assembly design was modified for proper clamping of targets and effective cooling. A new design of the magnetic assembly for large-area magnetron sputtering sources was implemented so as to achieve uniform deposition on large area. Lightweight stainless steel foil and ultralightweight titanium foil substrates were utilized to increase the specific power of solar cells. Sol-gel derived SiO 2 layers were coated on titanium foil by dip coating method. Deposition parameters for the preparation of molybdenum back contact layers were optimized so as to minimize the residual stress as well as reaction with H 2 S. Presently large (15 cm x 10 cm) CuIn 1-x Ga x S 2 (CIGS2) thin film solar cells are being prepared on Mo-coated titanium and stainless steel foil by sulfurization of CuGa/In metallic precursors in diluted Ar:H 2 S(4%). Heterojunction partner CdS layers are deposited by chemical bath deposition. The regeneration sequence of ZnO/ZnO:Al targets was optimized for obtaining consistently good-quality, transparent and conducting ZnO/ZnO:Al bilayer by RF magnetron-sputter deposition. Excellent facilities at FSEC PV Materials Lab are one of its kinds and could serve as a nucleus of a small pilot plant for CIGSS thin film solar cell fabrication

Silicon solar cell performance deposited by diamond like carbon thin film ;Atomic oxygen effects;

Science.gov (United States)

Aghaei, Abbas Ail; Eshaghi, Akbar; Karami, Esmaeil

2017-09-01

In this research, a diamond-like carbon thin film was deposited on p-type polycrystalline silicon solar cell via plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition method by using methane and hydrogen gases. The effect of atomic oxygen on the functioning of silicon coated DLC thin film and silicon was investigated. Raman spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were used to characterize the structure and morphology of the DLC thin film. Photocurrent-voltage characteristics of the silicon solar cell were carried out using a solar simulator. The results showed that atomic oxygen exposure induced the including oxidation, structural changes, cross-linking reactions and bond breaking of the DLC film; thus reducing the optical properties. The photocurrent-voltage characteristics showed that although the properties of the fabricated thin film were decreased after being exposed to destructive rays, when compared with solar cell without any coating, it could protect it in atomic oxygen condition enhancing solar cell efficiency up to 12%. Thus, it can be said that diamond-like carbon thin layer protect the solar cell against atomic oxygen exposure.

Appropriate materials and preparation techniques for polycrystalline-thin-film thermophotovoltaic cells

Science.gov (United States)

Dhere, Neelkanth G.

1997-03-01

Polycrystalline-thin-film thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cells have excellent potential for reducing the cost of TPV generators so as to address the hitherto inaccessible and highly competitive markets such as self-powered gas-fired residential warm air furnaces and energy-efficient electric cars, etc. Recent progress in polycrystalline-thin-film solar cells have made it possible to satisfy the diffusion length and intrinsic junction rectification criteria for TPV cells operating at high fluences. Continuous ranges of direct bandgaps of the ternary and pseudoternary compounds such as Hg1-xCdxTe, Pb1-xCdxTe, Hg1-xZnxTe, and Pb1-xZnxS cover the region of interest of 0.50-0.75 eV for efficient TPV conversion. Other ternary and pseudoternary compounds which show direct bandgaps in most of or all of the 0.50-0.75 eV range are Pb1-xZnxTe, Sn1-xCd2xTe2, Pb1-xCdxSe, Pb1-xZnxSe, and Pb1-xCdxS. Hg1-xCdxTe (with x~0.21) has been studied extensively for infrared detectors. PbTe and Pb1-xSnxTe have also been studied for infrared detectors. Not much work has been carried out on Hg1-xZnxTe thin films. Hg1-xCdxTe and Pb1-xCdxTe alloys cover a wide range of cut-off wavelengths from the far infrared to the near visible. Acceptors and donors are introduced in these materials by excess non-metal (Te) and excess metal (Hg and Pb) respectively. Extrinsic acceptor impurities are Cu, Au, and As while and In and Al are donor impurities. Hg1-xCdxTe thin films have been deposited by isothermal vapor-phase epitaxy (VPE), liquid phase epitaxy (LPE), hot-wall metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), electrodeposition, sputtering, molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), laser-assisted evaporation, and vacuum evaporation with or without hot-wall enclosure. The challenge in the preparation of Hg1-xCdxTe is to provide excess mercury incidence rate, to optimize the deposition parameters for enhanced mercury incorporation, and to achieve the requisite stoichiometry, grain size, and doping. MBE and MOCVD

Solid-phase crystallization of amorphous silicon on ZnO:Al for thin-film solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Becker, C.; Conrad, E.; Dogan, P.; Fenske, F.; Gorka, B.; Haenel, T.; Lee, K.Y.; Rau, B.; Ruske, F.; Weber, T.; Gall, S.; Rech, B. [Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fuer Materialien und Energie (formerly Hahn-Meitner-Institut Berlin), Kekulestr. 5, D-12489 Berlin (Germany); Berginski, M.; Huepkes, J. [Institute of Photovoltaics, Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, D-52425 Juelich (Germany)

2009-06-15

The suitability of ZnO:Al thin films for polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin-film solar cell fabrication was investigated. The electrical and optical properties of 700 -nm-thick ZnO:Al films on glass were analyzed after typical annealing steps occurring during poly-Si film preparation. If the ZnO:Al layer is covered by a 30 nm thin silicon film, the initial sheet resistance of ZnO:Al drops from 4.2 to 2.2 {omega} after 22 h annealing at 600 C and only slightly increases for a 200 s heat treatment at 900 C. A thin-film solar cell concept consisting of poly-Si films on ZnO:Al coated glass is introduced. First solar cell results will be presented using absorber layers either prepared by solid-phase crystallization (SPC) or by direct deposition at 600 C. (author)

Interfacial Properties of CZTS Thin Film Solar Cell

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Muhunthan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Cu-deficient CZTS (copper zinc tin sulfide thin films were grown on soda lime as well as molybdenum coated soda lime glass by reactive cosputtering. Polycrystalline CZTS film with kesterite structure was produced by annealing it at 500°C in Ar atmosphere. These films were characterized for compositional, structural, surface morphological, optical, and transport properties using energy dispersive X-ray analysis, glancing incidence X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, and Hall effect measurement. A CZTS solar cell device having conversion efficiency of ~0.11% has been made by depositing CdS, ZnO, ITO, and Al layers over the CZTS thin film deposited on Mo coated soda lime glass. The series resistance of the device was very high. The interfacial properties of device were characterized by cross-sectional SEM and cross-sectional HRTEM.

Silk fibroin/chitosan thin film promotes osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Da-Wei; He, Jin; He, Feng-Li; Liu, Ya-Li; Liu, Yang-Yang; Ye, Ya-Jing; Deng, Xudong; Yin, Da-Chuan

2018-04-01

As a biodegradable polymer thin film, silk fibroin/chitosan composite film overcomes the defects of pure silk fibroin and chitosan films, respectively, and shows remarkable biocompatibility, appropriate hydrophilicity and mechanical properties. Silk fibroin/chitosan thin film can be used not only as metal implant coating for bone injury repair, but also as tissue engineering scaffold for skin, cornea, adipose, and other soft tissue injury repair. However, the biocompatibility of silk fibroin/chitosan thin film for mesenchymal stem cells, a kind of important seed cell of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, is rarely reported. In this study, silk fibroin/chitosan film was prepared by solvent casting method, and the rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells were cultured on the silk fibroin/chitosan thin film. Osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells were induced, respectively. The proliferation ability, osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation abilities of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells were systematically compared between silk fibroin/chitosan thin film and polystyrene tissue culture plates. The results showed that silk fibroin/chitosan thin film not only provided a comparable environment for the growth and proliferation of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells but also promoted their osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation. This work provided information of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells behavior on silk fibroin/chitosan thin film and extended the application of silk fibroin/chitosan thin film. Based on the results, we suggested that the silk fibroin/chitosan thin film could be a promising material for tissue engineering of bone, cartilage, adipose, and skin.

Investigation of nanoporous platinum thin films fabricated by reactive sputtering: Application as micro-SOFC electrode

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, WooChul; Kim, Jae Jin; Tuller, Harry L.

2015-02-01

Highly porous Pt thin films, with nano-scale porosity, were fabricated by reactive sputtering. The strategy involved deposition of thin film PtOx at room temperature, followed by the subsequent decomposition of the oxide by rapid heat treatment. The resulting films exhibited percolating Pt networks infiltrated with interconnected nanosized pores, critical for superior solid oxide fuel cell cathode performance. This approach is particularly attractive for micro-fabricated solid oxide fuel cells, since it enables fabrication of the entire cell stack (anode/electrolyte/cathode) within the sputtering chamber, without breaking vacuum. In this work, the morphological, crystallographic and chemical properties of the porous electrode were systematically varied by control of deposition conditions. Oxygen reduction reaction kinetics were investigated by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, demonstrating the critical role of nano-pores in achieving satisfactory micro-SOFC cathode performance.

Synthesis and characterization of copper antimony tin sulphide thin films for solar cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ali, N., E-mail: nisar.ali@utm.my [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Skudai, 81310 Johor (Malaysia); Department of Physics, Govt. Post Graduate Jehanzeb College Saidu Sharif, Swat, 19200 (Pakistan); Hussain, A. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Skudai, 81310 Johor (Malaysia); Ahmed, R., E-mail: rashidahmed@utm.my [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Skudai, 81310 Johor (Malaysia); Wan Shamsuri, W.N. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Skudai, 81310 Johor (Malaysia); Fu, Y.Q., E-mail: richard.fu@northumbria.ac.uk [Department of Physics and Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering & Environment, University of Northumbria, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST (United Kingdom)

2016-12-30

Highlights: • A new and novel material for solar cell applications is demonstrated as a replacement for toxic and expansive compounds. • The materials used in this compound are abundant and low cost. • Compound exhibit unusual optical and electrical properties. • The band gap was found to be comparable with that of GaAs. - Abstract: Low price thin film modules based on Copper antimony tin sulphide (CATS) are introduced for solar harvesting to compete for the already developed compound semiconductors. Here, CATS thin films were deposited on soda lime glass by thermal evaporation technique followed by a rapid thermal annealing in an argon atmosphere. From Our XRD analysis, it was revealed that the annealed samples were poly-crystalline and their crystallinity was improved with increasing annealing temperature. The constituent elements and their corresponding chemical states were identified using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The obtained optical band gap of 1.4 eV for CATS thin film is found nearly equal to GaAs – one of the highly efficient thin film material for solar cell technology. Furthermore, our observed good optical absorbance and low transmittance for the annealed CATS thin films in the visible region of light spectrum assured the aptness of the CATS thin films for solar cell applications.

II-IV-V Based Thin Film Tandem Photovoltaic Cell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Newman, Nathan [Arizona State Univ., Mesa, AZ (United States); van Schilfgaarde, Mark [Arizona State Univ., Mesa, AZ (United States)

2012-10-04

[Through a combination of theory and experiment that, absent unknown mitigating factors, a tandem cell whose (wide-gap. 1.8 eV) top layer is made of ZnSnP2 and whose (narrow gap, 1.1 eV) bottom layer consisting of ZnGeAs2 are near-ideal materials for a tandem cell. Not only are there gaps optimally adjusted to the solar spectrum, but the two compounds are lattice-matched, and their energy band structure and optical absorption are also near-ideal (they closely resemble that of GaAs). Our first major challenge is to establish that high-quality II-IV-V thin films can be synthesized. We have begun growing and characterizing films of ZnGeAs2 and ZnSnP2, initially grown on Ge substrates (the lattice constant of Ge matches these compounds) by pulsed laser ablation and sputtering. In tandem are theoretical calculations to guide the experiments. The goal is to develop methods that can be used to produce a pair of lattice-matched thin films that will be useful in tandem cells.

Transparent conductive oxides for thin-film silicon solar cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Löffler, J.

2005-01-01

This thesis describes research on thin-film silicon solar cells with focus on the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) for such devices. In addition to the formation of a transparent and electrically conductive front electrode for the solar cell allowing photocurrent collection with low ohmic losses,

Porous La_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ thin film cathodes for large area micro solid oxide fuel cell power generators

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Garbayo, A.; Esposito, Vincenzo; Sanna, Simone

2014-01-01

Porous La0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ thin films were fabricated by pulsed laser deposition for being used as a cathode for micro solid oxide fuel cell applications as MEMS power generators. Symmetrical La0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ/ yttria-stabilized zirconia/La0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ free-standing membranes were fabricated using ...

Cytotoxicity Evaluation of Anatase and Rutile TiO₂ Thin Films on CHO-K1 Cells in Vitro.

Science.gov (United States)

Cervantes, Blanca; López-Huerta, Francisco; Vega, Rosario; Hernández-Torres, Julián; García-González, Leandro; Salceda, Emilio; Herrera-May, Agustín L; Soto, Enrique

2016-07-26

Cytotoxicity of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) thin films on Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-K1) cells was evaluated after 24, 48 and 72 h of culture. The TiO₂ thin films were deposited using direct current magnetron sputtering. These films were post-deposition annealed at different temperatures (300, 500 and 800 °C) toward the anatase to rutile phase transformation. The root-mean-square (RMS) surface roughness of TiO₂ films went from 2.8 to 8.08 nm when the annealing temperature was increased from 300 to 800 °C. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) results showed that the TiO₂ films' thickness values fell within the nanometer range (290-310 nm). Based on the results of the tetrazolium dye and trypan blue assays, we found that TiO₂ thin films showed no cytotoxicity after the aforementioned culture times at which cell viability was greater than 98%. Independently of the annealing temperature of the TiO₂ thin films, the number of CHO-K1 cells on the control substrate and on all TiO₂ thin films was greater after 48 or 72 h than it was after 24 h; the highest cell survival rate was observed in TiO₂ films annealed at 800 °C. These results indicate that TiO₂ thin films do not affect mitochondrial function and proliferation of CHO-K1 cells, and back up the use of TiO₂ thin films in biomedical science.

High index glass thin film processing for photonics and photovoltaic (PV) applications

Science.gov (United States)

Ogbuu, Okechukwu Anthony

To favorably compete with fossil-fuel technology, the greatest challenge for thin film solar-cells is to improve efficiency and reduce material cost. Thickness scaling to thin film reduces material cost but affects the light absorption in the cells; therefore a concept that traps incident photons and increases its optical path length is needed to boost absorption in thin film solar cells. One approach is the integration of low symmetric gratings (LSG), using high index material, on either the front-side or backside of 30 um thin c-Si cells. In this study, Multicomponent TeO2--Bi2O 3--ZnO (TBZ) glass thin films were prepared using RF magnetron sputtering under different oxygen flow rates. The influences of oxygen flow rate on the structural and optical properties of the resulting thin films were investigated. The structural origin of the optical property variation was studied using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman Spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The results indicate that TBZ glass thin film is a suitable material for front side LSG material photovoltaic and photonics applications due to their amorphous nature, high refractive index (n > 2), broad band optical transparency window, low processing temperature. We developed a simple maskless method to pattern sputtered tellurite based glass thin films using unconventional agarose hydrogel mediated wet etching. Conventional wet etching process, while claiming low cost and high throughput, suffers from reproducibility and pattern fidelity issues due to the isotropic nature of wet chemical etching when applied to glasses and polymers. This method overcomes these challenges by using an agarose hydrogel stamp to mediate a conformal etching process. In our maskless method, agarose hydrogel stamps are patterned following a standard soft lithography and replica molding process from micropatterned masters and soaked in a chemical etchant. The micro-scale features on the stamp are

Accelerated stress testing of thin film solar cells: Development of test methods and preliminary results

Science.gov (United States)

Lathrop, J. W.

1985-01-01

If thin film cells are to be considered a viable option for terrestrial power generation their reliability attributes will need to be explored and confidence in their stability obtained through accelerated testing. Development of a thin film accelerated test program will be more difficult than was the case for crystalline cells because of the monolithic construction nature of the cells. Specially constructed test samples will need to be fabricated, requiring committment to the concept of accelerated testing by the manufacturers. A new test schedule appropriate to thin film cells will need to be developed which will be different from that used in connection with crystalline cells. Preliminary work has been started to seek thin film schedule variations to two of the simplest tests: unbiased temperature and unbiased temperature humidity. Still to be examined are tests which involve the passage of current during temperature and/or humidity stress, either by biasing in the forward (or reverse) directions or by the application of light during stress. Investigation of these current (voltage) accelerated tests will involve development of methods of reliably contacting the thin conductive films during stress.

Study of catalysis for solid oxide fuel cells and direct methanol fuel cells

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Xirong

Fuel cells offer the enticing promise of cleaner electricity with lower environmental impact than traditional energy conversion technologies. Driven by the interest in power sources for portable electronics, and distributed generation and automotive propulsion markets, active development efforts in the technologies of both solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) and direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) devices have achieved significant progress. However, current catalysts for fuel cells are either of low catalytic activity or extremely expensive, presenting a key barrier toward the widespread commercialization of fuel cell devices. In this thesis work, atomic layer deposition (ALD), a novel thin film deposition technique, was employed to apply catalytic Pt to SOFC, and investigate both Pt skin catalysts and Pt-Ru catalysts for methanol oxidation, a very important reaction for DMFC, to increase the activity and utilization levels of the catalysts while simultaneously reducing the catalyst loading. For SOFCs, we explored the use of ALD for the fabrication of electrode components, including an ultra-thin Pt film for use as the electrocatalyst, and a Pt mesh structure for a current collector for SOFCs, aiming for precise control over the catalyst loading and catalyst geometry, and enhancement in the current collect efficiency. We choose Pt since it has high chemical stability and excellent catalytic activity for the O2 reduction reaction and the H2 oxidation reaction even at low operating temperatures. Working SOFC fuel cells were fabricated with ALD-deposited Pt thin films as an electrode/catalyst layer. The measured fuel cell performance reveals that comparable peak power densities were achieved for ALD-deposited Pt anodes with only one-fifth of the Pt loading relative to a DC-sputtered counterpart. In addition to the continuous electrocatalyst layer, a micro-patterned Pt structure was developed via the technique of area selective ALD. By coating yttria-stabilized zirconia, a

Annealing enhancement effect by light illumination on proton irradiated Cu(In, Ga)Se2 thin-film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawakita, Shirou; Imaizumi, Mitsuru; Matsuda, Sumio; Yamaguchi, Masafumi; Kushiya, Katsumi; Ohshima, Takeshi; Itoh, Hisayoshi

2002-01-01

In this paper, we investigated the high radiation tolerance of copper indium gallium di-selenide (CIGS) thin-film solar cells by conducting in situ measurements of short circuit current and open circuit voltage of CIGS thin-film solar cells during and after proton irradiation under short circuit condition. We found that the annealing rate of proton-induced defects in CIGS thin-film solar cells under light illumination with an AM0 solar simulator is higher than that under dark conditions. The activation energy of proton-induced defects in the CIGS thin-film solar cells with (without) light illumination is 0.80 eV (0.92 eV), which implies on enhanced defect annealing rate in CIGS thin-film solar cells due to minority-carrier injection. (author)

Preparation of LiMn2O4 cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries by a mist CVD process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tadanaga, Kiyoharu; Yamaguchi, Akihiro; Sakuda, Atsushi; Hayashi, Akitoshi; Tatsumisago, Masahiro; Duran, Alicia; Aparacio, Mario

2014-01-01

Highlights: • LiMn 2 O 4 thin films were prepared by using the mist CVD process. • An aqueous solution of lithium and manganese acetates is used for the precursor solution. • The cell with the LiMn 2 O 4 thin films exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g. • The cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles. - Abstract: LiMn 2 O 4 cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries were prepared by using so-called the “mist CVD process”, employing an aqueous solution of lithium acetate and manganese acetate, as the source of Li and Mn, respectively. The aqueous solution of starting materials was ultrasonically atomized to form mist particles, and mists were transferred by nitrogen gas to silica glass substrate to form thin films. FE-SEM observation revealed that thin films obtained by this process were dense and smooth, and thin films with a thickness of about 750 nm were obtained. The electrochemical cell with the thin films obtained by sintering at 700 °C exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g, and the cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles

Chemical bath deposition of thin semiconductor films for use as buffer layers in CuInS2 thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaufmann, C.A.

2002-01-01

A CulnS 2 thin film solar cell is a multilayered semiconductor device. The solar cells discussed have a layer sequence Mo/CulnS 2 /buffer/i-ZnO/ZnO:Ga, where a heterojunction establishes between the p-type absorber and the n-type front contact. Conventionally the buffer consists of CdS, deposited by chemical bath deposition (CBD). Apart from providing process oriented benefits the buffer layer functions as a tool for engineering the energy band line-up at the heterojunction interface. Motivated through environmental concern and EU legislation it is felt necessary to substitute this potentially toxic layer by an alternative, Cd-free component. This thesis investigates the suitability of various Zn- and In-compounds, in particular In(OH,O) x S y , as alternative buffer layer materials using CBD. Initial experiments were carried out depositing Zn-based compounds from aqueous solutions. Characterization of the layers, the solution and the processed solar cells was performed. This thesis focuses on the investigation of the CBD process chemistry for the deposition of In-compound thin films. A careful study of the morphology and composition of the deposited thin films was conducted using electron microscopy (SEM, HREM), elastic recoil detection analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and optical transmission spectroscopy. This allowed conclusions concerning the nucleation and film growth mechanism from the chemical bath. Connections between bath chemistry, different growth phases, layer morphology and solar cell performance were sought and an improved deposition process was developed. As a result, Cd-free CulnS 2 thin film solar cells with efficiencies of up to 10.6%) (total area) could be produced. Overall the substitution of CdS is shown to be possible by different alternative compounds, such as Zn(OH,O) x S y or In(OH,O) x S y . In the case of In(OH,O) x S y , an understanding of the CBD process and the effect of different growth phases on the resulting solar cell

Development of A Thin Film Crystalline Silicon Solar Cell

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sopori, B.; Chen, W.; Zhang, Y.

1998-01-01

A new design for a single junction, thin film Si solar cell is presented. The cell design is compatible with low-temperature processing required for the use of a low-cost glass substrate, and includes effective light trapping and impurity gettering. Elements of essential process steps are discussed

The Cu2ZnSnSe4 thin films solar cells synthesized by electrodeposition route

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Ji; Ma, Tuteng; Wei, Ming; Liu, Weifeng; Jiang, Guoshun; Zhu, Changfei

2012-06-01

An electrodeposition route for preparing Cu2ZnSnSe4 thin films for thin film solar cell absorber layers is demonstrated. The Cu2ZnSnSe4 thin films are prepared by co-electrodeposition Cu-Zn-Sn metallic precursor and subsequently annealing in element selenium atmosphere. The structure, composition and optical properties of the films were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectrometry, energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) and UV-VIS absorption spectroscopy. The Cu2ZnSnSe4 thin film with high crystalline quality was obtained, the band gap and absorption coefficient were 1.0 eV and 10-4 cm-1, which is quite suitable for solar cells fabrication. A solar cell with the structure of ZnO:Al/i-ZnO/CdS/Cu2ZnSnSe4/Mo/glass was fabricated and achieved an conversion efficiency of 1.7%.

Light-Induced Degradation of Thin Film Silicon Solar Cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamelmann, F U; Weicht, J A; Behrens, G

2016-01-01

Silicon-wafer based solar cells are still domination the market for photovoltaic energy conversion. However, most of the silicon is used only for mechanical stability, while only a small percentage of the material is needed for the light absorption. Thin film silicon technology reduces the material demand to just some hundred nanometer thickness. But even in a tandem stack (amorphous and microcrystalline silicon) the efficiencies are lower, and light-induced degradation is an important issue. The established standard tests for characterisation are not precise enough to predict the performance of thin film silicon solar cells under real conditions, since many factors do have an influence on the degradation. We will show some results of laboratory and outdoor measurements that we are going to use as a base for advanced modelling and simulation methods. (paper)

Development of a cell culture surface conversion technique using alginate thin film for evaluating effect upon cellular differentiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakashima, Y.; Tsusu, K.; Minami, K.; Nakanishi, Y.

2014-01-01

Here, we sought to develop a cell culture surface conversion technique that would not damage living cells. An alginate thin film, formed on a glass plate by spin coating of sodium alginate solution and dipping into calcium chloride solution, was used to inhibit adhesion of cells. The film could be removed by ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA) at any time during cell culture, permitting observation of cellular responses to conversion of the culture surface in real time. Additionally, we demonstrated the validity of the alginate thin film coating method and the performance of the film. The thickness of the alginate thin film was controlled by varying the rotation speed during spin coating. Moreover, the alginate thin film completely inhibited the adhesion of cultured cells to the culture surface, irrespective of the thickness of the film. When the alginate thin film was removed from the culture surface by EDTA, the cultured cells adhered to the culture surface, and their morphology changed. Finally, we achieved effective differentiation of C2C12 myoblasts into myotube cells by cell culture on the convertible culture surface, demonstrating the utility of our novel technique

Broadband back grating design for thin film solar cells

KAUST Repository

Janjua, Bilal; Jabbour, Ghassan E.

2013-01-01

In this paper, design based on tapered circular grating structure was studied, to provide broadband enhancement in thin film amorphous silicon solar cells. In comparison to planar structure an absorption enhancement of ~ 7% was realized.

Characterization of Nanocrystalline SiGe Thin Film Solar Cell with Double Graded-Dead Absorption Layer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao-Chun Wang

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The nanocrystalline silicon-germanium (nc-SiGe thin films were deposited by high-frequency (27.12 MHz plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (HF-PECVD. The films were used in a silicon-based thin film solar cell with graded-dead absorption layer. The characterization of the nc-SiGe films are analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy. The band gap of SiGe alloy can be adjusted between 0.8 and 1.7 eV by varying the gas ratio. For thin film solar cell application, using double graded-dead i-SiGe layers mainly leads to an increase in short-circuit current and therefore cell conversion efficiency. An initial conversion efficiency of 5.06% and the stabilized efficiency of 4.63% for an nc-SiGe solar cell were achieved.

P-doped strontium titanate grown using two target pulsed laser deposition for thin film solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Man, Hamdi

Thin-film solar cells made of Mg-doped SrTiO3 p-type absorbers are promising candidates for clean energy generation. This material shows p-type conductivity and also demonstrates reasonable absorption of light. In addition, p-type SrTiO3 can be deposited as thin films so that the cost can be lower than the competing methods. In this work, Mg-doped SrTiO3 (STO) thin-films were synthesized and analyzed in order to observe their potential to be employed as the base semiconductor in photovoltaic applications. Mg-doped STO thin-films were grown by using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) using a frequency quadrupled Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (YAG) laser and with a substrate that was heated by back surface absorption of infrared (IR) laser light. The samples were characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and it was observed that Mg atoms were doped successfully in the stoichiometry. Reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) spectroscopy proved that the thin films were polycrystalline. Kelvin Probe work function measurements indicated that the work function of the films were 4.167 eV after annealing. UV/Vis Reflection spectroscopy showed that Mg-doped STO thin-films do not reflect significantly except in the ultraviolet region of the spectrum where the reflection percentage increased up to 80%. Self-doped STO thin-films, Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) thin films and stainless steel foil (SSF) were studied in order to observe their characteristics before employing them in Mg-doped STO based solar cells. Self-doped STO thin films were grown using PLD and the results showed that they are capable of serving as the n-type semiconductor in solar cell applications with oxygen vacancies in their structure and low reflectivity. Indium Tin Oxide thin-films grown by PLD system showed low 25-50 ?/square sheet resistance and very low reflection features. Finally, commercially available stainless steel foil substrates were excellent substrates for the inexpensive growth of

DC magnetron sputtering prepared Ag-C thin film anode for thin film lithium ion microbatteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Y.; Tu, J.P.; Shi, D.Q.; Huang, X.H.; Wu, H.M.; Yuan, Y.F.; Zhao, X.B.

2007-01-01

An Ag-C thin film was prepared by DC magnetron co-sputtering, using pure silver and graphite as the targets. The microstructure and morphology of the deposited thin film were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Electrochemical performances of the Ag-C thin film anode were investigated by means of discharge/charge and cyclic voltammogram (CV) tests in model cells. The electrochemical impedance spectrum (EIS) characteristics and the chemical diffusion coefficient, D Li of the Ag-C thin film electrode at different discharging states were discussed. It was believed that the excellent cycling performance of the Ag-C electrode was ascribed to the good conductivity of silver and the volume stability of the thin film

Low cost thin film poly-silicon solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2005-07-01

This report presents the results of a project to design and develop a high density plasma based thin-film poly-silicon (TFPS) deposition system based on PQL proprietary advanced plasma technology to produce semiconductor quality TFPS for fabricating a TFPS solar cell. Details are given of the TFPS deposition system, the material development programme, solar cell structure, and cell efficiencies. The reproducibility of the deposition process and prospects for commercial exploitation are discussed.

Benchmarking Pt and Pt-lanthanide sputtered thin films for oxygen electroreduction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zamburlini, Eleonora; Jensen, Kim Degn; Stephens, Ifan E.L.

2017-01-01

Platinum-lanthanide alloys are very promising as active and stable catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in low-temperature fuel cells. We have fabricated Pt and Pt5Gd metallic thin films via (co-)sputtering deposition in an ultra-high vacuum (UHV) chamber. The electrochemical ORR...

Paths to light trapping in thin film GaAs solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Jianling; Fang, Hanlin; Su, Rongbin; Li, Kezheng; Song, Jindong; Krauss, Thomas F; Li, Juntao; Martins, Emiliano R

2018-03-19

It is now well established that light trapping is an essential element of thin film solar cell design. Numerous light trapping geometries have already been applied to thin film cells, especially to silicon-based devices. Less attention has been paid to light trapping in GaAs thin film cells, mainly because light trapping is considered less attractive due to the material's direct bandgap and the fact that GaAs suffers from strong surface recombination, which particularly affects etched nanostructures. Here, we study light trapping structures that are implemented in a high-bandgap material on the back of the GaAs active layer, thereby not perturbing the integrity of the GaAs active layer. We study photonic crystal and quasi-random nanostructures both by simulation and by experiment and find that the photonic crystal structures are superior because they exhibit fewer but stronger resonances that are better matched to the narrow wavelength range where GaAs benefits from light trapping. In fact, we show that a 1500 nm thick cell with photonic crystals achieves the same short circuit current as an unpatterned 4000 nm thick cell. These findings are significant because they afford a sizeable reduction in active layer thickness, and therefore a reduction in expensive epitaxial growth time and cost, yet without compromising performance.

First principles investigation of the activity of thin film Pt, Pd and Au surface alloys for oxygen reduction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tripkovic, Vladimir; Hansen, Heine Anton; Rossmeisl, Jan

2015-01-01

Further advances in fuel cell technologies are hampered by kinetic limitations associated with the sluggish cathodic oxygen reduction reaction. We have investigated a range of different formulations of binary and ternary Pt, Pd and Au thin films as electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction. The most...... active binary thin films are near-surface alloys of Pt with subsurface Pd and certain PdAu and PtAu thin films with surface and/or subsurface Au. The most active ternary thin films are with pure metal Pt or Pd skins with some degree of Au in the surface and/or subsurface layer and the near-surface alloys...

Procedures and practices for evaluating thin-film solar cell stability

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roesch, R; Faber, T; von Hauff, E.L.; Brown, T. M.; Lira-Cantu, M.; Hoppe, H.

2015-01-01

During the last few decades, and in some cases only the last few years, novel thin-film photovoltaic (PV) technologies such as dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC), organic solar cells (OPV), and, more recently, perovskite-based solar cells (PSC) have been growing in maturity with respect to device

Machine Vision based Micro-crack Inspection in Thin-film Solar Cell Panel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhang Yinong

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Thin film solar cell consists of various layers so the surface of solar cell shows heterogeneous textures. Because of this property the visual inspection of micro-crack is very difficult. In this paper, we propose the machine vision-based micro-crack detection scheme for thin film solar cell panel. In the proposed method, the crack edge detection is based on the application of diagonal-kernel and cross-kernel in parallel. Experimental results show that the proposed method has better performance of micro-crack detection than conventional anisotropic model based methods on a cross- kernel.

Progress in thin-film silicon solar cells based on photonic-crystal structures

Science.gov (United States)

Ishizaki, Kenji; De Zoysa, Menaka; Tanaka, Yoshinori; Jeon, Seung-Woo; Noda, Susumu

2018-06-01

We review the recent progress in thin-film silicon solar cells with photonic crystals, where absorption enhancement is achieved by using large-area resonant effects in photonic crystals. First, a definitive guideline for enhancing light absorption in a wide wavelength range (600–1100 nm) is introduced, showing that the formation of multiple band edges utilizing higher-order modes confined in the thickness direction and the introduction of photonic superlattice structures enable significant absorption enhancement, exceeding that observed for conventional random scatterers. Subsequently, experimental evidence of this enhancement is demonstrated for a variety of thin-film Si solar cells: ∼500-nm-thick ultrathin microcrystalline silicon cells, few-µm-thick microcrystalline silicon cells, and ∼20-µm-thick thin single-crystalline silicon cells. The high short-circuit current densities and/or efficiencies observed for each cell structure confirm the effectiveness of using multiple band-edge resonant modes of photonic crystals for enhancing broadband absorption in actual solar cells.

Plasmonic versus dielectric enhancement in thin-film solar cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dühring, Maria Bayard; Mortensen, N. Asger; Sigmund, Ole

2012-01-01

to its metallic counterpart. We show that the enhanced normalized short-circuit current for a cell with silicon strips can be increased 4 times compared to the best performance for strips of silver, gold, or aluminium. For this particular case, the simple dielectric grating may outperform its plasmonic......Several studies have indicated that broadband absorption of thin-film solar cells can be enhanced by use of surface-plasmon induced resonances of metallic parts like strips or particles. The metallic parts may create localized modes or scatter incoming light to increase absorption in thin......-film semiconducting material. For a particular case, we show that coupling to the same type of localized slab-waveguide modes can be obtained by a surface modulation consisting of purely dielectric strips. The purely dielectric device turns out to have a significantly higher broadband enhancement factor compared...

On-Orbit Demonstration of a Lithium-Ion Capacitor and Thin-Film Multijunction Solar Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Kukita, Akio; Takahashi, Masato; Shimazaki, Kazunori; Kobayashi, Yuki; Sakai, Tomohiko; Toyota, Hiroyuki; Takahashi, Yu; Murashima, Mio; Uno, Masatoshi; Imaizumi, Mitsuru

2014-08-01

This paper describes an on-orbit demonstration of the Next-generation Small Satellite Instrument for Electric power systems (NESSIE) on which an aluminum- laminated lithium-ion capacitor (LIC) and a lightweight solar panel called KKM-PNL, which has space solar sheets using thin-film multijunction solar cells, were installed. The flight data examined in this paper covers a period of 143 days from launch. We verified the integrity of an LIC constructed using a simple and lightweight mounting method: no significant capacitance reduction was observed. We also confirmed that inverted metamorphic multijunction triple-junction thin-film solar cells used for evaluation were healthy at 143 days after launch, because their degradation almost matched the degradation predictions for dual-junction thin-film solar cells.

Laser Welding of Silicon Foils for Thin-Film Solar Cell Manufacturing

OpenAIRE

Heßmann, Maik

2014-01-01

Thin-film solar module manufacturing is one of the most promising recent developments in photovoltaic research and has the potential to reduce production costs. As the necessity for competitive prices on the world market increases and manufacturers endeavor to bring down the cost of solar modules, thin-film technology is becoming more and more attractive. In this work a special technique was investigated which makes solar cell manufacturing more compatible with an industrial roll-to-roll proc...

Thin Film Microbatteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dudney, Nancy J.

2008-01-01

Thin film batteries are built layer by layer by vapor deposition. The resulting battery is formed of parallel plates, much as an ordinary battery construction, just much thinner. The figure (Fig. 1) shows an example of a thin film battery layout where films are deposited symmetrically onto both sides of a supporting substrate. The full stack of films is only 10 to 15 (micro)m thick, but including the support at least doubles the overall battery thickness. When the support is thin, the entire battery can be flexible. At least six companies have commercialized or are very close to commercializing such all-solid-state thin film batteries and market research predicts a growing market and a variety of applications including sensors, RFID tags, and smarter cards. In principle with a large deposition system, a thin film battery might cover a square meter, but in practice, most development is targeting individual cells with active areas less than 25 cm 2 . For very small battery areas, 2 , microfabrication processes have been developed. Typically the assembled batteries have capacities from 0.1 to 5 mAh. The operation of a thin film battery is depicted in the schematic diagram (Fig. 2). Very simply, when the battery is allowed to discharge, a Li + ion migrates from the anode to the cathode film by diffusing through the solid electrolyte. When the anode and cathode reactions are reversible, as for an intercalation compound or alloy, the battery can be recharged by reversing the current. The difference in the electrochemical potential of the lithium determines the cell voltage. Most of the thin films used in current commercial variations of this thin film battery are deposited in vacuum chambers by RF and DC magnetron sputtering and by thermal evaporation onto unheated substrates. In addition, many publications report exploring a variety of other physical and chemical vapor deposition processes, such as pulsed laser deposition, electron cyclotron resonance sputtering, and

Advances in thin-film solar cells for lightweight space photovoltaic power

Science.gov (United States)

Landis, Geoffrey A.; Bailey, Sheila G.; Flood, Dennis J.

1989-01-01

The development of photovoltaic arrays beyond the next generation is discussed with attention given to the potentials of thin-film polycrystalline and amorphous cells. Of particular importance is the efficiency (the fraction of incident solar energy converted to electricity) and specific power (power to weight ratio). It is found that the radiation tolerance of thin-film materials is far greater than that of single crystal materials. CuInSe2 shows no degradation when exposed to 1-MeV electrons.

Cytotoxicity Evaluation of Anatase and Rutile TiO2 Thin Films on CHO-K1 Cells in Vitro

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Blanca Cervantes

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Cytotoxicity of titanium dioxide (TiO2 thin films on Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-K1 cells was evaluated after 24, 48 and 72 h of culture. The TiO2 thin films were deposited using direct current magnetron sputtering. These films were post-deposition annealed at different temperatures (300, 500 and 800 °C toward the anatase to rutile phase transformation. The root-mean-square (RMS surface roughness of TiO2 films went from 2.8 to 8.08 nm when the annealing temperature was increased from 300 to 800 °C. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM results showed that the TiO2 films’ thickness values fell within the nanometer range (290–310 nm. Based on the results of the tetrazolium dye and trypan blue assays, we found that TiO2 thin films showed no cytotoxicity after the aforementioned culture times at which cell viability was greater than 98%. Independently of the annealing temperature of the TiO2 thin films, the number of CHO-K1 cells on the control substrate and on all TiO2 thin films was greater after 48 or 72 h than it was after 24 h; the highest cell survival rate was observed in TiO2 films annealed at 800 °C. These results indicate that TiO2 thin films do not affect mitochondrial function and proliferation of CHO-K1 cells, and back up the use of TiO2 thin films in biomedical science.

Cytotoxicity Evaluation of Anatase and Rutile TiO2 Thin Films on CHO-K1 Cells in Vitro

Science.gov (United States)

Cervantes, Blanca; López-Huerta, Francisco; Vega, Rosario; Hernández-Torres, Julián; García-González, Leandro; Salceda, Emilio; Herrera-May, Agustín L.; Soto, Enrique

2016-01-01

Cytotoxicity of titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin films on Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-K1) cells was evaluated after 24, 48 and 72 h of culture. The TiO2 thin films were deposited using direct current magnetron sputtering. These films were post-deposition annealed at different temperatures (300, 500 and 800 °C) toward the anatase to rutile phase transformation. The root-mean-square (RMS) surface roughness of TiO2 films went from 2.8 to 8.08 nm when the annealing temperature was increased from 300 to 800 °C. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) results showed that the TiO2 films’ thickness values fell within the nanometer range (290–310 nm). Based on the results of the tetrazolium dye and trypan blue assays, we found that TiO2 thin films showed no cytotoxicity after the aforementioned culture times at which cell viability was greater than 98%. Independently of the annealing temperature of the TiO2 thin films, the number of CHO-K1 cells on the control substrate and on all TiO2 thin films was greater after 48 or 72 h than it was after 24 h; the highest cell survival rate was observed in TiO2 films annealed at 800 °C. These results indicate that TiO2 thin films do not affect mitochondrial function and proliferation of CHO-K1 cells, and back up the use of TiO2 thin films in biomedical science. PMID:28773740

Optimized flexible cover films for improved conversion efficiency in thin film flexible solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Guterman, Sidney; Wen, Xin; Gudavalli, Ganesh; Rhajbhandari, Pravakar; Dhakal, Tara P.; Wilt, David; Klotzkin, David

2018-05-01

Thin film solar cell technologies are being developed for lower cost and flexible applications. For such technologies, it is desirable to have inexpensive, flexible cover strips. In this paper, we demonstrate that transparent silicone cover glass adhesive can be doped with TiO2 nanoparticles to achieve an optimal refractive index and maximize the performance of the cell. Cells covered with the film doped with nanoparticles at the optimal concentration demonstrated a ∼1% increase in photocurrent over the plain (undoped) film. In addition, fused silica beads can be incorporated into the flexible cover slip to realize a built-in pseudomorphic glass diffuser layer as well. This additional degree of freedom in engineering flexible solar cell covers allows maximal performance from a given cell for minimal increased cost.

Thin film device applications

CERN Document Server

Kaur, Inderjeet

1983-01-01

Two-dimensional materials created ab initio by the process of condensation of atoms, molecules, or ions, called thin films, have unique properties significantly different from the corresponding bulk materials as a result of their physical dimensions, geometry, nonequilibrium microstructure, and metallurgy. Further, these characteristic features of thin films can be drasti­ cally modified and tailored to obtain the desired and required physical characteristics. These features form the basis of development of a host of extraordinary active and passive thin film device applications in the last two decades. On the one extreme, these applications are in the submicron dimensions in such areas as very large scale integration (VLSI), Josephson junction quantum interference devices, magnetic bubbles, and integrated optics. On the other extreme, large-area thin films are being used as selective coatings for solar thermal conversion, solar cells for photovoltaic conver­ sion, and protection and passivating layers. Ind...

Thin film heterojunction photovoltaic cells and methods of making the same

Science.gov (United States)

Basol, Bulent M.; Tseng, Eric S.; Rod, Robert L.

1983-06-14

A method of fabricating a thin film heterojunction photovoltaic cell which comprises depositing a film of a near intrinsic or n-type semiconductor compound formed of at least one of the metal elements of Class II B of the Periodic Table of Elements and at least tellurium and then heating said film at a temperature between about 250.degree. C. and 500.degree. C. for a time sufficient to convert said film to a suitably low resistivity p-type semiconductor compound. Such film may be deposited initially on the surface of an n-type semiconductor substrate. Alternatively, there may be deposited on the converted film a layer of n-type semiconductor compound different from the film semiconductor compound. The resulting photovoltaic cell exhibits a substantially increased power output over similar cells not subjected to the method of the present invention.

Preparation of LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries by a mist CVD process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tadanaga, Kiyoharu, E-mail: tadanaga@chem.osakafu-u.ac.jp [Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, 599-8531 (Japan); Yamaguchi, Akihiro; Sakuda, Atsushi; Hayashi, Akitoshi; Tatsumisago, Masahiro [Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, 599-8531 (Japan); Duran, Alicia; Aparacio, Mario [Instituto de Cerámica y Vidrio, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Kelsen 5 (Campus de Cantoblanco), Madrid, 28049 (Spain)

2014-05-01

Highlights: • LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} thin films were prepared by using the mist CVD process. • An aqueous solution of lithium and manganese acetates is used for the precursor solution. • The cell with the LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} thin films exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g. • The cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles. - Abstract: LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries were prepared by using so-called the “mist CVD process”, employing an aqueous solution of lithium acetate and manganese acetate, as the source of Li and Mn, respectively. The aqueous solution of starting materials was ultrasonically atomized to form mist particles, and mists were transferred by nitrogen gas to silica glass substrate to form thin films. FE-SEM observation revealed that thin films obtained by this process were dense and smooth, and thin films with a thickness of about 750 nm were obtained. The electrochemical cell with the thin films obtained by sintering at 700 °C exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g, and the cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles.

Development of planar solid oxide fuel cells for power generation applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Minh, N.Q. [AlliedSignal Aerospce Equipment Systems, Torrance, CA (United States)

1996-04-01

Planar solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are presently being developed for a variety of electric power generation application. The planar design offers simple cell geometry, high power density, and multiple fabrication and gas manifolding options. Planar SOFC technology has received much attention recently, and significant progress has been made in this area. Recent effort at AlliedSignal has focused on the development of high-performance, lightweight planar SOFCs, having thin-electrolyte films, that can be operated efficiently at reduced temperatures (< 1000{degrees}C). The advantages of reduced-temperature operation include wider material choice (including use of metallic interconnects), expected longer cell life, reduced thermal stress, improved reliability, and reduced fuel cell cost. The key aspect in the development of thin-film SIFCs is to incorporate the thin electrolyte layer into the desired structure of cells in a manner that yields the required characteristics. AlliedSignal has developed a simple and cost-effective method based on tape calendering for the fabrication of thin-electrolyte SOFCs. Thin-electrolyte cells made by tape calendering have shown extraordinary performance, e.g., producing more than 500mW/cm{sup 2} at 700{degrees}C and 800mW/cm{sup 2} at 800{degrees}C with hydrogen as fuel and air is oxidant. thin-electrolyte single cells have been incorporated into a compliant metallic stack structure and operated at reduced and operated at reduced-temperature conditions.

High Specific and Mass Activity for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction for Thin Film Catalysts of Sputtered Pt3Y

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindahl, Niklas; Zamburlini, Eleonora; Feng, Ligang

2017-01-01

Fuel cells have the potential to play an important role in sustainable energy systems, provided that catalysts with higher activity and stability are developed. In this work, it is found that thin alloy films of single-target cosputtered platinum-yttrium exhibit up to seven times higher specific...... additional chemical or thermal treatment. The films show an improvement in stability over the same materials in nanoparticulate form. Physical characterization shows that the thin films form a platinum overlayer supported on an underlying alloy. The high activity is likely related to compressive strain...... in that overlayer. As sputtering can be used to mass-produce fuel cell electrodes, the results open new possibilities for the preparation of platinum-rare earth metal alloy catalysts in commercial devices....

Influence of Cu–Ti thin film surface properties on antimicrobial activity and viability of living cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wojcieszak, Damian; Kaczmarek, Danuta; Antosiak, Aleksandra; Mazur, Michal; Rybak, Zbigniew; Rusak, Agnieszka; Osekowska, Malgorzata; Poniedzialek, Agata; Gamian, Andrzej; Szponar, Bogumila

2015-01-01

The paper describes properties of thin-film coatings based on copper and titanium. Thin films were prepared by co-sputtering of Cu and Ti targets in argon plasma. Deposited coatings consist of 90 at.% of Cu and 10 at.% of Ti. Characterization of the film was made on the basis of investigations of microstructure and physicochemical properties of the surface. Methods such as scanning electron microscopy, x-ray microanalysis, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, optical profilometry and wettability measurements were used to assess the properties of deposited thin films. An impact of Cu–Ti coating on the growth of selected bacteria and viability of the living cells (line L929, NCTC clone 929) was described in relation to the structure, surface state and wettability of the film. It was found that as-deposited films were amorphous. However, in such surroundings the nanocrystalline grains of 10–15 nm and 25–35 nm size were present. High surface active area with a roughness of 8.9 nm, had an effect on receiving relatively high water contact angle value (74.1°). Such wettability may promote cell adhesion and result in an increase of the probability of copper ion transfer from the film surface into the cell. Thin films revealed bactericidal and fungicidal effects even in short term-contact. High activity of prepared films was directly related to high amount (ca. 51 %) of copper ions at 1+ state as x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results have shown. - Graphical abstract: Bactericidal and fungicidal effects of time contact with surface of Cu–Ti thin films. - Highlights: • Antimicrobial activity and cytotoxic effect (viability of L929 cell line) of metallic Cu–Ti films • Thin films were prepared by co-sputtering of Cu and Ti. • As-deposited Cu–Ti films were amorphous and homogenous. • Bactericidal and fungicidal effects even in short term-contact were observed

Influence of Cu–Ti thin film surface properties on antimicrobial activity and viability of living cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wojcieszak, Damian, E-mail: damian.wojcieszak@pwr.edu.pl [Faculty of Microsystem Electronics and Photonics, Wroclaw University of Technology, Janiszewskiego 11/17, 50-372 Wroclaw (Poland); Kaczmarek, Danuta [Faculty of Microsystem Electronics and Photonics, Wroclaw University of Technology, Janiszewskiego 11/17, 50-372 Wroclaw (Poland); Antosiak, Aleksandra [Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Rudolfa Weigla 12, 53-114 Wrocław (Poland); Mazur, Michal [Faculty of Microsystem Electronics and Photonics, Wroclaw University of Technology, Janiszewskiego 11/17, 50-372 Wroclaw (Poland); Rybak, Zbigniew; Rusak, Agnieszka; Osekowska, Malgorzata [Department for Experimental Surgery and Biomaterials Research, Wroclaw Medical University, Poniatowskiego 2, 50-326 Wroclaw (Poland); Poniedzialek, Agata [Faculty of Microsystem Electronics and Photonics, Wroclaw University of Technology, Janiszewskiego 11/17, 50-372 Wroclaw (Poland); Gamian, Andrzej; Szponar, Bogumila [Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Rudolfa Weigla 12, 53-114 Wrocław (Poland)

2015-11-01

The paper describes properties of thin-film coatings based on copper and titanium. Thin films were prepared by co-sputtering of Cu and Ti targets in argon plasma. Deposited coatings consist of 90 at.% of Cu and 10 at.% of Ti. Characterization of the film was made on the basis of investigations of microstructure and physicochemical properties of the surface. Methods such as scanning electron microscopy, x-ray microanalysis, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, optical profilometry and wettability measurements were used to assess the properties of deposited thin films. An impact of Cu–Ti coating on the growth of selected bacteria and viability of the living cells (line L929, NCTC clone 929) was described in relation to the structure, surface state and wettability of the film. It was found that as-deposited films were amorphous. However, in such surroundings the nanocrystalline grains of 10–15 nm and 25–35 nm size were present. High surface active area with a roughness of 8.9 nm, had an effect on receiving relatively high water contact angle value (74.1°). Such wettability may promote cell adhesion and result in an increase of the probability of copper ion transfer from the film surface into the cell. Thin films revealed bactericidal and fungicidal effects even in short term-contact. High activity of prepared films was directly related to high amount (ca. 51 %) of copper ions at 1+ state as x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results have shown. - Graphical abstract: Bactericidal and fungicidal effects of time contact with surface of Cu–Ti thin films. - Highlights: • Antimicrobial activity and cytotoxic effect (viability of L929 cell line) of metallic Cu–Ti films • Thin films were prepared by co-sputtering of Cu and Ti. • As-deposited Cu–Ti films were amorphous and homogenous. • Bactericidal and fungicidal effects even in short term-contact were observed.

Sputter Deposited TiOx Thin-Films as Electron Transport Layers in Organic Solar Cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mirsafaei, Mina; Bomholt Jensen, Pia; Lakhotiya, Harish

transparency and favorable energy-level alignment with many commonly used electron-acceptor materials. There are several methods available for fabricating compact TiOx thin-films for use in organic solar cells, including sol-gel solution processing, spray pyrolysis and atomic-layer deposition; however...... of around 7%, by incorporating sputter deposited TiOx thin-films as electron-transport and exciton-blocking layers. In the work, we report on the effect of different TiOx deposition temperatures and thicknesses on the organic-solar-cell device performance. Besides optical characterization, AFM and XRD...... analyses are performed to characterize the morphology and crystal structure of the films, and external quantum efficiency measurements are employed to shed further light on the device performance. Our study presents a novel method for implementation of TiOx thin-films as electron-transport layer in organic...

Thermogravimetric analysis of fuel film evaporation

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

HU Zongjie; LI Liguang; YU Shui

2006-01-01

Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was compared with the petrochemical distillation measurement method to better understand the characteristics of fuel film evaporation at different wall tem- peratures. The film evaporation characteristics of 90# gasoline, 93# gasoline and 0# diesel with different initial thicknesses were investigated at different environmental fluxes and heating rates. The influences of heating rate, film thickness and environmental flux on fuel film evaporation for these fuels were found. The results showed that the environmental conditions in TGA were similar to those for fuel films in the internal combustion engines, so data from TGA were suitable for the analysis of fuel film evaporation. TGA could simulate the key influencing factors for fuel film evaporation and could investigate the basic quantificational effect of heating rate and film thickness. To get a rapid and sufficient fuel film evaporation, sufficiently high wall temperature is necessary. Evaporation time decreases at a high heating rate and thin film thickness, and intense gas flow is important to promoting fuel film evaporation. Data from TGA at a heating rate of 100℃/min are fit to analyze the diesel film evaporation during cold-start and warming-up. Due to the tense molecular interactions, the evaporation sequence could not be strictly divided according to the boiling points of each component for multicomponent dissolved mixture during the quick evaporation process, and the heavier components could vaporize before reaching their boiling points. The 0# diesel film would fully evaporate when the wall temperature is beyond 250℃.

Effect of Annealing on the Properties of Antimony Telluride Thin Films and Their Applications in CdTe Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhouling Wang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Antimony telluride alloy thin films were deposited at room temperature by using the vacuum coevaporation method. The films were annealed at different temperatures in N2 ambient, and then the compositional, structural, and electrical properties of antimony telluride thin films were characterized by X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, differential thermal analysis, and Hall measurements. The results indicate that single phase antimony telluride existed when the annealing temperature was higher than 488 K. All thin films exhibited p-type conductivity with high carrier concentrations. Cell performance was greatly improved when the antimony telluride thin films were used as the back contact layer for CdTe thin film solar cells. The dark current voltage and capacitance voltage measurements were performed to investigate the formation of the back contacts for the cells with or without Sb2Te3 buffer layers. CdTe solar cells with the buffer layers can reduce the series resistance and eliminate the reverse junction between CdTe and metal electrodes.

Characterization of Sucrose Thin Films for Biomedical Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. L. Iconaru

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Sucrose is a natural osmolyte accumulated in the cells of organisms as they adapt to environmental stress. In vitro sucrose increases protein stability and forces partially unfolded structures to refold. Thin films of sucrose (C12H22O11 were deposited on thin cut glass substrates by the thermal evaporation technique (P∼10−5 torr. Characteristics of thin films were put into evidence by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS, scanning electron microscopy (SEM, and differential thermal analysis and thermal gravimetric analysis (TG/DTA. The experimental results confirm a uniform deposition of an adherent layer. In this paper we present a part of the characteristics of sucrose thin films deposited on glass in medium vacuum conditions, as a part of a culture medium for osteoblast cells. Osteoblast cells were used to determine proliferation, viability, and cytotoxicity interactions with sucrose powder and sucrose thin films. The osteoblast cells have been provided from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC Centre. The outcome of this study demonstrated the effectiveness of sucrose thin films as a possible nontoxic agent for biomedical applications.

Effect of cell thickness on the electrical and optical properties of thin film silicon solar cell

Science.gov (United States)

Zaki, A. A.; El-Amin, A. A.

2017-12-01

In this work Electrical and optical properties of silicon thin films with different thickness were measured. The thickness of the Si films varied from 100 to 800 μm. The optical properties of the cell were studied at different thickness. A maximum achievable current density (MACD) generated by a planar solar cell, was measured for different values of the cell thickness which was performed by using photovoltaic (PV) optics method. It was found that reducing the values of the cell thickness improves the open-circuit voltage (VOC) and the fill factor (FF) of the solar cell. The optical properties were measured for thin film Si (TF-Si) at different thickness by using the double beam UV-vis-NIR spectrophotometer in the wavelength range of 300-2000 nm. Some of optical parameters such as refractive index with dispersion relation, the dispersion energy, the oscillator energy, optical band gap energy were calculated by using the spectra for the TF-Si with different thickness.

Transparent sculptured titania films for enhanced light absorption in thin-film Si solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hung, Kai-Hsiang, E-mail: khhung@itri.org.tw [Green Energy and Environment Research Laboratories, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China); Chiou, Guan-Di; Wong, Ming-Show [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Dong Hwa University, Hualien, Taiwan (China); Wang, Yu-Chih [Green Energy and Environment Research Laboratories, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China); Chung, I-Shan [Electronics and Optoelectronics Research Laboratories, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China)

2011-12-30

This study presents a description of the enhancement of light absorption in thin-film silicon (Si) solar cells by using sculptured titania (TiO{sub 2}) films. We used an electron-beam evaporation system with a glancing angle deposition (GLAD) method to deposit porous TiO{sub 2} films on fluorine-doped SnO{sub 2} (FTO) substrates. The GLAD TiO{sub 2}/FTO films were used as conductive electrodes in hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon ({mu}c-Si:H) solar cells. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the GLAD TiO{sub 2} films are composed of sculptured nano-pillars on an FTO surface, and this nanostructure provides a synergistic route for light scattering enhancement. The GLAD TiO{sub 2}/FTO exhibited a 68% improvement of optical haze (at {lambda} = 600 nm). The {mu}c-Si:H solar cells consisting of the GLAD-nanostructured TiO{sub 2} resulted in a 5% improvement of short-circuit current (J{sub sc}) and yielded a cell efficiency of 6.6%.

Extremely Efficient Design of Organic Thin Film Solar Cells via Learning-Based Optimization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mine Kaya

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Design of efficient thin film photovoltaic (PV cells require optical power absorption to be computed inside a nano-scale structure of photovoltaics, dielectric and plasmonic materials. Calculating power absorption requires Maxwell’s electromagnetic equations which are solved using numerical methods, such as finite difference time domain (FDTD. The computational cost of thin film PV cell design and optimization is therefore cumbersome, due to successive FDTD simulations. This cost can be reduced using a surrogate-based optimization procedure. In this study, we deploy neural networks (NNs to model optical absorption in organic PV structures. We use the corresponding surrogate-based optimization procedure to maximize light trapping inside thin film organic cells infused with metallic particles. Metallic particles are known to induce plasmonic effects at the metal–semiconductor interface, thus increasing absorption. However, a rigorous design procedure is required to achieve the best performance within known design guidelines. As a result of using NNs to model thin film solar absorption, the required time to complete optimization is decreased by more than five times. The obtained NN model is found to be very reliable. The optimization procedure results in absorption enhancement greater than 200%. Furthermore, we demonstrate that once a reliable surrogate model such as the developed NN is available, it can be used for alternative analyses on the proposed design, such as uncertainty analysis (e.g., fabrication error.

Numerical Optimization of a Bifacial Bi-Glass Thin-Film a-Si:H Solar Cell for Higher Conversion Efficiency

Science.gov (United States)

Berrian, Djaber; Fathi, Mohamed; Kechouane, Mohamed

2018-02-01

Bifacial solar cells that maximize the energy output per a square meter have become a new fashion in the field of photovoltaic cells. However, the application of thin-film material on bifacial solar cells, viz., thin-film amorphous hydrogenated silicon ( a- Si:H), is extremely rare. Therefore, this paper presents the optimization and influence of the band gap, thickness and doping on the performance of a glass/glass thin-film a- Si:H ( n- i- p) bifacial solar cell, using a computer-aided simulation tool, Automat for simulation of hetero-structures (AFORS-HET). It is worth mentioning that the thickness and the band gap of the i-layer are the key parameters in achieving higher efficiency and hence it has to be handled carefully during the fabrication process. Furthermore, an efficient thin-film a- Si:H bifacial solar cell requires thinner and heavily doped n and p emitter layers. On the other hand, the band gap of the p-layer showed a dramatic reduction of the efficiency at 2.3 eV. Moreover, a high bifaciality factor of more than 92% is attained, and top efficiency of 10.9% is revealed under p side illumination. These optimizations demonstrate significant enhancements of the recent experimental work on thin-film a- Si:H bifacial solar cells and would also be useful for future experimental investigations on an efficient a- Si:H thin-film bifacial solar cell.

Polycrystalline silicon thin-film solar cells on glass

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gall, S.; Becker, C.; Conrad, E.; Dogan, P.; Fenske, F.; Gorka, B.; Lee, K.Y.; Rau, B.; Ruske, F.; Rech, B. [Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fuer Materialien und Energie GmbH (formerly Hahn-Meitner-Institut Berlin GmbH), Department Silicon Photovoltaics (SE1), Kekulestr. 5, D-12489 Berlin (Germany)

2009-06-15

Poly-Si thin-film solar cells on glass feature the potential to reach single-junction efficiencies of 15% or even higher at low costs. In this paper innovative approaches are discussed, which could lead to substantial efficiency improvements and significant cost reductions: (i) preparation of large-grained poly-Si films using the 'seed layer concept' targeting at high material quality, (ii) utilization of ZnO:Al-coated glass enabling simple contacting and light-trapping schemes, (iii) utilization of high-rate electron-beam evaporation for the absorber deposition offering a high potential for cost reduction. (author)

Novel photon management for thin-film photovoltaics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Menon, Rajesh [Univ. of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)

2016-11-11

The objective of this project is to enable commercially viable thin-film photovoltaics whose efficiencies are increased by over 10% using a novel optical spectral-separation technique. A thin planar diffractive optic is proposed that efficiently separates the solar spectrum and assigns these bands to optimal thin-film sub-cells. An integrated device that is comprised of the optical element, an array of sub-cells and associated packaging is proposed.

Multi-Material Front Contact for 19% Thin Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joop van Deelen

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The trade-off between transmittance and conductivity of the front contact material poses a bottleneck for thin film solar panels. Normally, the front contact material is a metal oxide and the optimal cell configuration and panel efficiency were determined for various band gap materials, representing Cu(In,GaSe2 (CIGS, CdTe and high band gap perovskites. Supplementing the metal oxide with a metallic copper grid improves the performance of the front contact and aims to increase the efficiency. Various front contact designs with and without a metallic finger grid were calculated with a variation of the transparent conductive oxide (TCO sheet resistance, scribing area, cell length, and finger dimensions. In addition, the contact resistance and illumination power were also assessed and the optimal thin film solar panel design was determined. Adding a metallic finger grid on a TCO gives a higher solar cell efficiency and this also enables longer cell lengths. However, contact resistance between the metal and the TCO material can reduce the efficiency benefit somewhat.

Effect of Grain Boundaries on the Performance of Thin-Film-Based Polycrystalline Silicon Solar Cells: A Numerical Modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Chhetri, Nikita; Chatterjee, Somenath

2018-01-01

Solar cells/photovoltaic, a renewable energy source, is appraised to be the most effective alternative to the conventional electrical energy generator. A cost-effective alternative of crystalline wafer-based solar cell is thin-film polycrystalline-based solar cell. This paper reports the numerical analysis of dependency of the solar cell parameters (i.e., efficiency, fill factor, open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current density) on grain size for thin-film-based polycrystalline silicon (Si) solar cells. A minority carrier lifetime model is proposed to do a correlation between the grains, grain boundaries and lifetime for thin-film-based polycrystalline Si solar cells in MATLAB environment. As observed, the increment in the grain size diameter results in increase in minority carrier lifetime in polycrystalline Si thin film. A non-equivalent series resistance double-diode model is used to find the dark as well as light (AM1.5) current-voltage (I-V) characteristics for thin-film-based polycrystalline Si solar cells. To optimize the effectiveness of the proposed model, a successive approximation method is used and the corresponding fitting parameters are obtained. The model is validated with the experimentally obtained results reported elsewhere. The experimentally reported solar cell parameters can be found using the proposed model described here.

Transparent conductive zinc oxide basics and applications in thin film solar cells

CERN Document Server

Klein, Andreas; Rech, Bernd

2008-01-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) belongs to the class of transparent conducting oxides which can be used as transparent electrodes in electronic devices or heated windows. In this book the material properties of, the deposition technologies for, and applications of zinc oxide in thin film solar cells are described in a comprehensive manner. Structural, morphological, optical and electronic properties of ZnO are treated in this review. The editors and authors of this book are specialists in deposition, analysis and fabrication of thin-film solar cells and especially of ZnO. This book is intended as an overview and a data collection for students, engineers and scientist.

Progress in Thin Film Solar Cells Based on Cu2ZnSnS4

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hongxia Wang

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The research in thin film solar cells has been dominated by light absorber materials based on CdTe and Cu(In,GaSe2 (CIGS in the last several decades. The concerns of environment impact of cadmium and the limited availability of indium in those materials have driven the research towards developing new substitute light absorbers made from earth abundant, environment benign materials. Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS semiconductor material has emerged as one of the most promising candidates for this aim and has attracted considerable interest recently. Significant progress in this relatively new research area has been achieved in the last three years. Over 130 papers on CZTS have been published since 2007, and the majority of them are on the preparation of CZTS thin films by different methods. This paper, will review the wide range of techniques that have been used to deposit CZTS semiconductor thin films. The performance of the thin film solar cells using the CZTS material will also be discussed.

Characterization of thin CeO{sub 2} films electrochemically deposited on HOPG

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Faisal, Firas [Lehrstuhl für Physikalische Chemie II, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Egerlandstrasse 3, 91058 Erlangen (Germany); Toghan, Arafat, E-mail: arafat.toghan@yahoo.com [Lehrstuhl für Physikalische Chemie II, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Egerlandstrasse 3, 91058 Erlangen (Germany); Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, 83523 Qena (Egypt); Khalakhan, Ivan; Vorokhta, Mykhailo; Matolin, Vladimír [Department of Surface and Plasma Science, Charles University in Prague, V Holešovičkách 747/2, 180 00 Prague 8 (Czech Republic); Libuda, Jörg [Lehrstuhl für Physikalische Chemie II, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Egerlandstrasse 3, 91058 Erlangen (Germany); Erlangen Catalysis Resource Center, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Egerlandstrasse 3, 91058 Erlangen (Germany)

2015-09-30

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Preparation of proton exchange membrane fuel cells catalyst using electrochemical thin film deposition. • Electrodeposition thin films of CeO{sub 2} on HOPG substrates. • The samples were characterized by in-situ AFM and ex-situ XPS. • XPS results reveal that the electrochemically deposited cerium oxide films are stoichiometric. • Exposing the films to ambient air, cracking structures are formed. - Abstract: Electrodeposition is widely used for industrial applications to deposit thin films, coatings, and adhesion layers. Herein, CeO{sub 2} thin films were deposited on a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) substrate by cathodic electrodeposition. The influence of the deposition parameters on the yield and on the film morphology is studied and discussed. Morphology and composition of the electrodeposited films were characterized by in-situ atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). By AFM we show that the thickness of CeO{sub 2} films can be controlled via the Ce{sup 3+} concentration in solution and the deposition time. After exposing the films to ambient air, cracking structures are formed, which were analyzed by AFM in detail. The chemical composition of the deposits was analyzed by XPS indicating the formation of nearly stoichiometric CeO{sub 2}.

Cu2SixSn1-xS3 Thin Films Prepared by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering For Low-Cost Thin Film Solar Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Chang; Liu, Fang-Yang; Lai, Yan-Qing; Li, Jie; Liu, Ye-Xiang

2011-10-01

We report the preparation of Cu2SixSn1-xS3 thin films for thin film solar cell absorbers using the reactive magnetron co-sputtering technique. Energy dispersive spectrometer and x-ray diffraction analyses indicate that Cu2Si1-xSnxS3 thin films can be synthesized successfully by partly substituting Si atoms for Sn atoms in the Cu2SnS3 lattice, leading to a shrinkage of the lattice, and, accordingly, by 2θ shifting to larger values. The blue shift of the Raman peak further confirms the formation of Cu2SixSn1-xS3. Environmental scanning electron microscope analyses reveal a polycrystalline and homogeneous morphology with a grain size of about 200-300 nm. Optical measurements indicate an optical absorption coefficient of higher than 104 cm-1 and an optical bandgap of 1.17±0.01 eV.

Ion beam analysis of Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} thin film solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karydas, A.G. [International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), IAEA Laboratories, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); Institute of Nuclear and Particle Physics, NCSR “Demokritos”, 153 10 Aghia Paraskevi, Athens Greece (Greece); Streeck, C. [Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), Abbestr. 2-12, 10587 Berlin (Germany); Radovic, I. Bogdanovic [Ruđer Bošković Institute (RBI), Zagreb (Croatia); Kaufmann, C.; Rissom, T. [Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie GmbH (HZB), Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, 14109 Berlin (Germany); Beckhoff, B. [Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), Abbestr. 2-12, 10587 Berlin (Germany); Jaksic, M. [Ruđer Bošković Institute (RBI), Zagreb (Croatia); Barradas, N.P. [Centro de Ciências e Tecnologias Nucleares, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, E. N. 10, Apartado 21, 2686-953 Sacavém (Portugal)

2015-11-30

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Elemental depth profiles for various CIGS thin films were quantitatively determined. • Pure absorbers, complete cell and bilayer solar cells were prepared and analyzed. • Synergistic PIXE and RBS analysis of thin solar cells using alpha beam particles. • High energy alpha beam resolved completely the Indium depth profile. • Synchrotron based Reference Free GIXRF quantitative analysis validated IBA results. - Abstract: The present work investigates the potential of ion beam analysis (IBA) techniques such as the Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) and particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) using helium ions to provide quantitative in-depth elemental analysis of various types of Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} thin films. These films with a thickness of about 2 μm are used as absorber layers in photovoltaic devices with continuously increasing the performance of this technology. The preparation process generally aims to obtain an in-depth gradient of In and Ga concentrations that optimizes the optoelectronic and electrical properties of the solar cell. The measurements were performed at directly accessible single or double layered CIGS absorbers and at buried absorbers in completed thin film solar cells. The IBA data were analyzed simultaneously in order to derive best fitted profiles that match all experimental RBS and PIXE spectra. For some samples elemental profiles deduced form synchrotron based, reference free grazing incidence X-ray fluorescence analysis were compared with the IBA results and an overall good agreement was observed within quoted uncertainties.

Light trapping in thin film solar cells using photonic engineering device concepts

Science.gov (United States)

Mutitu, James Gichuhi

In this era of uncertainty concerning future energy solutions, strong reservations have arisen over the continued use and pursuit of fossil fuels and other conventional sources of energy. Moreover, there is currently a strong and global push for the implementation of stringent measures, in order to reduce the amount of green house gases emitted by every nation. As a consequence, there has emerged a sudden and frantic rush for new renewable energy solutions. In this world of renewable energy technologies is where we find photovoltaic (PV) technology today. However, as is, there are still many issues that need to be addressed before solar energy technologies become economically viable and available to all people, in every part of the world. This renewed interest in the development of solar electricity, has led to the advancement of new avenues that address the issues of cost and efficiency associated with PV. To this end, one of the prominent approaches being explored is thin film solar cell (TFSC) technology, which offers prospects of lower material costs and enables larger units of manufacture than conventional wafer based technology. However, TFSC technologies suffer from one major problem; they have lower efficiencies than conventional wafer based solar cell technologies. This lesser efficiency is based on a number of reasons, one of which is that with less material, there is less volume for the absorption of incident photons. This shortcoming leads to the need for optical light trapping; which is concerned with admitting the maximum amount of light into the solar cell and keeping the light within the structure for as long as possible. In this thesis, I present the fundamental scientific ideas, practice and methodology behind the application of photonic engineering device concepts to increase the light trapping capacity of thin film solar cells. In the introductory chapters, I develop the basic ideas behind light trapping in a sequential manner, where the effects

Commercial Development Of Ovonic Thin Film Solar Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Ovshinsky, Stanford R.

1983-09-01

subsequent paper) which has clearly demonstrated that the basic barrier to low-cost production has been broken through and that one can now speak realistically of delivering power directly from the sun for under a dollar per peak watt merely by making larger versions of this basic continuous web, large-area thin-film machine. We have made one square foot amorphous silicon alloy PIN devices with conversion efficiencies in the range of 7%, and in the laboratory, we have reported smaller area PIN de-vices in the 10% conversion efficiency range. In addition, much higher energy conversion efficiencies can be obtained within the same process by using multi-cell layered or tandem thin-film solar cell structures (see Figure 1). These devices exhibit enhanced efficiency by utilizing a wider range of the solar spectrum. Since the theoretical maximum efficiency for multi-cell structures is over 60%, one can certainly realistically anticipate the pro-duction of thin-film amorphous photovoltaic devices with efficiencies as high as 30%. Our production device is already a two-cell tandem, as we have solved not only the problems of interfacing the individual cell components but also the difficulties associated with a one foot square format deposited on a continuous web. Figure 2 shows a continuous roll of Ovonic solar cells. Realistic calculations for a three-cell tandem thin-film device using amorphous semiconductor alloys with 1.8eV, 1.5eV, and 1.0eV optical band gaps indicate that solar energy conversion efficiencies of 20-30% can be achieved.

Thin films of single-walled carbon nanotubes promote human osteoblastic cells (Saos-2) proliferation in low serum concentrations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akasaka, Tsukasa; Yokoyama, Atsuro; Matsuoka, Makoto; Hashimoto, Takeshi; Watari, Fumio

2010-01-01

One strategy used for the regeneration of bone is the development of cell culture substrates and scaffolds that can control osteoblast proliferation and differentiation. In recent investigations, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been utilized as scaffolds for osteoblastic cell cultures; however, there are only a few reports describing the proliferation of osteoblastic cells on thin CNT films; in particular, the effects of serum concentration on cell proliferation have not been studied. In the present study, we prepared culture dishes with homogeneous thin or thick films of non-modified CNTs and examined the effect of serum concentrations on human osteoblastic cells (Saos-2) proliferation in these culture dishes. We demonstrated that the ratio of cell proliferation was strongly affected by the concentration of serum. Interestingly, single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) thin films were found to be the most effective substrate for the proliferation of Saos-2 cells in low concentrations of serum. Thus, thin SWNT films may be used as an effective biomaterial for the culture of Saos-2 cells in low serum concentrations.

Photon confinement in high-efficiency, thin-film III-V solar cells obtained by epitaxial lift-off

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schermer, J.J.; Bauhuis, G.J.; Mulder, P.; Haverkamp, E.J.; Deelen, J. van; Niftrik, A.T.J. van; Larsen, P.K.

2006-01-01

Using the epitaxial lift-off (ELO) technique, a III-V device structure can be separated from its GaAs substrate by selective wet etching of a thin release layer. The thin-film structures obtained by the ELO process can be cemented or van der Waals bonded on arbitrary smooth surface carriers for further processing. It is shown that the ELO method, initially able to separate millimetre-sized GaAs layers with a lateral etch rate of about 1 mm/h, has been developed to a process capable to free the entire 2-in. epitaxial structures from their substrates with etch rates up to 30 mm/h. With these characteristics the method has a large potential for the production of high efficiency thin-film solar cells. By choosing the right deposition and ELO strategy, the thin-film III-V cells can be adequately processed on both sides allowing for an entire range of new cell structures. In the present work, the performance of semi-transparent bifacial solar cells, produced by the deposition of metal grid contacts on both sides, was evaluated. Reflection of light at the rear side of the bifacial GaAs solar cells was found to result in an enhanced collection probability of the photon-induced carriers compared to that of regular III-V cells on a GaAs substrate. To enhance this effect, thin-film GaAs cells with gold mirror back contacts were prepared. Even in their present premature stage of development, these single-junction thin-film cells reached a record efficiency of 24.5% which is already very close to the 24.9% efficiency that was obtained with a regular GaAs cell on a GaAs substrate. From this it could be concluded that, as a result of the photon confinement, ELO cells require a significantly thinner base layer than regular GaAs cells while at the same time they have the potential to reach a higher efficiency

Photon management in thin-film solar cells; Photon-Management in Duennschicht-Solarzellen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fahr, Stephan

2011-11-22

In this thesis procedures were presented, which modify the propagation of the incident light in such a way that by this the efficiency of thin-film solar cells is increased. The strength of the presented numerical studies lies thereby in the rigorous solution of Maxwell's equations. Fundamental statements concerning the lay-out of an ideal texture could be made, which for present thin-film solar cells over the whole relevant spectral range both suppresses reflection losses and leads to an elongation of the effective path. Object of the thesis was also the design of a spectral- and angular-selective filter, which confines the acceptance angle of a solar cell with the aim of an improved absorption in the long-wave spectral region. Furthermore also tandem cells on the base of amorphous and microcrystalline silicon were studied.

Achievement report for 1st phase (fiscal 1974-80) Sunshine Program research and development - Hydrogen energy. Research on fuel cell (Research on high-temperature solid electrolyte fuel cell); 1974-1980 nendo suiso energy seika hokokusho. Nenryo denchi no kenkyu (koon kotai denkaishitsu nenryo denchi no kenkyu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1981-03-01

Relative to the research and development of technologies for fabricating, and assessing, materials for the constitution of high-temperature solid electrolyte fuel cells, stabilized zirconia solid electrolyte fuel cell manufacturing technologies are developed by use of thin film formation techniques such as high-frequency sputtering, plasma CVD (chemical vapor deposition), and the thermolysis of organic zirconia compound coating. As the result, it is found that high-frequency sputtering produces thin film which is satisfying in terms of cost efficiency. Furthermore, it is found that defects in solid electrolytic thin film formed by the high-frequency sputtering method, that is, pinholes and cracks, will be remedied when the coating thermolysis method is jointly applied. In the research on fuel cell power systems, column-type high-temperature solid electrolyte fuel cells are built, and a power generation test is conducted. The test is successfully completed when the output of a fuel cell of the 9-column module structure gradually increases until a maximum output of 110W is achieved. (NEDO)

Multi-Material Front Contact for 19% Thin Film Solar Cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Deelen, J. van; Tezsevin, Y.; Barink, M.

2016-01-01

The trade-off between transmittance and conductivity of the front contact material poses abottleneck for thin film solar panels. Normally, the front contact material is a metal oxide and the optimal cell configuration and panel efficiency were determined for various band gap materials, representing

Superior light trapping in thin film silicon solar cells through nano imprint lithography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soppe, W.J.; Dorenkamper, M.S.; Schropp, R.E.I.; Pex, P.P.A.C.

2013-10-15

ECN and partners have developed a fabrication process based on nanoimprint lithography (NIL) of textures for light trapping in thin film solar cells such as thin-film silicon, OPV, CIGS and CdTe. The process can be applied in roll-to-roll mode when using a foil substrate or in roll-to-plate mode when using a glass substrate. The lacquer also serves as an electrically insulating layer for cells if steel foil is used as substrate, to enable monolithic series interconnection. In this paper we will show the superior light trapping in thin film silicon solar cells made on steel foil with nanotextured back contacts. We have made single junction a-Si and {mu}c-Si and a-Si/{mu}c-Si tandem cells, where we applied several types of nano-imprints with random and periodic structures. We will show that the nano-imprinted back contact enables more than 30% increase of current in comparison with non-textured back contacts and that optimized periodic textures outperform state-of-the-art random textures. For a-Si cells we obtained Jsc of 18 mA/cm{sup 2} and for {mu}c-Si cells more than 24 mA/cm{sup 2}. Tandem cells with a total Si absorber layer thickness of only 1350 nm have an initial efficiency of 11%.

Wet-Chemical Surface Texturing of Sputter-Deposited ZnO:Al Films as Front Electrode for Thin-Film Silicon Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xia Yan

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Transparent conductive oxides (TCOs play a major role as the front electrodes of thin-film silicon (Si solar cells, as they can provide optical scattering and hence improved photon absorption inside the devices. In this paper we report on the surface texturing of aluminium-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al or AZO films for improved light trapping in thin-film Si solar cells. The AZO films are deposited onto soda-lime glass sheets via pulsed DC magnetron sputtering. Several promising AZO texturing methods are investigated using diluted hydrochloric (HCl and hydrofluoric acid (HF, through a two-step etching process. The developed texturing procedure combines the advantages of the HCl-induced craters and the smaller and jagged—but laterally more uniform—features created by HF etching. In the two-step process, the second etching step further enhances the optical haze, while simultaneously improving the uniformity of the texture features created by the HCl etch. The resulting AZO films show large haze values of above 40%, good scattering into large angles, and a surface angle distribution that is centred at around 30°, which is known from the literature to provide efficient light trapping for thin-film Si solar cells.

High performance direct methanol fuel cell with thin electrolyte membrane

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Nianfang

2017-06-01

A high performance direct methanol fuel cell is achieved with thin electrolyte membrane. 320 mW cm-2 of peak power density and over 260 mW cm-2 at 0.4 V are obtained when working at 90 °C with normal pressure air supply. It is revealed that the increased anode half-cell performance with temperature contributes primarily to the enhanced performance at elevated temperature. From the comparison of iR-compensated cathode potential of methanol/air with that of H2/air fuel cell, the impact of methanol crossover on cathode performance decreases with current density and becomes negligible at high current density. Current density is found to influence fuel efficiency and methanol crossover significantly from the measurement of fuel efficiency at different current density. At high current density, high fuel efficiency can be achieved even at high temperature, indicating decreased methanol crossover.

High-temperature fabrication of Ag(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} thin films for applications in solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Xianfeng [International Center for Science and Engineering Programs, Waseda University, Tokyo (Japan); Yamada, Akira [Department of Physical Electronics, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo (Japan); Kobayashi, Masakazu [Department of Electrical Engineering and Bioscience, Waseda University, Tokyo (Japan); Kagami Memorial Research Institute for Materials Science, Waseda University, Tokyo (Japan)

2017-10-15

Molecular beam epitaxy was used to fabricate Ag(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} (AIGS) thin films. To improve the diffusion of Ag, high-temperature deposition and high-temperature annealing methods were applied to fabricate AIGS films. The as-grown AIGS thin films were then used to make AIGS solar cells. We found that grain size and crystallinity of AIGS films were considerably improved by increasing the deposition and annealing temperature. For high-temperature deposition, temperatures over 600 C led to decomposition of the AIGS film, desorption of In, and deterioration of its crystallinity. The most appropriate deposition temperature was 590 C and a solar cell with a power conversion efficiency of 4.1% was obtained. High-temperature annealing of the AIGS thin films showed improved crystallinity as annealing temperature was increased and film decomposition and In desorption were prevented. A solar cell based on this film showed the highest conversion efficiency of 6.4% when annealed at 600 C. When the annealing temperature was further increased to 610 C, the performance of the cell deteriorated due to loss of the out-of-plane Ga gradient. (copyright 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Significant efficiency enhancement in thin film solar cells using laser beam-induced graphene transparent conductive electrodes

OpenAIRE

Thekkekara, L. V.; Cai, Bouyan

2018-01-01

Thin film solar cells have been attractive for decades in advanced green technology platforms due to its possibilities to be integrated with buildings and on-chip applications. However, the bottleneck issues involved to consider the current solar cells as a major electricity source includes the lower efficiencies and cost-effectiveness. We numerically demonstrate the concept of the absorption enhancement in thin-film amorphous silicon solar cells using the laser beam-induced graphene material...

A computational study on the energy bandgap engineering in performance enhancement of CdTe thin film solar cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ameen M. Ali

Full Text Available In this study, photovoltaic properties of CdTe thin film in the configuration of n-SnO2/n-CdS/p-CdTe/p-CdTe:Te/metal have been studied by numerical simulation software named “Analysis of Microelectronic and Photonic Structure” (AMPS-1D. A modified structure for CdTe thin film solar cell has been proposed by numerical analysis with the insertion of a back contact buffer layer (CdTe:Te. This layer can serve as a barrier that will decelerate the copper diffusion in CdTe solar cell. Four estimated energy bandgap relations versus the Tellurium (Te concentrations and the (CdTe:Te layer thickness have been examined thoroughly during simulation. Correlation between energy bandgap with the CdTe thin film solar cell performance has also been established. Keywords: Numerical modelling, CdTe thin film, Solar cell, AMPS-1D, Bandgap

Significant questions in thin liquid film heat transfer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bankoff, S.G.

1994-01-01

Thin liquid films appear in many contexts, such as the cooling of gas turbine blade tips, rocket engines, microelectronics arrays, and hot fuel element surfaces in hypothetical nuclear reactor accidents. Apart from these direct cooling applications of thin liquid layers, thin films form a crucial element in determining the allowable heat flux limits in boiling. This is because the last stages of dryout almost invariably involve the rupture of a residual liquid film, either as a microlayer underneath the bubbles, or a thin annular layer in a high-quality burnout scenario. The destabilization of these thin films under the combined actions of shear stress, evaporation, and thermocapillary effects is quite complex. The later stages of actual rupture to form dry regions, which then expand, resulting in possible overheating, are even more complex and less well understood. However, significant progress has been made in understanding the behavior of these thin films, which are subject to competing instabilities prior to actual rupture. This will be reviewed briefly. Recent work on the advance, or recession, of contact lines will also be described briefly, and significant questions that still remain to be answered will be discussed. 68 refs., 7 figs

ANNEALING OF POLYCRYSTALLINE THIN FILM SILICON SOLAR CELLS IN WATER VAPOUR AT SUB-ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Pikna

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Thin film polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si solar cells were annealed in water vapour at pressures below atmospheric pressure. PN junction of the sample was contacted by measuring probes directly in the pressure chamber filled with steam during passivation. Suns-VOC method and a Lock-in detector were used to monitor an effect of water vapour to VOC of the solar cell during whole passivation process (in-situ. Tested temperature of the sample (55°C – 110°C was constant during the procedure. Open-circuit voltage of a solar cell at these temperatures is lower than at room temperature. Nevertheless, voltage response of the solar cell to the light flash used during Suns-VOC measurements was good observable. Temperature dependences for multicrystalline wafer-based and polycrystalline thin film solar cells were measured and compared. While no significant improvement of thin film poly-Si solar cell parameters by annealing in water vapour at under-atmospheric pressures was observed up to now, in-situ observation proved required sensitivity to changing VOC at elevated temperatures during the process.

Structural and electrical transport properties of La2Mo2O9 thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Paul, T.; Ghosh, A.

2017-04-01

We have studied the structure and electrical properties of La2Mo2O9 thin films of different thicknesses prepared by the laser deposition technique at different substrate temperatures. The structural properties of the thin films have been investigated using XRD, XPS, AFM, TEM, SEM, and Raman spectroscopy. The electrical transport properties of the thin films have been investigated in wide temperature and frequency ranges. The cubic nature of the thin films has been confirmed from structural analysis. An enhancement of the oxygen ion conductivity of the films up to five orders of magnitude is obtained compared to that of the bulk La2Mo2O9, suggesting usefulness of the thin films as electrolytes in micro-solid oxide fuel cells. The enhanced dc ionic conductivity of the thin films has been interpreted using the rule of the mixture model, while a power law model has been used to investigate the frequency and temperature dependences of the conductivity. The analysis of the results predicts the three-dimensional oxygen ion conduction in the thin films.

Enhanced photocurrent in thin-film amorphous silicon solar cells via shape controlled three-dimensional nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hilali, Mohamed M; Banerjee, Sanjay; Sreenivasan, S V; Yang Shuqiang; Miller, Mike; Xu, Frank

2012-01-01

In this paper, we have explored manufacturable approaches to sub-wavelength controlled three-dimensional (3D) nano-patterns with the goal of significantly enhancing the photocurrent in amorphous silicon solar cells. Here we demonstrate efficiency enhancement of about 50% over typical flat a-Si thin-film solar cells, and report an enhancement of 20% in optical absorption over Asahi textured glass by fabricating sub-wavelength nano-patterned a-Si on glass substrates. External quantum efficiency showed superior results for the 3D nano-patterned thin-film solar cells due to enhancement of broadband optical absorption. The results further indicate that this enhanced light trapping is achieved with minimal parasitic absorption losses in the deposited transparent conductive oxide for the nano-patterned substrate thin-film amorphous silicon solar cell configuration. Optical simulations are in good agreement with experimental results, and also show a significant enhancement in optical absorption, quantum efficiency and photocurrent. (paper)

Improvements in CdTe- and CIGS-based thin-film solar cells and investigation on new materials for photovoltaic applications.

OpenAIRE

Rosa, Greta

2018-01-01

Currently, thin-film solar cells are one of the most promising technologies for low-cost renewable energy production. CdTe- and CuInGaSe2-based cells, which achieved record efficiencies of 22.1% and 22.6% respectively, are the most attractive among thin-film solar cells. These high efficiencies have had a huge influence in making them highly competitive in the photovoltaic market, with an estimated final cost per module lower than US $ 0.50 per peak-watt. At the Thin Film Laboratory of the...

Inverted organic solar cells with solvothermal synthesized vanadium-doped TiO2 thin films as efficient electron transport layer

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Mehdi Ahmadi; Sajjad Rashidi Dafeh; Samaneh Ghazanfarpour; Mohammad Khanzadeh

2017-01-01

We investigated the effects of using different thicknesses of pure and vanadium-doped thin films of TiO2 as the electron transport layer in the inverted configuration of organic photovoltaic cells based on poly (3-hexylthiophene) P3HT:[6-6] phenyl-(6) butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM).1％ vanadium-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized via the solvothermal method.Crystalline structure,morphology,and optical properties of pure and vanadium-doped TiO2 thin films were studied by different techniques such as x-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscopy,transmittance electron microscopy,and UV-visible transmission spectrum.The doctor blade method which is compatible with roll-2-roll printing was used for deposition of pure and vanadium-doped TiO2 thin films with thicknesses of 30 nm and 60 nm.The final results revealed that the best thickness of TiO2 thin films for our fabricated cells was 30 nm.The cell with vanadium-doped TiO2 thin film showed slightly higher power conversion efficiency and great Jsc of 10.7 mA/cm2 compared with its pure counterpart.In the cells using 60 nm pure and vanadium-doped TiO2 layers,the cell using the doped layer showed much higher efficiency.It is remarkable that the extemal quantum efficiency of vanadium-doped TiO2 thin film was better in all wavelengths.

Sputtering materials for VLSI and thin film devices

CERN Document Server

Sarkar, Jaydeep

2010-01-01

An important resource for students, engineers and researchers working in the area of thin film deposition using physical vapor deposition (e.g. sputtering) for semiconductor, liquid crystal displays, high density recording media and photovoltaic device (e.g. thin film solar cell) manufacturing. This book also reviews microelectronics industry topics such as history of inventions and technology trends, recent developments in sputtering technologies, manufacturing steps that require sputtering of thin films, the properties of thin films and the role of sputtering target performance on overall p

Remote plasma deposition of textured zinc oxide with focus on thin film solar cell applications : material properties, plasma processes and film growth

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groenen, R.

2005-01-01

Simultaneously possessing transparency in the visible region, close to that of insulators, and electrical conductivity, close to that of metals, transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films form a highly attractive class of materials for a wide variety of applications like thin film solar cells,

High power density thin film SOFCs with YSZ/GDC bilayer electrolyte

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Sungmee; Kim, YoungNam; Kim, Jung-Hyun; Manthiram, Arumugam; Wang Haiyan

2011-01-01

Graphical abstract: . A: Cross-sectional TEM images show a GDC single layer and YSZ/GDC bilayer electrolyte structures. As clearly observed from TEM images, the YSZ interlayer thickness varies from ∼330 nm to ∼1 μm. B: The cell with the bilayer electrolyte (YSZ ∼330 nm) doubles the overall power output at 750 deg. C compared to that achieved in the GDC single layer cell. Display Omitted Highlights: → YSZ/ GDC bilayer thin film electrolytes were deposited by a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. → Thin YSZ film as a blocking layer effectively suppresses the cell voltage drop without reducing the ionic conductivity of the electrolyte layer. → The YSZ/ GDC bilayer structure presents a feasible architecture for enhancing the overall power density and enabling chemical, mechanical, and structural stability in the cells. - Abstract: Bilayer electrolytes composed of a gadolinium-doped CeO 2 (GDC) layer (∼6 μm thickness) and an yttria-stabilized ZrO 2 (YSZ) layer with various thicknesses (∼330 nm, ∼440 nm, and ∼1 μm) were deposited by a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique for thin film solid oxide fuel cells (TFSOFCs). The bilayer electrolytes were prepared between a NiO-YSZ (60:40 wt.% with 7.5 wt.% carbon) anode and La 0.5 Sr 0.5 CoO 3 -Ce 0.9 Gd 0.1 O 1.95 (50:50 wt.%) composite cathode for anode-supported single cells. Significantly enhanced maximum power density was achieved, i.e., a maximum power density of 188, 430, and 587 mW cm -2 was measured in a bilayer electrolyte single cell with ∼330 nm thin YSZ at 650, 700, and 750 deg. C, respectively. The cell with the bilayer electrolyte (YSZ ∼330 nm) doubles the overall power output at 750 deg. C compared to that achieved in the GDC single layer cell. This signifies that the YSZ thin film serves as a blocking layer for preventing electrical current leakage in the GDC layer and also provides chemical, mechanical, and structural integrity in the cell, which leads to the overall enhanced

Effect of oxygen to argon flow ratio on the properties of Al-doped ZnO films for amorphous silicon thin film solar cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, Yang-Shih [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan, ROC (China); Lien, Shui-Yang, E-mail: syl@mdu.edu.tw [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MingDao University, ChangHua 52345, Taiwan, ROC (China); Huang, Yung-Chuan [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MingDao University, ChangHua 52345, Taiwan, ROC (China); Wang, Chao-Chun [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan, ROC (China); Liu, Chueh-Yang [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MingDao University, ChangHua 52345, Taiwan, ROC (China); Nautiyal, Asheesh [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yuan Ze University, 135 Yuan-Tung Road, Chungli, 320 Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC (China); Wuu, Dong-Sing [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan, ROC (China); Lee, Shuo-Jun [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yuan Ze University, 135 Yuan-Tung Road, Chungli, 320 Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC (China)

2013-02-01

Transparent conductive oxide thin films in solar cell fabrication have attracted much attention due to their high conductivity and transmittance. In this paper, we have investigated the aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin films prepared by radiofrequency magnetron sputtering on Asahi U-type SnO{sub 2} glass with different O{sub 2}/Ar flow ratios in vacuum chamber. Furthermore, the micro-structural, electrical, and optical properties of AZO/SnO{sub 2} films were studied. The change in O{sub 2}/Ar flow ratios is found to significantly affect the haze value, and slightly affect electrical resistivity and transmittance of the films. Afterward, the fabricated AZO thin films with different O{sub 2}/Ar flow ratios were used for building the solar cell devices. The current–voltage and external quantum efficiency characteristics were investigated for the solar cell devices. The optimized O{sub 2}/Ar flow ratio of 3 for solar device shows the best efficiency of 10.41%, and a 20% increase in short-circuit current density compared to typical Asahi solar cells. - Highlights: ► A thin Al-doped zinc oxide (AZO) film has been deposited on SnO{sub 2} substrates. ► The AZO film deposited at an O{sub 2}/Ar ratio of 3 shows low resistivity and high haze. ► The AZO film contains tiny grains that enhance light scattering. ► The amorphous silicon solar cell with the AZO layer shows a 20% increase in Jsc.

Experimental studies of thin films deposition by magnetron sputtering method for CIGS solar cell fabrication

Science.gov (United States)

Gułkowski, Sławomir; Krawczak, Ewelina

2017-10-01

Among a variety of the thin film solar cell technologies of second generation, copper-indium-gallium-diselenide device (CIGS) with the latest highest lab cell efficiency record of 22.4 % seems to be the most promising for the power generation. This is partly due to the advantages of using low cost films of few microns thick not only as a metallic contacts but also as a main structure of the solar cell consisted of high quality semiconductor layers. This paper reports the experimental studies of the CIGS absorber formation on Soda Lime Glass substrate covered by thin molybdenum film as a back contact layer. All structures were deposited with the use of magnetron sputtering method only. Technological parameters of the deposition process such as deposition power, pressure and deposition time were optimized for each layer of the structure. Mo back contact was examined in terms of resistivity. EDS measurements were carried out to verify stoichiometric composition of CIGS absorber. Thin film of Al was used as a top contact in order to examine the quality of p-n junction. The I-V electrical characteristic of the p-n junction was analysed in terms of solar cell application.

Application of plasma silicon nitride to crystalline thin-film silicon solar cells. Paper

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schmidt, J.; Oberbeck, L.; Rinke, T.J.; Berge, C.; Bergmann, R.B.

2002-07-01

We use plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition to deposit silicon nitride (SiN{sub x}) films at low temperature(400 C) onto the front surface of two different types of crystalline thin-film Si solar cells. The silicon nitride acts as an excellent antireflection coating on Si and provides a very high degree of electronic surface passivation over a wide range of compositions, including near-stoichiometric and Si-rich SiN{sub x}. Application of stoichiometric SiN{sub x} to non-textured thin-film cells, epitaxially grown at low temperature by ion-assisted deposition onto a monocrystalline Si substrate, results in an open-circuit voltage of 622 mV, a short-circuit current density of 26.6 mA/cm{sup 2} and an efficiency of 12.7%. It is shown that the SiN{sub x}-passivated in-situ grown n{sup +}-emitter of this cell type allows to reach open-circuit voltages of up to 667 mV. Silicon-rich SiN{sub x} is applied to the phosphorus-diffused n{sup +}-emitter of a textured thin-film cell on a glass superstrate fabricated by layer-transfer. The emitter saturation current density of these cells is only 40-64 fA/cm{sup 2}, which allows for open-circuit voltages of up to 699 mV. An impressively high open-circuit voltage of 638 mV and a short-circuit current density of 32.0 mA/cm{sup 2} are obtained for a 25 {mu}m thick SiN{sub x}-passivated, random pyramid-textured transfer cell. A transfer cell efficiency of 15.3% is independently confirmed.

Thin films of mixed metal compounds

Science.gov (United States)

Mickelsen, Reid A.; Chen, Wen S.

1985-01-01

A compositionally uniform thin film of a mixed metal compound is formed by simultaneously evaporating a first metal compound and a second metal compound from independent sources. The mean free path between the vapor particles is reduced by a gas and the mixed vapors are deposited uniformly. The invention finds particular utility in forming thin film heterojunction solar cells.

Temperature responsive functional polymeric thin films obtained by matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation for cells attachment–detachment study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rusen, L. [NILPRP, National Institute for Lasers, Plasma and Radiation Physics, 409 Atomistilor Street, PO Box MG-16, RO-077125 Magurele, Bucharest (Romania); Dinca, V., E-mail: dinali@nipne.ro [NILPRP, National Institute for Lasers, Plasma and Radiation Physics, 409 Atomistilor Street, PO Box MG-16, RO-077125 Magurele, Bucharest (Romania); Mitu, B. [NILPRP, National Institute for Lasers, Plasma and Radiation Physics, 409 Atomistilor Street, PO Box MG-16, RO-077125 Magurele, Bucharest (Romania); Mustaciosu, C. [Horia Hulubei National Institute of Physics and Nuclear Engineering, IFIN HH, Magurele, Bucharest (Romania); Dinescu, M. [NILPRP, National Institute for Lasers, Plasma and Radiation Physics, 409 Atomistilor Street, PO Box MG-16, RO-077125 Magurele, Bucharest (Romania)

2014-05-01

Multifunctional thin films used as thermoresponsive substrate for engineering cell sheets represent an important area in tissue engineering. As the morphology and the chemical characteristics of the thin films directly control their interaction with cells, it is important to correlate these characteristics with the biological answer. In this study, thermally sensitive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), (pNIPAAm) thin films were prepared by matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation and utilized in L929 cell adhesion and detachment studies. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to determine the pNIPAAm thin films chemical and morphological characteristics. The FTIR data demonstrated that the functional groups in the MAPLE-deposited films remained intact for fluences in the range of 200–600 mJ cm{sup −2}. Within this fluence range, the AFM topographical studies showed that the roughness of the coatings was dependent on laser fluence and the obtained surfaces were characterized by a granular aspect. L929 cell viability studies onto the pNIPAAm coatings showed little or no toxic effect for fluences below 600 mJ cm{sup −2}, while for higher fluences, viability was decreased with more than 50%. The adhesion and detachment of the cell was found to be mainly dependent on the film surface morphology.

Solution-processed In2S3 buffer layer for chalcopyrite thin film solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Lan; Lin, Xianzhong; Ennaoui, Ahmed; Wolf, Christian; Lux-Steiner, Martha Ch.; Klenk, Reiner

2016-02-01

We report a route to deposit In2S3 thin films from air-stable, low-cost molecular precursor inks for Cd-free buffer layers in chalcopyrite-based thin film solar cells. Different precursor compositions and processing conditions were studied to define a reproducible and robust process. By adjusting the ink properties, this method can be applied in different printing and coating techniques. Here we report on two techniques, namely spin-coating and inkjet printing. Active area efficiencies of 12.8% and 12.2% have been achieved for In2S3-buffered solar cells respectively, matching the performance of CdS-buffered cells prepared with the same batch of absorbers.

Polymorphous silicon thin films produced in dusty plasmas: application to solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roca i Cabarrocas, Pere; Chaabane, N; Kharchenko, A V; Tchakarov, S

2004-01-01

We summarize our current understanding of the optimization of PIN solar cells produced by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition from silane-hydrogen mixtures. To increase the deposition rate, the discharge is operated under plasma conditions close to powder formation, where silicon nanocrystals contribute to the deposition of so-called polymorphous silicon thin films. We show that the increase in deposition rate can be achieved via an accurate control of the plasma parameters. However, this also results in a highly defective interface in the solar cells due to the bombardment of the P-layer by positively charged nanocrystals during the deposition of the I-layer. We show that decreasing the ion energy by increasing the total pressure or by using silane-helium mixtures allows us to increase both the deposition rate and the solar cells efficiency, as required for cost effective thin film photovoltaics

Thermally evaporated thin films of SnS for application in solar cell devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miles, Robert W.; Ogah, Ogah E.; Zoppi, Guillaume; Forbes, Ian

2009-01-01

SnS (tin sulphide) is of interest for use as an absorber layer and the wider energy bandgap phases e.g. SnS 2 , Sn 2 S 3 and Sn/S/O alloys of interest as Cd-free buffer layers for use in thin film solar cells. In this work thin films of tin sulphide have been thermally evaporated onto glass and SnO 2 :coated glass substrates with the aim of optimising the properties of the material for use in photovoltaic solar cell device structures. In particular the effects of source temperature, substrate temperature, deposition rate and film thickness on the chemical and physical properties of the layers were investigated. Energy dispersive X-ray analysis was used to determine the film composition, X-ray diffraction to determine the phases present and structure of each phase, transmittance and reflectance versus wavelength measurements to determine the energy bandgap and scanning electron microscopy to observe the surface topology and topography and the properties correlated to the deposition parameters. Using the optimised conditions it is possible to produce thin films of tin sulphide that are pinhole free, conformal to the substrate and that consist of densely packed columnar grains. The composition, phases present and the optical properties of the layers deposited were found to be highly sensitive to the deposition conditions. Energy bandgaps in the range 1.55 eV-1.7 eV were obtained for a film thickness of 0.8 μm, and increasing the film thickness to > 1 μm resulted in a reduction of the energy bandgap to less than 1.55 eV. The applicability of using these films in photovoltaic solar cell device structures is also discussed.

Materials and Light Management for High-Efficiency Thin-Film Silicon Solar Cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tan, H.

2015-01-01

Direct conversion of sunlight into electricity is one of the most promising approaches to provide sufficient renewable energy for humankind. Solar cells are such devices which can efficiently generate electricity from sunlight through the photovoltaic effect. Thin-film silicon solar cells, a type of

MOCVD ZnO/Screen Printed Ag Back Reflector for Flexible Thin Film Silicon Solar Cell Application

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amornrat Limmanee

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We have prepared Ag back electrode by screen printing technique and developed MOCVD ZnO/screen printed Ag back reflector for flexible thin film silicon solar cell application. A discontinuity and poor contact interface between the MOCVD ZnO and screen printed Ag layers caused poor open circuit voltage (Voc and low fill factor (FF; however, an insertion of a thin sputtered ZnO layer at the interface could solve this problem. The n type hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H film is preferable for the deposition on the surface of MOCVD ZnO film rather than the microcrystalline film due to its less sensitivity to textured surface, and this allowed an improvement in the FF. The n-i-p flexible amorphous silicon solar cell using the MOCVD ZnO/screen printed Ag back reflector showed an initial efficiency of 6.2% with Voc=0.86 V, Jsc=12.4 mA/cm2, and FF = 0.58 (1 cm2. The identical quantum efficiency and comparable performance to the cells using conventional sputtered Ag back electrode have verified the potential of the MOCVD ZnO/screen printed Ag back reflector and possible opportunity to use the screen printed Ag thick film for flexible thin film silicon solar cells.

Investigation of water films on fuel rods in boiling water reactors using neutron tomography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lanthen, Jonas

2006-09-15

In a boiling water reactor, thin films of liquid water around the fuel rods play a very important role in cooling the fuel, and evaporation of the film can lead to fuel damage. If the thickness of the water film could be measured accurately the reactor operation could be both safer and more economical. In this thesis, the possibility to use neutron tomography, to study thin water films on fuel rods in an experimental nuclear fuel set-up, has been investigated. The main tool for this has been a computer simulation software. The simulations have shown that very thin water films, down to around 20 pm, can be seen on fuel rods in an experimental set-up using neutron tomography. The spatial resolution needed to obtain this result is around 300 pm. A suitable detector system for this kind of experiment would be plastic fiber scintillators combined with a CCD camera. As a neutron source it would be possible to use a D-D neutron generator, which generates neutrons with energies of 2.5 MeV. Using a neutron generator with a high enough neutron yield and a detector with high enough detection efficiency, a neutron tomography to measure thin water films should take no longer than 25 - 30 minutes.

Investigation of water films on fuel rods in boiling water reactors using neutron tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lanthen, Jonas

2006-09-01

In a boiling water reactor, thin films of liquid water around the fuel rods play a very important role in cooling the fuel, and evaporation of the film can lead to fuel damage. If the thickness of the water film could be measured accurately the reactor operation could be both safer and more economical. In this thesis, the possibility to use neutron tomography, to study thin water films on fuel rods in an experimental nuclear fuel set-up, has been investigated. The main tool for this has been a computer simulation software. The simulations have shown that very thin water films, down to around 20 pm, can be seen on fuel rods in an experimental set-up using neutron tomography. The spatial resolution needed to obtain this result is around 300 pm. A suitable detector system for this kind of experiment would be plastic fiber scintillators combined with a CCD camera. As a neutron source it would be possible to use a D-D neutron generator, which generates neutrons with energies of 2.5 MeV. Using a neutron generator with a high enough neutron yield and a detector with high enough detection efficiency, a neutron tomography to measure thin water films should take no longer than 25 - 30 minutes

First principles investigation of the activity of thin film Pt, Pd and Au surface alloys for oxygen reduction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tripkovic, Vladimir; Hansen, Heine Anton; Rossmeisl, Jan

2015-01-01

driving force for surface segregation, diffusion to defects or surface self-assembling. On the basis of stability and activity analysis we conclude that the near surface alloy of Pd in Pt and some PdAu binary and PtPdAu ternary thin films with a controlled amount of Au are the best catalysts for oxygen......Further advances in fuel cell technologies are hampered by kinetic limitations associated with the sluggish cathodic oxygen reduction reaction. We have investigated a range of different formulations of binary and ternary Pt, Pd and Au thin films as electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction. The most...... active binary thin films are near-surface alloys of Pt with subsurface Pd and certain PdAu and PtAu thin films with surface and/or subsurface Au. The most active ternary thin films are with pure metal Pt or Pd skins with some degree of Au in the surface and/or subsurface layer and the near-surface alloys...

Preparation of Zinc Oxide (ZnO) Thin Film as Transparent Conductive Oxide (TCO) from Zinc Complex Compound on Thin Film Solar Cells: A Study of O2 Effect on Annealing Process

Science.gov (United States)

Muslih, E. Y.; Kim, K. H.

2017-07-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film as a transparent conductive oxide (TCO) for thin film solar cell application was successfully prepared through two step preparations which consisted of deposition by spin coating at 2000 rpm for 10 second and followed by annealing at 500 °C for 2 hours under O2 and ambient atmosphere. Zinc acetate dehydrate was used as a precursor which dissolved in ethanol and acetone (1:1 mol) mixture in order to make a zinc complex compound. In this work, we reported the O2 effect, reaction mechanism, structure, morphology, optical and electrical properties. ZnO thin film in this work shows a single phase of wurtzite, with n-type semiconductor and has band gap, carrier concentration, mobility, and resistivity as 3.18 eV, 1.21 × 10-19cm3, 11 cm2/Vs, 2.35 × 10-3 Ωcm respectively which is suitable for TCO at thin film solar cell.

Multiscale Computational Fluid Dynamics: Methodology and Application to PECVD of Thin Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marquis Crose

2017-02-01

Full Text Available This work focuses on the development of a multiscale computational fluid dynamics (CFD simulation framework with application to plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition of thin film solar cells. A macroscopic, CFD model is proposed which is capable of accurately reproducing plasma chemistry and transport phenomena within a 2D axisymmetric reactor geometry. Additionally, the complex interactions that take place on the surface of a-Si:H thin films are coupled with the CFD simulation using a novel kinetic Monte Carlo scheme which describes the thin film growth, leading to a multiscale CFD model. Due to the significant computational challenges imposed by this multiscale CFD model, a parallel computation strategy is presented which allows for reduced processing time via the discretization of both the gas-phase mesh and microscopic thin film growth processes. Finally, the multiscale CFD model has been applied to the PECVD process at industrially relevant operating conditions revealing non-uniformities greater than 20% in the growth rate of amorphous silicon films across the radius of the wafer.

Transparent conducting oxide layers for thin film silicon solar cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rath, J.K.; Liu, Y.; de Jong, M.M.; de Wild, J.; Schuttauf, J.A.; Brinza, M.; Schropp, R.E.I.

2009-01-01

Texture etching of ZnO:1%Al layers using diluted HCl solution provides excellent TCOs with crater type surface features for the front contact of superstrate type of thin film silicon solar cells. The texture etched ZnO:Al definitely gives superior performance than Asahi SnO2:F TCO in case of

Ecofriendly and Nonvacuum Electrostatic Spray-Assisted Vapor Deposition of Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 Thin Film Solar Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Hossain, Md Anower; Wang, Mingqing; Choy, Kwang-Leong

2015-10-14

Chalcopyrite Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 (CIGSSe) thin films have been deposited by a novel, nonvacuum, and cost-effective electrostatic spray-assisted vapor deposition (ESAVD) method. The generation of a fine aerosol of precursor solution, and their controlled deposition onto a molybdenum substrate, results in adherent, dense, and uniform Cu(In,Ga)S2 (CIGS) films. This is an essential tool to keep the interfacial area of thin film solar cells to a minimum value for efficient charge separation as it helps to achieve the desired surface smoothness uniformity for subsequent cadmium sulfide and window layer deposition. This nonvacuum aerosol based approach for making the CIGSSe film uses environmentally benign precursor solution, and it is cheaper for producing solar cells than that of the vacuum-based thin film solar technology. An optimized CIGSSe thin film solar cell with a device configuration of molybdenum-coated soda-lime glass substrate/CIGSSe/CdS/i-ZnO/AZO shows the photovoltaic (j-V) characteristics of Voc=0.518 V, jsc=28.79 mA cm(-2), fill factor=64.02%, and a promising power conversion efficiency of η=9.55% under simulated AM 1.5 100 mW cm(-2) illuminations, without the use of an antireflection layer. This demonstrates the potential of ESAVD deposition as a promising alternative approach for making thin film CIGSSe solar cells at a lower cost.

Band alignment measurements at heterojunction interfaces in layered thin film solar cells & thermoelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Fang

2011-12-01

Public awareness of the increasing energy crisis and the related serious environmental concerns has led to a significantly growing demand for alternative clean and renewable energy resources. Thin film are widely applied in multiple renewable energy devices owing to the reduced amount of raw materials and increase flexibility of choosing from low-cost candidates, which translates directly into reduced capital cost. This is a key driving force to make renewable technology competitive in the energy market. This thesis is focused on the measurement of energy level alignments at interfaces of thin film structures for renewable energy applications. There are two primary foci: II -VI semiconductor ZnSe/ZnTe thin film solar cells and Bi2Te3/Sb2Te3 thin film structures for thermoelectric applications. In both cases, the electronic structure and energy band alignment at interfaces usually controls the carrier transport behavior and determines the quality of the device. High-resolution photoemission spectroscopy (lab-based XPS & synchrotron-based UPS) was used to investigate the chemical and electronic properties of epitaxial Bi2Te3 and Sb2Te3 thin films, in order to validate the anticipated band alignment at interfaces in Bi 2Te3/Sb2Te3 superlattices as one favoring electron-transmission. A simple, thorough two-step treatment of a chemical etching in dilute hydrochloric acid solution and a subsequent annealing at ˜150°C under ultra-high vacuum environment is established to remove the surface oxides completely. It is an essential step to ensure the measurements on electronic states are acquired on stoichimetric, oxide-free clean surface of Bi 2Te3 and Sb2Te3 films. The direct measurement of valence band offsets (VBO) at a real Sb 2Te3/Bi2Te3 interface is designed based on the Kraut model; a special stacking film structure is prepared intentionally: sufficiently thin Sb2Te3 film on top of Bi2Te 3 that photoelectrons from both of them are collected simultaneously. From a

Solution-processed In2S3 buffer layer for chalcopyrite thin film solar cells

OpenAIRE

Wang Lan; Lin Xianzhong; Ennaoui Ahmed; Wolf Christian; Lux-Steiner Martha Ch.; Klenk Reiner

2016-01-01

We report a route to deposit In2S3 thin films from air-stable, low-cost molecular precursor inks for Cd-free buffer layers in chalcopyrite-based thin film solar cells. Different precursor compositions and processing conditions were studied to define a reproducible and robust process. By adjusting the ink properties, this method can be applied in different printing and coating techniques. Here we report on two techniques, namely spin-coating ...

Silicon Thin-Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guy Beaucarne

2007-01-01

with plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD. In spite of the fundamental limitation of this material due to its disorder and metastability, the technology is now gaining industrial momentum thanks to the entry of equipment manufacturers with experience with large-area PECVD. Microcrystalline Si (also called nanocrystalline Si is a material with crystallites in the nanometer range in an amorphous matrix, and which contains less defects than amorphous silicon. Its lower bandgap makes it particularly appropriate as active material for the bottom cell in tandem and triple junction devices. The combination of an amorphous silicon top cell and a microcrystalline bottom cell has yielded promising results, but much work is needed to implement it on large-area and to limit light-induced degradation. Finally thin-film polysilicon solar cells, with grain size in the micrometer range, has recently emerged as an alternative photovoltaic technology. The layers have a grain size ranging from 1 μm to several tens of microns, and are formed at a temperature ranging from 600 to more than 1000∘C. Solid Phase Crystallization has yielded the best results so far but there has recently been fast progress with seed layer approaches, particularly those using the aluminum-induced crystallization technique.

Program for fundamental and applied research of fuel cells in VNIIEF

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anisin, A.V.; Borisseonock, V.A.; Novitskii, Y.Z.; Potyomckin, G.A.

1996-04-01

According to VNIIEF the integral part of development of fuel cell power plants is fundamental and applied research. This paper describes areas of research on molten carbonate fuel cells. Topics include the development of mathematical models for porous electrodes, thin film electrolytes, the possibility of solid nickel anodes, model of activation polarization of anode, electrolyte with high solubility of oxygen. Other areas include research on a stationary mode of stack operation, anticorrosion coatings, impedance diagnostic methods, ultrasound diagnostics, radiation treatments, an air aluminium cell, and alternative catalysts for low temperature fuel cells.

Solution-processed In2S3 buffer layer for chalcopyrite thin film solar cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Lan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We report a route to deposit In2S3 thin films from air-stable, low-cost molecular precursor inks for Cd-free buffer layers in chalcopyrite-based thin film solar cells. Different precursor compositions and processing conditions were studied to define a reproducible and robust process. By adjusting the ink properties, this method can be applied in different printing and coating techniques. Here we report on two techniques, namely spin-coating and inkjet printing. Active area efficiencies of 12.8% and 12.2% have been achieved for In2S3-buffered solar cells respectively, matching the performance of CdS-buffered cells prepared with the same batch of absorbers.

Optoelectronic properties of R-F magnetron sputtered Cadmium Tin Oxide (Cd2SnO4) thin films for CdS/CdTe thin film solar cell applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeyadheepan, K.; Thamilselvan, M.; Kim, Kyunghae; Yi, Junsin; Sanjeeviraja, C.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Characterization of “as-prepared” Cd 2 SnO 4 thin films ideal for thin film solar cells. • Lowest value of resistivity with high mobility attained for the as-prepared Cd 2 SnO 4 films. • Maximum transmittance of 93% in the visible range for the as-prepared films. • Effect of substrate temperature on the scattering mechanism of TCO. - Abstract: The influence of substrate temperature on the microstructural behavior, optical, electrical properties and on the scattering mechanism of charge carriers were studied for the as-prepared radio-frequency (R-F) magnetron sputtered Cadmium Tin Oxide (Cd 2 SnO 4 ) thin films. Films prepared at the substrate temperature of 300 °C were found to be polycrystalline in nature with preferential orientation along (3 1 1) plane. Well pronounced Moss–Burstein shift, in the transmittance spectra with dispersions in the optical band gap from 3.07 to 3.30 eV, was observed at substrate temperatures between 25 and 300 °C. Optical property of high visible transmittance was retained by the films. Analysis of the electrical properties on the prepared crystalline Cd 2 SnO 4 films showed a calculated resistivity of 10 −3 –10 −4 Ω cm, with n-type carrier density in the range of 10 19 –10 20 cm −3 and the charge carrier mobility in the range of 63–30 cm 2 /V s. The effects of structural, compositional and optical properties on the scattering mechanism of charge carrier are elaborated and reported to be an experimental evidence for the theoretical predictions. The results revealed the essential DC electrical conduction behavior, which is ideal for the fabrication of Cd 2 SnO 4 -based CdS/CdTe thin film solar cells

Optical and Electrical Properties of the Different Magnetron Sputter Power 300°C Deposited -ZnO Thin Films and Applications in p-i-n -Si:H Thin-Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fang-Hsing Wang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available A compound of ZnO with 3 wt% Ga2O3 (ZnO : Ga2O3 = 97 : 3 in wt%, GZO was sintered at C as a target. The GZO thin films were deposited on glass using a radio frequency magnetron sputtering system at C by changing the deposition power from 50 W to 150 W. The effects of deposition power on the crystallization size, lattice constant (c, resistivity, carrier concentration, carrier mobility, and optical transmission rate of the GZO thin films were studied. The blue shift in the transmission spectrum of the GZO thin films was found to change with the variations of the carrier concentration because of the Burstein-Moss shifting effect. The variations in the optical band gap ( value of the GZO thin films were evaluated from the plots of , revealing that the measured value decreased with increasing deposition power. As compared with the results deposited at room temperature by Gong et al., (2010 the C deposited GZO thin films had apparent blue shift in the transmission spectrum and larger value. For the deposited GZO thin films, both the carrier concentration and mobility linearly decreased and the resistivity linearly increased with increasing deposition power. The prepared GZO thin films were also used as transparent electrodes to fabricate the amorphous silicon thin-film solar cells, and their properties were also measured.

High-rate deposition of epitaxial layers for efficient low-temperature thin film epitaxial silicon solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oberbeck, L.; Schmidt, J.; Wagner, T.A.; Bergmann, R.B. [Stuttgart Univ. (Germany). Inst. of Physical Electronics

2001-07-01

Low-temperature deposition of Si for thin-film solar cells has previously been hampered by low deposition rates and low material quality, usually reflected by a low open-circuit voltage of these solar cells. In contrast, ion-assisted deposition produces Si films with a minority-carrier diffusion length of 40 {mu}m, obtained at a record deposition rate of 0.8 {mu}m/min and a deposition temperature of 650{sup o}C with a prebake at 810{sup o}C. A thin-film Si solar cell with a 20-{mu}m-thick epitaxial layer achieves an open-circuit voltage of 622 mV and a conversion efficiency of 12.7% without any light trapping structures and without high-temperature solar cell process steps. (author)

Energy efficiency of a photovoltaic cell based thin films CZTS by ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Energy efficiency of a photovoltaic cell based thin films CZTS by SCAPS. ... use of natural resources, the use of renewable energy including solar photovoltaic ... η for typical structures of ZnO / i- ZnO / CdS / CZTS and ITO / ZnO / CdS / CZTS.

Spectral conversion for thin film solar cells and luminescent solar concentrators

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sark, van W.G.J.H.M.; Wild, de J.; Krumer, Z.; Mello Donegá, de C.; Schropp, R.E.I.; Nozik, A.J.; Beard, M.C.; Conibeer, G.

2014-01-01

Full spectrum absorption combined with effective generation and collection of charge carriers is a prerequisite for attaining high efficiency solar cells. Two examples of spectral conversion are treated in this chapter, i.e., up-conversion and down-shifting. Up-conversion is applied to thin film

Experimental studies of thin films deposition by magnetron sputtering method for CIGS solar cell fabrication

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gułkowski Sławomir

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Among a variety of the thin film solar cell technologies of second generation, copper-indium-gallium-diselenide device (CIGS with the latest highest lab cell efficiency record of 22.4 % seems to be the most promising for the power generation. This is partly due to the advantages of using low cost films of few microns thick not only as a metallic contacts but also as a main structure of the solar cell consisted of high quality semiconductor layers. This paper reports the experimental studies of the CIGS absorber formation on Soda Lime Glass substrate covered by thin molybdenum film as a back contact layer. All structures were deposited with the use of magnetron sputtering method only. Technological parameters of the deposition process such as deposition power, pressure and deposition time were optimized for each layer of the structure. Mo back contact was examined in terms of resistivity. EDS measurements were carried out to verify stoichiometric composition of CIGS absorber. Thin film of Al was used as a top contact in order to examine the quality of p-n junction. The I-V electrical characteristic of the p-n junction was analysed in terms of solar cell application.

Preparation of Cu{sub 2}ZnSnS{sub 4} thin films by sulfurizing stacked precursor thin films via successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Su Zhenghua; Yan Chang; Sun Kaiwen; Han Zili [School of Metallurgical Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China); Liu Fangyang, E-mail: liufangyang@csu.edu.cn [School of Metallurgical Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China); Liu Jin [School of Metallurgical Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China); Lai Yanqing, E-mail: laiyanqingcsu@163.com [School of Metallurgical Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China); Li Jie; Liu Yexiang [School of Metallurgical Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083 (China)

2012-07-15

Earth-abundant Cu{sub 2}ZnSnS{sub 4} is a promising alternative photovoltaic material which has been examined as absorber layer of thin film solar cells. In this study, Cu{sub 2}ZnSnS{sub 4} (CZTS) thin films have been successfully fabricated by sulfurizing stacked precursor thin films via successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method. The prepared CZTS thin films have been characterized by X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive spectrometer, Raman spectroscopy, UV-vis spectroscopy, Hall effect measurements and photoelectrochemical tests. Results reveal that the thin films have kesterite structured Cu{sub 2}ZnSnS{sub 4} and the p-type conductivity with a carrier concentration in the order of 10{sup 18} cm{sup -3} and an optical band gap of 1.5 eV, which are suitable for applications in thin film solar cells.

Thin-film intermediate band chalcopyrite solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fuertes Marron, D.; Marti, A.; Luque, A.

2009-01-01

Chalcopyrite-based solar cells currently lead the efficiency tables of thin-film photovoltaic technologies. Further improvements are foreseen upon implementation of an intermediate band in the absorber layers. We present a theoretical analysis of the efficiency limit for this type of device as a function of factors such as the gap of the host, the relative position of the intermediate band with respect to the band edge and the level of light concentration used as illumination. We have also considered the impact of non-idealities on the performance of the device, particularly the effect of electronic losses related to non-radiative recombination

Alkali-templated surface nanopatterning of chalcogenide thin films: a novel approach toward solar cells with enhanced efficiency.

Science.gov (United States)

Reinhard, Patrick; Bissig, Benjamin; Pianezzi, Fabian; Hagendorfer, Harald; Sozzi, Giovanna; Menozzi, Roberto; Gretener, Christina; Nishiwaki, Shiro; Buecheler, Stephan; Tiwari, Ayodhya N

2015-05-13

Concepts of localized contacts and junctions through surface passivation layers are already advantageously applied in Si wafer-based photovoltaic technologies. For Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin film solar cells, such concepts are generally not applied, especially at the heterojunction, because of the lack of a simple method yielding features with the required size and distribution. Here, we show a novel, innovative surface nanopatterning approach to form homogeneously distributed nanostructures (<30 nm) on the faceted, rough surface of polycrystalline chalcogenide thin films. The method, based on selective dissolution of self-assembled and well-defined alkali condensates in water, opens up new research opportunities toward development of thin film solar cells with enhanced efficiency.

Modulated surface textures for enhanced scattering in thin-film silicon solar cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Isabella, O.; Battaglia, C.; Ballif, C.; Zeman, M.

2012-01-01

Nano-scale randomly textured front transparent oxides are superposed on micro-scale etched glass substrates to form modulated surface textures. The resulting enhanced light scattering is implemented in single and double junction thin-film silicon solar cells.

Circuit analysis method for thin-film solar cell modules

Science.gov (United States)

Burger, D. R.

1985-01-01

The design of a thin-film solar cell module is dependent on the probability of occurrence of pinhole shunt defects. Using known or assumed defect density data, dichotomous population statistics can be used to calculate the number of defects expected in a module. Probability theory is then used to assign the defective cells to individual strings in a selected series-parallel circuit design. Iterative numerical calculation is used to calcuate I-V curves using cell test values or assumed defective cell values as inputs. Good and shunted cell I-V curves are added to determine the module output power and I-V curve. Different levels of shunt resistance can be selected to model different defect levels.

Application of rapid thermal processing on SiNx thin film to solar cells

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Youjie LI; Peiqing LUO; Zhibin ZHOU; Rongqiang CUI; Jianhua HUANG; Jingxiao WANG

2008-01-01

Rapid thermal processing (RTP) of SiNx thin films from PECVD with low temperature was investigated. A special processing condition of this technique which could greatly increase the minority lifetime was found in the experiments. The processing mechanism and the application of the technique to silicon solar cells fabrication were dis-cussed. A main achievement is an increase of the minority lifetime in silicon wafer with SiNx thin film by about 200% after the RTP was reached. PC-1D simulation results exhibit an enhancement of the efficiency of the solar cell by 0.42% coming from the minority lifetime improvement. The same experiment was also conducted with P-diffusion silicon wafers, but the increment of minority lifetime is just about 55%. It could be expected to improve the solar cell efficiency if it would be used in silicon solar cells fabrication with the combination of laser firing contact technique.

High efficiency thin film solar cells grown by molecular beam epitaxy (HEFTY)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mason, N.B.; Barnham, K.W.J.; Ballard, I.M.; Zhang, J. [Imperial College, London (United Kingdom)

2006-05-04

The project sought to show the UK as a world leader in the field of thin film crystalline solar cells. A premise was that the cell design be suitable for large-scale manufacturing and provide a basis for industrial exploitation. The study demonstrated (1) that silicon films grown at temperatures suitable for deposition on glass by Gas Phase Molecular Beam Epitaxy gives better PV cells than does Ultra Low Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition; (2) a conversion energy of 15 per cent was achieved - the project target was 18 per cent and (3) one of the highest reported conversion efficiencies for a 15 micrometre silicon film was achieved. The study was carried out by BP Solar Limited under contract to the DTI.

Efficiency simulations of thin film chalcogenide photovoltaic cells for different indoor lighting conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Minnaert, B.; Veelaert, P.

2011-01-01

Photovoltaic (PV) energy is an efficient natural energy source for outdoor applications. However, for indoor applications, the efficiency of PV cells is much lower. Typically, the light intensity under artificial lighting conditions is less than 10 W/m 2 as compared to 100-1000 W/m 2 under outdoor conditions. Moreover, the spectrum is different from the outdoor solar spectrum. In this context, the question arises whether thin film chalcogenide photovoltaic cells are suitable for indoor use. This paper contributes to answering that question by comparing the power output of different thin film chalcogenide solar cells with the classical crystalline silicon cell as reference. The comparisons are done by efficiency simulation based on the quantum efficiencies of the solar cells and the light spectra of typical artificial light sources i.e. an LED lamp, a 'warm' and a 'cool' fluorescent tube and a common incandescent and halogen lamp, which are compared to the outdoor AM 1.5 spectrum as reference.

Electrochemical etching of molybdenum for shunt removal in thin film solar cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hovestad, A.; Bressers, P.M.M.C.; Meertens, R.M.; Frijters, C.H.; Voorthuijzen, W.P.

2015-01-01

High yield and reproducible production is a major challenge in up-scaling thin film Cu(In,Ga)Se2(CIGS) solar cells to large area roll-to-roll industrial manufacturing. Pinholes enabling Ohmic contact between the ZnO:Al front-contact and Mo back contact of the CIGS cell create electrical shunts that

Solid thin film materials for use in thin film charge-coupled devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lynch, S.J.

1983-01-01

Solid thin films deposited by vacuum deposition were evaluated to ascertain their effectiveness for use in the manufacturing of charge-coupled devices (CCDs). Optical and electrical characteristics of tellurium and Bi 2 Te 3 solid thin films were obtained in order to design and to simulate successfully the operation of thin film (TF) CCDs. In this article some of the material differences between single-crystal material and the island-structured thin film used in TFCCDs are discussed. The electrical parameters were obtained and tabulated, e.g. the mobility, conductivity, dielectric constants, permittivity, lifetime of holes and electrons in the thin films and drift diffusion constants. The optical parameters were also measured and analyzed. After the design was complete, experimental TFCCDs were manufactured and were successfully operated utilizing the aforementioned solid thin films. (Auth.)

Time Domain Characterization of Light Trapping States in Thin Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pfeiffer W.

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Spectral interferometry of the backscattered radiation reveals coherence lifetimes of about 150 fs for nanolocalized electromagnetic modes in textured layered nanostructures as they are commonly used in thin film photovoltaics to achieve high cell efficiencies.

Surface characterization and assessment of cell attachment capabilities of thin films fabricated by ion-beam irradiation of poly(L-lactic acid) substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tanaka, Toshiyuki, E-mail: tttanaka@riken.jp [RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198 (Japan); Tokyo University of Science, 1-3 Kagurazaka, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8601 (Japan); Suzuki, Yoshiaki [RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198 (Japan); Tsuchiya, Koji; Yajima, Hirofumi [Tokyo University of Science, 1-3 Kagurazaka, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8601 (Japan)

2013-01-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Thin films can be obtained by ion-beam irradiation of poly(L-lactic acid). Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Both surfaces of the thin film were carbonized by the irradiation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer No significant changes were noticed in the topographies of the two surfaces. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Fibroblasts attached firmly to the bottom as well as the top surface of the film. - Abstract: The ion-beam irradiation of substrates of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA), a biodegradable polymer, gave rise to exfoliatable thin films when the substrate was immersed in an aqueous solution. The thin films exhibited excellent cell affinity, and hence, can be useful in bioengineering applications. In this study, we characterized both surfaces of the thin films and evaluated their cell attachment capabilities. Each surface was analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and dynamic force microscopy (DFM). These analyses showed that carbonization took place at both surfaces. In addition, no significant changes were noticed in the topographies of the two surfaces. Finally, the cell attachment capabilities of the surfaces were determined by culturing mouse fibroblasts on them. The cells attached firmly to the bottom as well as the top surface of the film and were well spread out. These results could be attributed to the carbonization of the surfaces of the thin-film. Such thin films, fabricated by the irradiation of a biodegradable polymer, are expected to find wide application in areas such as tissue regeneration and cell transplantation.

Fabrication of organic-inorganic perovskite thin films for planar solar cells via pulsed laser deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liang, Yangang; Zhang, Xiaohang; Gong, Yunhui; Shin, Jongmoon; Wachsman, Eric D.; Takeuchi, Ichiro, E-mail: takeuchi@umd.edu [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20740 (United States); Yao, Yangyi; Hsu, Wei-Lun; Dagenais, Mario [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20740 (United States)

2016-01-15

We report on fabrication of organic-inorganic perovskite thin films using a hybrid method consisting of pulsed laser deposition (PLD) of lead iodide and spin-coating of methylammonium iodide. Smooth and highly crystalline CH{sub 3}NH{sub 3}PbI{sub 3} thin films have been fabricated on silicon and glass coated substrates with fluorine doped tin oxide using this PLD-based hybrid method. Planar perovskite solar cells with an inverted structure have been successfully fabricated using the perovskite films. Because of its versatility, the PLD-based hybrid fabrication method not only provides an easy and precise control of the thickness of the perovskite thin films, but also offers a straightforward platform for studying the potential feasibility in using other metal halides and organic salts for formation of the organic-inorganic perovskite structure.

Fabrication of organic-inorganic perovskite thin films for planar solar cells via pulsed laser deposition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yangang Liang

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We report on fabrication of organic-inorganic perovskite thin films using a hybrid method consisting of pulsed laser deposition (PLD of lead iodide and spin-coating of methylammonium iodide. Smooth and highly crystalline CH3NH3PbI3 thin films have been fabricated on silicon and glass coated substrates with fluorine doped tin oxide using this PLD-based hybrid method. Planar perovskite solar cells with an inverted structure have been successfully fabricated using the perovskite films. Because of its versatility, the PLD-based hybrid fabrication method not only provides an easy and precise control of the thickness of the perovskite thin films, but also offers a straightforward platform for studying the potential feasibility in using other metal halides and organic salts for formation of the organic-inorganic perovskite structure.

Light Trapping in Thin Film Silicon Solar Cells on Plastic Substrates

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jong, M.M.

2013-01-01

In the search for sustainable energy sources, solar energy can fulfil a large part of the growing demand. The biggest threshold for large-scale solar energy harvesting is the solar panel price. For drastic cost reductions, roll-to-roll fabrication of thin film silicon solar cells using plastic

High mobility transparent conducting oxides for thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Calnan, S.; Tiwari, A.N.

2010-01-01

A special class of transparent conducting oxides (TCO) with high mobility of > 65 cm 2 V -1 s -1 allows film resistivity in the low 10 -4 Ω cm range and a high transparency of > 80% over a wide spectrum, from 300 nm to beyond 1500 nm. This exceptional coincidence of desirable optical and electrical properties provides opportunities to improve the performance of opto-electronic devices and opens possibilities for new applications. Strategies to attain high mobility (HM) TCO materials as well as the current status of such materials based on indium and cadmium containing oxides are presented. Various concepts used to understand the underlying mechanisms for high mobility in HMTCO films are discussed. Examples of HMTCO layers used as transparent electrodes in thin film solar cells are used to illustrate possible improvements in solar cell performance. Finally, challenges and prospects for further development of HMTCO materials are discussed.

Graphene-Based Flexible Micrometer-Sized Microbial Fuel Cell

KAUST Repository

Mink, Justine E.

2013-10-23

Microbial fuel cells harvest electrical energy produced by bacteria during the natural decomposition of organic matter. We report a micrometer-sized microbial fuel cell that is able to generate nanowatt-scale power from microliters of liquids. The sustainable design is comprised of a graphene anode, an air cathode, and a polymer-based substrate platform for flexibility. The graphene layer was grown on a nickel thin film by using chemical vapor deposition at atmospheric pressure. Our demonstration provides a low-cost option to generate useful power for lab-on-chip applications and could be promising to rapidly screen and scale up microbial fuel cells for water purification without consuming excessive power (unlike other water treatment technologies).

Thin film processes II

CERN Document Server

Kern, Werner

1991-01-01

This sequel to the 1978 classic, Thin Film Processes, gives a clear, practical exposition of important thin film deposition and etching processes that have not yet been adequately reviewed. It discusses selected processes in tutorial overviews with implementation guide lines and an introduction to the literature. Though edited to stand alone, when taken together, Thin Film Processes II and its predecessor present a thorough grounding in modern thin film techniques.Key Features* Provides an all-new sequel to the 1978 classic, Thin Film Processes* Introduces new topics, and sever

Morphology dependent dye-sensitized solar cell properties of nanocrystalline zinc oxide thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sharma, S.K., E-mail: sanjeevlrs732000@yahoo.co.in [Department of Information and Communication, Cheju Halla College, Jeju City 690 708 (Korea, Republic of); Inamdar, A.I.; Im, Hyunsik [Department of Semiconductor Science, Dongguk University, Seoul 100 715 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, B.G. [Department of Information and Communication, Cheju Halla College, Jeju City 690 708 (Korea, Republic of); Patil, P.S. [Thin Film Materials Laboratory, Department of Physics, Shivaji University, Kolhapur 416 004 (India)

2011-02-03

Research highlights: > Nano-crystalline zinc oxide thin films were electrosynthesized from an aqueous zinc acetate [Zn(CH{sub 3}COO){sub 2}.2H{sub 2}O] solution onto FTO coated conducting glass substrates using two different electrochemical routes, namely (i) without an organic surfactant and (ii) with an organic surfactant, viz. PVA (poly-vinyl alcohol) or SDS (sodium dodecyl sulfate). > The reproducibility of the catalytic activity of the SDS and PVA surfactants in the modification of the morphologies was observed. > Vertically aligned nest-like and compact structures were observed from the SDS and PVA mediated films, respectively, while the grain size in the ZnO thin films without an organic surfactant was observed to be {approx}150 nm. > The dye sensitized ZnO electrodes displayed excellent properties in the conversion process from light to electricity. The efficiencies of the surfactant mediated nanocrystalline ZnO thin films, viz. ZnO:SDS and ZnO:PVA, sensitized with ruthenium-II (N3) dye were observed to be 0.49% and 0.27%, respectively. - Abstract: Nano-crystalline zinc oxide thin films were electrosynthesized with an aqueous zinc acetate [Zn(CH{sub 3}COO){sub 2}.2H{sub 2}O] solution on to FTO coated glass substrates. Two different electrochemical baths were used, namely (i) without an organic surfactant and (ii) with an organic surfactant, viz. PVA (poly-vinyl alcohol) and SDS (sodium dodecyl sulfate). The organic surfactants played an important role in modifying the surface morphology, which influenced the size of the crystallites and dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) properties. The vertically aligned thin and compact hexagonal crystallites were observed with SDS mediated films, while the grain size in the films without an organic surfactant was observed to be {approx}150 nm. The conversion efficiencies of the ZnO:SDS:Dye and ZnO:PVA:Dye thin films were observed to be 0.49% and 0.27%, respectively.

Generation of electrical defects in ion beam assisted deposition of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zachmann, H.; Puttnins, S.; Daume, F.; Rahm, A.; Otte, K.

2011-01-01

Thin films of Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 (CIGS) absorber layers for thin film solar cells have been manufactured on polyimide foil in a low temperature, ion beam assisted co-evaporation process. In the present work a set of CIGS thin films was produced with varying selenium ion energy. Solar cell devices have been manufactured from the films and characterized via admittance spectroscopy and capacitance-voltage profiling to determine the influence of the selenium ion energy on the electric parameters of the solar cells. It is shown that the impact of energetic selenium ions in the CIGS deposition process leads to a change in the activation energy and defect density and also in the spatial distribution of electrically active defects. For the interpretation of the results two defect models are taken into account.

Performance evaluation of solid oxide fuel cells with thin film electrolyte fabricated by binder-assisted slurry casting

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guo, W.M.; Liu, X.M.; Li, L.J. [Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Guangxi University of Technology, Liuzhou 545006 (China); Xiao, Y.F. [Department of Stomatology, Liuzhou Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Liuzhou 545001 (China); Chen, Y. [School of Yingdong Life Science, Shaoguan University, Shaoguan 512005 (China)

2011-10-15

A gas-tight yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) electrolyte film was fabricated on porous NiO-YSZ anode substrates by a binder-assisted slurry casting technique. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) results showed that the YSZ film was relatively dense with a thickness of 10 {mu}m. La{sub 0.8}Sr{sub 0.2}MnO{sub 3} (LSM)-YSZ was applied to cathode using a screen-print technique and the single fuel cells were tested in a temperature range from 600 to 800 C. An open circuit voltage (OCV) of over 1.0 V was observed. The maximum power densities at 600, 700, and 800 C were 0.13, 0.44, and 1.1 W cm{sup -2}, respectively. (Copyright copyright 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Influence of nanocrystalline structure and surface properties of TiO2 thin films on the viability of L929 cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Osękowska Małgorzata

2015-09-01

Full Text Available In this work the physicochemical and biological properties of nanocrystalline TiO2 thin films were investigated. Thin films were prepared by magnetron sputtering method. Their properties were examined by X-ray diffraction, photoelectron spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, optical transmission method and optical profiler. Moreover, surface wettability and scratch resistance were determined. It was found that as-deposited coatings were nanocrystalline and had TiO2-anatase structure, built from crystallites in size of 24 nm. The surface of the films was homogenous, composed of closely packed grains and hydrophilic. Due to nanocrystalline structure thin films exhibited good scratch resistance. The results were correlated to the biological activity (in vitro of thin films. Morphological changes of mouse fibroblasts (L929 cell line after contact with the surface of TiO2 films were evaluated with the use of a contrast-phase microscope, while their viability was tested by MTT colorimetric assay. The viability of cell line upon contact with the surface of nanocrystalline TiO2 film was comparable to the control sample. L929 cells had homogenous cytoplasm and were forming a confluent monofilm, while lysis and inhibition of cell growth was not observed. Moreover, the viability in contact with surface of examined films was high. This confirms non-cytotoxic effect of TiO2 film surface on mouse fibroblasts.

Pt-based Thin Films as Efficient and Stable Catalysts for Oxygen Electroreduction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zamburlini, Eleonora

at the cathode of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs). Herein the fabrication method, which consists of co-sputtering of thin films, is presented in detail, explaining the challenges one must face in order to fabricate oxygen-free Pt-lanthanides and Pt-early transition metals alloys......This thesis presents the fabrication and characterization of Pt-based thin film catalysts for Oxygen Reduction Reaction (ORR). Gadolinium and Yttrium have been used as alloying materials, in preparation for the replacement of the traditional but economically disadvantageous pure Pt catalysts......, and the proposed solutions. The characterization of the catalysts focused mainly on the electrochemical testing using a Rotating Ring Disk Electrode (RRDE) setup, and includes X-ray Diffraction (XRD), X-ray Photoemission Spectroscopy (XPS), Angle-Resolved X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (AR-XPS), Scanning...

Plasmonic Light Trapping in Thin-Film Solar Cells: Impact of Modeling on Performance Prediction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto Micco

2015-06-01

Full Text Available We present a comparative study on numerical models used to predict the absorption enhancement in thin-film solar cells due to the presence of structured back-reflectors exciting, at specific wavelengths, hybrid plasmonic-photonic resonances. To evaluate the effectiveness of the analyzed models, they have been applied in a case study: starting from a U-shaped textured glass thin-film, µc-Si:H solar cells have been successfully fabricated. The fabricated cells, with different intrinsic layer thicknesses, have been morphologically, optically and electrically characterized. The experimental results have been successively compared with the numerical predictions. We have found that, in contrast to basic models based on the underlying schematics of the cell, numerical models taking into account the real morphology of the fabricated device, are able to effectively predict the cells performances in terms of both optical absorption and short-circuit current values.

Laser deposition of SmCo thin film and coating on different substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allocca, L; Bonavolonta, C; Valentino, M; Giardini, A; Lopizzo, T; Morone, A; Verrastro, M F; Viggiano, V

2008-01-01

Thin films and coatings of permanent magnetic materials are very important for different electronic and micromechanical applications. This paper deals with the fabrication, using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique, of good quality magnetic SmCo thin films on polycarbonate, steel, silicon and amorphous quartz substrates, for low cost electronic applications like radio frequency identification (RFID) antennas and electromechanical devices for fuel feeding control in the automotive. X-ray fluorescence and magnetic scanning measurements using giant magneto-resistive (GMR) sensors have been performed to study the functional magnetic properties of the deposited thin films.

Optimized grid design for thin film solar panels

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Deelen, J. van; Klerk, L.; Barink, M.

2014-01-01

There is a gap in efficiency between record thin film cells and mass produced thin film solar panels. In this paper we quantify the effect of monolithic integration on power output for various configurations by modeling and present metallization as a way to improve efficiency of solar panels. Grid

Combustion synthesized indium-tin-oxide (ITO) thin film for source/drain electrodes in all solution-processed oxide thin-film transistors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tue, Phan Trong; Inoue, Satoshi; Takamura, Yuzuru; Shimoda, Tatsuya

2016-01-01

We report combustion solution synthesized (SCS) indium-tin-oxide (ITO) thin film, which is a well-known transparent conductive oxide, for source/drain (S/D) electrodes in solution-processed amorphous zirconium-indium-zinc-oxide TFT. A redox-based combustion synthetic approach is applied to ITO thin film using acetylacetone as a fuel and metal nitrate as oxidizer. The structural and electrical properties of SCS-ITO precursor solution and thin films were systematically investigated with changes in tin concentration, indium metal precursors, and annealing conditions such as temperature, time, and ambient. It was found that at optimal conditions the SCS-ITO thin film exhibited high crystalline quality, atomically smooth surface (RMS ∝ 4.1 Aa), and low electrical resistivity (4.2 x 10 -4 Ω cm). The TFT using SCS-ITO film as the S/D electrodes showed excellent electrical properties with negligible hysteresis. The obtained ''on/off'' current ratio, subthreshold swing factor, subthreshold voltage, and field-effect mobility were 5 x 10 7 , 0.43 V/decade, 0.7 V, and 2.1 cm 2 /V s, respectively. The performance and stability of the SCS-ITO TFT are comparable to those of the sputtered-ITO TFT, emphasizing that the SCS-ITO film is a promising candidate for totally solution-processed oxide TFTs. (orig.)

Synthesis and characterization of Zn(O,OH)S and AgInS2 layers to be used in thin film solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Vallejo, W.; Arredondo, C. A.; Gordillo, G.

2010-11-01

In this paper AgInS2 and Zn(O,OH)S thin films were synthesized and characterized. AgInS2 layers were grown by co-evaporation from metal precursors in a two-step process, and, Zn(O,OH)S thin films were deposited from chemical bath containing thiourea, zinc acetate, sodium citrate and ammonia. X-ray diffraction measurements indicated that AgInS2 thin films grown with chalcopyrite structure, and the as-grown Zn(O,OH)S thin films were polycrystalline. It was also found that the AgInS2 films presented p-type conductivity, a high absorption coefficient (greater than 104 cm-1) and energy band-gap Eg of about 1.95 eV, Zn(O,OH),S thin films presented Eg of about 3.89 eV. Morphological analysis showed that under this synthesis conditions Zn(O,OH),S thin films coated uniformly the absorber layer. Additionally, the Zn(O,OH)S kinetic growth on AgInS2 layer was studied also. Finally, the results suggest that these layers possibly could be used in one-junction solar cells and/or as top cell in a tandem solar cell.

Light trapping with plasmonic back contacts in thin-film silicon solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paetzold, Ulrich Wilhelm

2013-02-08

Trapping light in silicon solar cells is essential as it allows an increase in the absorption of incident sunlight in optically thin silicon absorber layers. This way, the costs of the solar cells can be reduced by lowering the material consumption and decreasing the physical constraints on the material quality. In this work, plasmonic light trapping with Ag back contacts in thin-film silicon solar cells is studied. Solar cell prototypes with plasmonic back contacts are presented along with optical simulations of these devices and general design considerations of plasmonic back contacts. Based on three-dimensional electromagnetic simulations, the conceptual design of plasmonic nanostructures on Ag back contacts in thin-film silicon solar cells is studied in this work. Optimizations of the nanostructures regarding their ability to scatter incident light at low optical losses into large angles in the silicon absorber layers of the thin-film silicon solar cells are presented. Geometrical parameters as well as the embedding dielectric layer stack of the nanostructures on Ag layers are varied. Periodic as well as isolated hemispherical Ag nanostructures of dimensions above 200 nm are found to scatter incident light at high efficiencies and low optical losses. Hence, these nanostructures are of interest for light trapping in solar cells. In contrast, small Ag nanostructures of dimension below 100 nm are found to induce optical losses. At the surface of randomly textured Ag back contacts small Ag nanostructures exist which induce optical losses. In this work, the relevance of these localized plasmon induced optical losses as well as optical losses caused by propagating plasmons are investigated with regard to the reflectance of the textured back contacts. In state-of-the-art solar cells, the plasmon-induced optical losses are shifted out of the relevant wavelength range by incorporating a ZnO:Al interlayer of low refractive index at the back contact. The additional but

Characterization of Lateral Structure of the p-i-n Diode for Thin-Film Silicon Solar Cell.

Science.gov (United States)

Kiaee, Zohreh; Joo, Seung Ki

2018-03-01

The lateral structure of the p-i-n diode was characterized for thin-film silicon solar cell application. The structure can benefit from a wide intrinsic layer, which can improve efficiency without increasing cell thickness. Compared with conventional thin-film p-i-n cells, the p-i-n diode lateral structure exploited direct light irradiation on the absorber layer, one-side contact, and bifacial irradiation. Considering the effect of different carrier lifetimes and recombinations, we calculated efficiency parameters by using a commercially available simulation program as a function of intrinsic layer width, as well as the distance between p/i or n/i junctions to contacts. We then obtained excellent parameter values of 706.52 mV open-circuit voltage, 24.16 mA/Cm2 short-circuit current, 82.66% fill factor, and 14.11% efficiency from a lateral cell (thickness = 3 μm; intrinsic layer width = 53 μm) in monofacial irradiation mode (i.e., only sunlight from the front side was considered). Simulation results of the cell without using rear-side reflector in bifacial irradiation mode showed 11.26% front and 9.72% rear efficiencies. Our findings confirmed that the laterally structured p-i-n cell can be a potentially powerful means for producing highly efficient, thin-film silicon solar cells.

Band gap grading and photovoltaic performance of solution-processed Cu(In,Ga)S2 thin-film solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Sohn, So Hyeong; Han, Noh Soo; Park, Yong Jin; Park, Seung Min; An, Hee Sang; Kim, Dong-Wook; Min, Byoung Koun; Song, Jae Kyu

2014-12-28

The photophysical properties of CuInxGa1-xS2 (CIGS) thin films, prepared by solution-based coating methods, are investigated to understand the correlation between the optical properties of these films and the electrical characteristics of solar cells fabricated using these films. Photophysical properties, such as the depth-dependent band gap and carrier lifetime, turn out to be at play in determining the energy conversion efficiency of solar cells. A double grading of the band gap in CIGS films enhances solar cell efficiency, even when defect states disturb carrier collection by non-radiative decay. The combinational stacking of different density films leads to improved solar cell performance as well as efficient fabrication because a graded band gap and reduced shunt current increase carrier collection efficiency. The photodynamics of minority-carriers suggests that the suppression of defect states is a primary area of improvement in CIGS thin films prepared by solution-based methods.

Magnetic hysteresis measurements of thin films under isotropic stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Holland, Patrick; Dubey, Archana; Geerts, Wilhelmus

2000-10-01

Nowadays, ferromagnetic thin films are widely applied in devices for information technology (credit cards, video recorder tapes, floppies, hard disks) and sensors (air bags, anti-breaking systems, navigation systems). Thus, with the increase in the use of magnetic media continued investigation of magnetic properties of materials is necessary to help in determining the useful properties of materials for new or improved applications. We are currently interested in studying the effect of applied external stress on Kerr hysteresis curves of thin magnetic films. The Ni and NiFe films were grown using DC magnetron sputtering with Ar as the sputter gas (pAr=4 mTorr; Tsub=55-190 C). Seed and cap layers of Ti were used on all films for adhesion and oxidation protection, respectively. A brass membrane pressure cell was designed to apply in-plane isotropic stress to thin films. In this pressure cell, gas pressure is used to deform a flexible substrate onto which a thin magnetic film has been sputtered. The curvature of the samples could be controlled by changing the gas pressure to the cell. Magneto-Optical in-plane hysteresis curves at different values of strain were measured. The results obtained show that the stress sensitivity is dependent on the film thickness. For the 500nm NiFe films, the coercivity strongly decreased as a function of the applied stress.

Pyrolyzed thin film carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Tai, Yu-Chong (Inventor); Liger, Matthieu (Inventor); Harder, Theodore (Inventor); Konishi, Satoshi (Inventor); Miserendino, Scott (Inventor)

2010-01-01

A method of making carbon thin films comprises depositing a catalyst on a substrate, depositing a hydrocarbon in contact with the catalyst and pyrolyzing the hydrocarbon. A method of controlling a carbon thin film density comprises etching a cavity into a substrate, depositing a hydrocarbon into the cavity, and pyrolyzing the hydrocarbon while in the cavity to form a carbon thin film. Controlling a carbon thin film density is achieved by changing the volume of the cavity. Methods of making carbon containing patterned structures are also provided. Carbon thin films and carbon containing patterned structures can be used in NEMS, MEMS, liquid chromatography, and sensor devices.

Thin film microelectrodes for electrochemical detection of neurotransmitters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Simon Tylsgaard

An important signaling process in the nervous system is the release of chemical messengers called neurotransmitters from neurons. In this thesis alternative thin film electrode materials for applications targeting electrochemical detection of neurotransmitters in chip devices were evaluated...... and conductive polymer microelectrodes made of Pedot:Pss were also fabricated and used successfully to measure transmitter release from cells. The use of different thin film electrodes for low-noise amperometric measurements of single events of transmitter release from neuronal cells was studied....... For this application a very low current noise is needed together with a large temporal resolution. It was shown, that resistive and capacitive properties of thin film electrode materials are determining their usefulness in low-noise amperometric measurements. An analytical expression for the noise was derived...

thin films

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

microscopy (SEM) studies, respectively. The Fourier transform ... Thin films; chemical synthesis; hydrous tin oxide; FTIR; electrical properties. 1. Introduction ... dehydrogenation of organic compounds (Hattori et al 1987). .... SEM images of (a) bare stainless steel and (b) SnO2:H2O thin film on stainless steel substrate at a ...

Spatial control of cell attachment, proliferation, and differentiation using ion-beam induced thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanaka, Toshiyuki; Suzuki, Yoshiaki

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Cellular films can be obtained ion-beam irradiation and cell culture. • Film shapes were controlled by patterned irradiation. • Cellular films were firmly attached each other. • Tubular constructions were fabricated by wide-patterned irradiation. • Nerve growth direction was controlled by varying the pattern widths. - Abstract: In this study, cellular films were fabricated by ion-beam irradiation into poly-L-lactic acid sheets and cell culture. The cellular film shapes can be controlled by pattern masks. We performed spatial cell patterning using three types of cells: fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and nerve-like cells. First, multi-layered cellular construct was fabricated by stacking fibroblast cellular films. When three cellular films were stacked and incubated, these films firmly attached to each other. Second, tubular constructs were fabricated by endothelial cell culture on linearly patterned surfaces with wide widths of 80, 120, 160, and 200 μm. The patterned cellular films were rounded into vessel-like structure. The diameters of the constructs depend upon the pattern widths. Finally, we controlled cell attachment and nerve growth of nerve-like cells by using linearly patterned surfaces with narrow widths of 10, 30, and 50 μm. Nerve growth direction was controlled by varying the pattern widths. In the case of 10 μm, the attached cells and nerve growth were straight on the patterned thin films. These cell patterning techniques are expected to have applications in tissue engineering, cell transplantation, and in vitro tissue modeling

Laser process for extended silicon thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hessmann, M.T.; Kunz, T.; Burkert, I.; Gawehns, N.; Schaefer, L.; Frick, T.; Schmidt, M.; Meidel, B.; Auer, R.; Brabec, C.J.

2011-01-01

We present a large area thin film base substrate for the epitaxy of crystalline silicon. The concept of epitaxial growth of silicon on large area thin film substrates overcomes the area restrictions of an ingot based monocrystalline silicon process. Further it opens the possibility for a roll to roll process for crystalline silicon production. This concept suggests a technical pathway to overcome the limitations of silicon ingot production in terms of costs, throughput and completely prevents any sawing losses. The core idea behind these thin film substrates is a laser welding process of individual, thin silicon wafers. In this manuscript we investigate the properties of laser welded monocrystalline silicon foils (100) by micro-Raman mapping and spectroscopy. It is shown that the laser beam changes the crystalline structure of float zone grown silicon along the welding seam. This is illustrated by Raman mapping which visualizes compressive stress as well as tensile stress in a range of - 147.5 to 32.5 MPa along the welding area.

Nanostructured thin films as functional coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lazar, Manoj A; Tadvani, Jalil K; Tung, Wing Sze; Lopez, Lorena; Daoud, Walid A, E-mail: Walid.Daoud@sci.monash.edu.au [School of Applied Sciences and Engineering, Monash University, Churchill, VIC 3842 (Australia)

2010-06-15

Nanostructured thin films is one of the highly exploiting research areas particularly in applications such as photovoltaics, photocatalysis and sensor technologies. Highly tuned thin films, in terms of thickness, crystallinity, porosity and optical properties, can be fabricated on different substrates using the sol-gel method, chemical solution deposition (CSD), electrochemical etching, along with other conventional methods such as chemical vapour deposition (CVD) and physical vapour deposition (PVD). The above mentioned properties of these films are usually characterised using surface analysis techniques such as XRD, SEM, TEM, AFM, ellipsometry, electrochemistry, SAXS, reflectance spectroscopy, STM, XPS, SIMS, ESCA, X-ray topography and DOSY-NMR. This article presents a short review of the preparation and characterisation of thin films of nanocrystalline titanium dioxide and modified silicon as well as their application in solar cells, water treatment, water splitting, self cleaning fabrics, sensors, optoelectronic devices and lab on chip systems.

Carbon monoxide tolerant anodes for proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. 1. Catalyst development approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Holleck, G L; Pasquariello, D M; Clauson, S L

1998-07-01

PEM fuel cells are highly attractive for distributed power and cogeneration systems. They are efficient and function virtually without noise or pollution. To be competitive PEM fuel cells must operate on fuel mixtures obtained by reforming of widely available natural gas or liquid hydrocarbons. Reformed fuel gas mixtures invariably contain CO, a strong poison for Pt. Therefore CO tolerant anode catalysts are essential for wide spread PEMFC introduction. It is the objective to develop effective CO tolerant fuel cell catalysts based on multi-component platinum-transition metal alloys. Towards this goal the authors have developed a novel approach for the synthesis and performance evaluation of multifunctional ternary alloy fuel cell catalysts. The alloys are prepared as well-defined thin films on standard TFE-bonded carbon substrates via a dc magnetron sputtering technique. The anodes are laminated to Nafion membranes and the electrochemical performance is measured in a representative fuel cell configuration with H{sub 2} and H{sub 2}/CO gas mixtures. The multi-target sputtering technique permits one to reproducibly synthesize true alloy films of controlled composition. The deposit morphology and electrode structure are determined by the standardized TFE bonded carbon substrate. The thin catalyst layer is concentrated at the electrode ionomer interface where it can be fully utilized in a representative fuel cell configuration. Thus, a true comparative fuel cell catalyst evaluation is possible. The effectiveness of this approach will be demonstrated with Pt, Pt-Ru and Pt-Ru-X catalyzed anodes.

Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells with Thin Silicon Passivation Film Deposited prior to Phosphorous Diffusion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ching-Tao Li

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We demonstrate the performance improvement of p-type single-crystalline silicon (sc-Si solar cells resulting from front surface passivation by a thin amorphous silicon (a-Si film deposited prior to phosphorus diffusion. The conversion efficiency was improved for the sample with an a-Si film of ~5 nm thickness deposited on the front surface prior to high-temperature phosphorus diffusion, with respect to the samples with an a-Si film deposited on the front surface after phosphorus diffusion. The improvement in conversion efficiency is 0.4% absolute with respect to a-Si film passivated cells, that is, the cells with an a-Si film deposited on the front surface after phosphorus diffusion. The new technique provided a 0.5% improvement in conversion efficiency compared to the cells without a-Si passivation. Such performance improvements result from reduced surface recombination as well as lowered contact resistance, the latter of which induces a high fill factor of the solar cell.

Carrier collection losses in interface passivated amorphous silicon thin-film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Neumüller, A.; Sergeev, O.; Vehse, M.; Agert, C.; Bereznev, S.; Volobujeva, O.; Ewert, M.; Falta, J.

2016-01-01

In silicon thin-film solar cells the interface between the i- and p-layer is the most critical. In the case of back diffusion of photogenerated minority carriers to the i/p-interface, recombination occurs mainly on the defect states at the interface. To suppress this effect and to reduce recombination losses, hydrogen plasma treatment (HPT) is usually applied. As an alternative to using state of the art HPT we apply an argon plasma treatment (APT) before the p-layer deposition in n-i-p solar cells. To study the effect of APT, several investigations were applied to compare the results with HPT and no plasma treatment at the interface. Carrier collection losses in resulting solar cells were examined with spectral response measurements with and without bias voltage. To investigate single layers, surface photovoltage and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements were conducted. The results with APT at the i/p-interface show a beneficial contribution to the carrier collection compared with HPT and no plasma treatment. Therefore, it can be concluded that APT reduces the recombination centers at the interface. Further, we demonstrate that carrier collection losses of thin-film solar cells are significantly lower with APT.

Carrier collection losses in interface passivated amorphous silicon thin-film solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Neumüller, A., E-mail: alex.neumueller@next-energy.de; Sergeev, O.; Vehse, M.; Agert, C. [NEXT ENERGY EWE Research Centre for Energy Technology at the University of Oldenburg, Carl-von-Ossietzky-Straße 15, 26129 Oldenburg (Germany); Bereznev, S.; Volobujeva, O. [Department of Materials Science, Tallinn University of Technology, Ehitajate Tee 5, Tallinn 19086 (Estonia); Ewert, M.; Falta, J. [Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Bremen, Otto-Hahn-Allee 1, 28359 Bremen (Germany); MAPEX Center for Materials and Processes, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen (Germany)

2016-07-25

In silicon thin-film solar cells the interface between the i- and p-layer is the most critical. In the case of back diffusion of photogenerated minority carriers to the i/p-interface, recombination occurs mainly on the defect states at the interface. To suppress this effect and to reduce recombination losses, hydrogen plasma treatment (HPT) is usually applied. As an alternative to using state of the art HPT we apply an argon plasma treatment (APT) before the p-layer deposition in n-i-p solar cells. To study the effect of APT, several investigations were applied to compare the results with HPT and no plasma treatment at the interface. Carrier collection losses in resulting solar cells were examined with spectral response measurements with and without bias voltage. To investigate single layers, surface photovoltage and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements were conducted. The results with APT at the i/p-interface show a beneficial contribution to the carrier collection compared with HPT and no plasma treatment. Therefore, it can be concluded that APT reduces the recombination centers at the interface. Further, we demonstrate that carrier collection losses of thin-film solar cells are significantly lower with APT.

Thin film silicon photovoltaics: Architectural perspectives and technological issues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mercaldo, Lucia Vittoria; Addonizio, Maria Luisa; Noce, Marco Della; Veneri, Paola Delli; Scognamiglio, Alessandra; Privato, Carlo [ENEA, Portici Research Center, Piazzale E. Fermi, 80055 Portici (Napoli) (Italy)

2009-10-15

Thin film photovoltaics is a particularly attractive technology for building integration. In this paper, we present our analysis on architectural issues and technological developments of thin film silicon photovoltaics. In particular, we focus on our activities related to transparent and conductive oxide (TCO) and thin film amorphous and microcrystalline silicon solar cells. The research on TCO films is mainly dedicated to large-area deposition of zinc oxide (ZnO) by low pressure-metallorganic chemical vapor deposition. ZnO material, with a low sheet resistance (<8 {omega}/sq) and with an excellent transmittance (>82%) in the whole wavelength range of photovoltaic interest, has been obtained. ''Micromorph'' tandem devices, consisting of an amorphous silicon top cell and a microcrystalline silicon bottom cell, are fabricated by using the very high frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. An initial efficiency of 11.1% (>10% stabilized) has been obtained. (author)

Thin Film Photovoltaic/Thermal Solar Panels

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

David JOHNSTON

2008-01-01

A solar panel is described.in which thin films of semiconductor are deposited onto a metal substrate.The semiconductor-metal combination forms a thin film photovoltaic cell,and also acts as a reflector,absorber tandem, which acts as a solar selective surface,thus enhancing the solar thermal performance of the collector plate.The use of thin films reduces the distance heat is required to flow from the absorbing surface to the metal plate and heat exchange conduits.Computer modelling demonstrated that,by suitable choice of materials,photovohaic efficiency call be maintained,with thermal performance slishtly reduced,compared to that for thermal-only panels.By grading the absorber layer-to reduce the band gap in the lower region-the thermal performance can be improved,approaching that for a thermal-only solar panel.

Electrical properties and surface morphology of electron beam evaporated p-type silicon thin films on polyethylene terephthalate for solar cells applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ang, P. C.; Ibrahim, K.; Pakhuruddin, M. Z. [Nano-Optoelectronics Research and Technology Laboratory, School of Physics, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Minden 11800 Penang (Malaysia)

2015-04-24

One way to realize low-cost thin film silicon (Si) solar cells fabrication is by depositing the films with high-deposition rate and manufacturing-compatible electron beam (e-beam) evaporation onto inexpensive foreign substrates such as glass or plastic. Most of the ongoing research is reported on e-beam evaporation of Si films on glass substrates to make polycrystalline solar cells but works combining both e-beam evaporation and plastic substrates are still scarce in the literature. This paper studies electrical properties and surface morphology of 1 µm electron beam evaporated Al-doped p-type silicon thin films on textured polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate for application as an absorber layer in solar cells. In this work, Si thin films with different doping concentrations (including an undoped reference) are prepared by e-beam evaporation. Energy dispersion X-ray (EDX) showed that the Si films are uniformly doped by Al dopant atoms. With increased Al/Si ratio, doping concentration increased while both resistivity and carrier mobility of the films showed opposite relationships. Root mean square (RMS) surface roughness increased. Overall, the Al-doped Si film with Al/Si ratio of 2% (doping concentration = 1.57×10{sup 16} atoms/cm{sup 3}) has been found to provide the optimum properties of a p-type absorber layer for fabrication of thin film Si solar cells on PET substrate.

Electrical properties and surface morphology of electron beam evaporated p-type silicon thin films on polyethylene terephthalate for solar cells applications

Science.gov (United States)

Ang, P. C.; Ibrahim, K.; Pakhuruddin, M. Z.

2015-04-01

One way to realize low-cost thin film silicon (Si) solar cells fabrication is by depositing the films with high-deposition rate and manufacturing-compatible electron beam (e-beam) evaporation onto inexpensive foreign substrates such as glass or plastic. Most of the ongoing research is reported on e-beam evaporation of Si films on glass substrates to make polycrystalline solar cells but works combining both e-beam evaporation and plastic substrates are still scarce in the literature. This paper studies electrical properties and surface morphology of 1 µm electron beam evaporated Al-doped p-type silicon thin films on textured polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate for application as an absorber layer in solar cells. In this work, Si thin films with different doping concentrations (including an undoped reference) are prepared by e-beam evaporation. Energy dispersion X-ray (EDX) showed that the Si films are uniformly doped by Al dopant atoms. With increased Al/Si ratio, doping concentration increased while both resistivity and carrier mobility of the films showed opposite relationships. Root mean square (RMS) surface roughness increased. Overall, the Al-doped Si film with Al/Si ratio of 2% (doping concentration = 1.57×1016 atoms/cm3) has been found to provide the optimum properties of a p-type absorber layer for fabrication of thin film Si solar cells on PET substrate.

Catalytic Activity Enhancement for Oxygen Reduction on Epitaxial Perovskite Thin Films for Solid-Oxide Fuel Cells

KAUST Repository

la O', Gerardo Jose; Ahn, Sung-Jin; Crumlin, Ethan; Orikasa, Yuki; Biegalski, Michael D.; Christen, Hans M.; Shao-Horn, Yang

2010-01-01

Figure Presented The active ingredient: La0.8Sr 0.2CoO3-δ (LSC) epitaxial thin films are prepared on (001 )-oriented yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) single crystals with a gadolinium-doped ceria (GDC) buffer layer (see picture). The LSC epitaxial films exhibit better oxygen reduction kinetics than bulk LSC. The enhanced activity is attributed in part to higher oxygen nonstoichiometry. © 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KCaA, Weinheim.

Catalytic Activity Enhancement for Oxygen Reduction on Epitaxial Perovskite Thin Films for Solid-Oxide Fuel Cells

KAUST Repository

la O', Gerardo Jose

2010-06-22

Figure Presented The active ingredient: La0.8Sr 0.2CoO3-δ (LSC) epitaxial thin films are prepared on (001 )-oriented yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) single crystals with a gadolinium-doped ceria (GDC) buffer layer (see picture). The LSC epitaxial films exhibit better oxygen reduction kinetics than bulk LSC. The enhanced activity is attributed in part to higher oxygen nonstoichiometry. © 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KCaA, Weinheim.

Thin film preparation of semiconducting iron pyrite

Science.gov (United States)

Smestad, Greg P.; Ennaoui, Ahmed; Fiechter, Sebastian; Hofmann, Wolfgang; Tributsch, Helmut; Kautek, Wolfgang

1990-08-01

Pyrite (Fe52) has been investigated as a promising new absorber material for thin film solar cell applications because of its high optical absorption coefficient of 1OL cm1, and its bandgap of 0.9 to 1.0 eV. Thin layers have been prepared by Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition, MOCVD, Chemical Spray Pyrolysis, CSP, Chemical Vapor Transport, CVT, and Sulfurization of Iron Oxide films, 510. It is postulated that for the material FeS2, if x is not zero, a high point defect concentration results from replacing 2 dipoles by single S atoms. This causes the observed photovoltages and solar conversion efficiencies to be lower than expected. Using the Fe-O-S ternary phase diagram and the related activity plots, a thermodynamic understanding is formulated for the resulting composition of each of these types of films. It is found that by operating in the oxide portion of the phase diagram, the resulting oxidation state favors pyrite formation over FeS. By proper orientation of the grains relative to the film surface, and by control of pinholes and stoichiometry, an efficient thin film photovolatic solar cell material could be achieved.

Radiation resistance of thin-film solar cells for space photovoltaic power

Science.gov (United States)

Woodyard, James R.; Landis, Geoffrey A.

1991-01-01

Copper indium diselenide, cadmium telluride, and amorphous silicon alloy solar cells have achieved noteworthy performance and are currently being studied for space power applications. Cadmium sulfide cells had been the subject of much effort but are no longer considered for space applications. A review is presented of what is known about the radiation degradation of thin film solar cells in space. Experimental cadmium telluride and amorphous silicon alloy cells are reviewed. Damage mechanisms and radiation induced defect generation and passivation in the amorphous silicon alloy cell are discussed in detail due to the greater amount of experimental data available.

Organic donor-acceptor thin film systems. Towards optimized growth conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Keller, Kerstin Andrea

2009-06-30

In this work the preparation of organic donor-acceptor thin films was studied. A chamber for organic molecular beam deposition was designed and integrated into an existing deposition system for metallic thin films. Furthermore, the deposition system was extended by a load-lock with integrated bake-out function, a chamber for the deposition of metallic contacts via stencil mask technique and a sputtering chamber. For the sublimation of the organic compounds several effusion cells were designed. The evaporation characteristic and the temperature profile within the cells was studied. Additionally, a simulation program was developed, which calculates the evaporation characteristics of different cell types. The following processes were integrated: evaporation of particles, migration on the cell walls and collisions in the gas phase. It is also possible to consider a temperature gradient within the cell. All processes can be studied separately and their relative strength can be varied. To verify the simulation results several evaporation experiments with different cell types were employed. The thickness profile of the prepared thin films was measured position-dependently. The results are in good agreement with the simulation. Furthermore, the simulation program was extended to the field of electron beam induced deposition (EBID). The second part of this work deals with the preparation and characterization of organic thin films. The focus hereby lies on the charge transfer salt (BEDT-TTF)(TCNQ), which has three known structure variants. Thin films were prepared by different methods of co-evaporation and were studied with optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX).The formation of the monoclinic phase of (BEDT-TTF)(TCNQ) could be shown. As a last part tunnel structures were prepared as first thin film devices and measured in a He{sub 4} cryostat. (orig.)

Three-dimensional photonic crystals as intermediate filter for thin-film tandem solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Bielawny, Andreas; Miclea, Paul T.; Wehrspohn, Ralf B.; Lee, Seung-Mo; Knez, Mato; Rockstuhl, Carsten; Lisca, Marian; Lederer, Falk L.; Carius, Reinhard

2008-04-01

The concept of a 3D photonic crystal structure as diffractive and spectrally selective intermediate filter within 'micromorphous' (a-Si/μc-Si) tandem solar cells has been investigated numerically and experimentally. Our device aims for the enhancement of the optical pathway of incident light within the amorphous silicon top cell in its spectral region of low absorption. From our previous simulations, we expect a significant improvement of the tandem cell efficiency of about absolutely 1.3%. This increases the efficiency for a typical a-Si / μc-Si tandem cell from 11.1% to 12.4%, as a result of the optical current-matching of the two junctions. We suggest as wavelength-selective optical element a 3D-structured optical thin-film, prepared by self-organized artificial opal templates and replicated with atomic layer deposition. The resulting samples are highly periodic thin-film inverted opals made of conducting and transparent zinc-oxide. We describe the fabrication processes and compare experimental data on the optical properties in reflection and transmission with our simulations and photonic band structure calculations.

Thin film thermocouples for in situ membrane electrode assembly temperature measurements in a polybenzimidazole-based high temperature proton exchange membrane unit cell

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ali, Syed Talat; Lebæk, Jesper; Nielsen, Lars Pleth

2010-01-01

m thick layer of TFTCs on 75 mu m thick Kapton foil. The Kapton foil was treated with in situ argon plasma etching to improve the adhesion between TFTCs and the Kapton substrate. The TFTCs were covered with a 7 mu m liquid Kapton layer using spin coating technique to protect them from environmental......This paper presents Type-T thin film thermocouples (TFTCs) fabricated on Kapton (polyimide) substrate for measuring the internal temperature of PBI(polybenzimidazole)-based high temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell (HT-PEMFC). Magnetron sputtering technique was employed to deposit a 2 mu...... degradation. This Kapton foil with deposited TFTCs was used as sealing inside a PBI (polybenzimidazole)-based single cell test rig, which enabled measurements of in situ temperature variations of the working fuel cell MEA. The performance of the TFTCs was promising with minimal interference to the operation...

Scalable Production of Mechanically Robust Antireflection Film for Omnidirectional Enhanced Flexible Thin Film Solar Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Min; Ma, Pengsha; Yin, Min; Lu, Linfeng; Lin, Yinyue; Chen, Xiaoyuan; Jia, Wei; Cao, Xinmin; Chang, Paichun; Li, Dongdong

2017-09-01

Antireflection (AR) at the interface between the air and incident window material is paramount to boost the performance of photovoltaic devices. 3D nanostructures have attracted tremendous interest to reduce reflection, while the structure is vulnerable to the harsh outdoor environment. Thus the AR film with improved mechanical property is desirable in an industrial application. Herein, a scalable production of flexible AR films is proposed with microsized structures by roll-to-roll imprinting process, which possesses hydrophobic property and much improved robustness. The AR films can be potentially used for a wide range of photovoltaic devices whether based on rigid or flexible substrates. As a demonstration, the AR films are integrated with commercial Si-based triple-junction thin film solar cells. The AR film works as an effective tool to control the light travel path and utilize the light inward more efficiently by exciting hybrid optical modes, which results in a broadband and omnidirectional enhanced performance.

Thin-Film Photovoltaic Cells: Long-Term Metal(loid) Leaching at Their End-of-Life

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zimmermann, Y.S.; Schäffer, A.; Corvini, P.F.X.; Lenz, M.

2013-01-01

The photovoltaic effect of thin-film copper indium gallium selenide cells (CIGS) is conferred by the latter elements. Organic photovoltaic cells (OPV), relying on organic light-absorbing molecules, also contain a variety of metals (e.g., Zn, Al, In, Sn, Ag). The environmental impact of such

The large-area CdTe thin film for CdS/CdTe solar cell prepared by physical vapor deposition in medium pressure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luo, Run; Liu, Bo; Yang, Xiaoyan; Bao, Zheng; Li, Bing, E-mail: libing70@126.com; Zhang, Jingquan; Li, Wei; Wu, Lili; Feng, Lianghuan

2016-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The large-area CdTe film has been prepared by PVD under the pressure of 0.9 kPa. • The as-prepared CdTe thin film processes excellent photovoltaic properties. • This technique is suitable for depositing large-area CdTe thin film. • The 14.6% champion efficiency CdS/CdTe cell has been achieved. - Abstract: The Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film has been prepared by physical vapor deposition (PVD), the Ar + O{sub 2} pressure is about 0.9 kPa. This method is a newer technique to deposit CdTe thin film in large area, and the size of the film is 30 × 40 cm{sup 2}. This method is much different from the close-spaced sublimation (CSS), as the relevance between the source temperature and the substrate temperature is weak, and the gas phase of CdTe is transferred to the substrate by Ar + O{sub 2} flow. Through this method, the compact and uniform CdTe film (30 × 40 cm{sup 2}) has been achieved, and the performances of the CdTe thin film have been determined by transmission spectrum, SEM and XRD. The film is observed to be compact with a good crystallinity, the CdTe is polycrystalline with a cubic structure and a strongly preferred (1 1 1) orientation. Using the CdTe thin film (3 × 5 cm{sup 2}) which is taken from the deposited large-area film, the 14.6% efficiency CdS/CdTe thin film solar cell has been prepared successfully. The structure of the cell is glass/FTO/CdS/CdTe/graphite slurry/Au, short circuit current density (J{sub sc}) of the cell is 26.9 mA/cm{sup 2}, open circuit voltage (V{sub oc}) is 823 mV, and filling factor (FF) is 66.05%. This technique can be a quite promising method to apply in the industrial production, as it has great prospects in the fabricating of large-area CdTe film.

Development of a thin film solar cell interconnect for the PowerSphere concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simburger, Edward J.; Matsumoto, James H.; Giants, Thomas W.; Garcia, Alexander; Liu, Simon; Rawal, Suraj P.; Perry, Alan R.; Marshall, Craig H.; Lin, John K.; Scarborough, Stephen E.; Curtis, Henry B.; Kerslake, Thomas W.; Peterson, Todd T.

2005-01-01

Progressive development of microsatellite technologies has resulted in increased demand for lightweight electrical power subsystems including solar arrays. The use of thin film photovoltaics has been recognized as a key solution to meet the power needs. The lightweight cells can generate sufficient power and still meet critical mass requirements. Commercially available solar cells produced on lightweight substrates are being studied as an option to fulfill the power needs. The commercially available solar cells are relatively inexpensive and have a high payoff potential. Commercially available thin film solar cells are primarily being produced for terrestrial applications. The need to convert the solar cell from a terrestrial to a space compatible application is the primary challenge. Solar cell contacts, grids and interconnects need to be designed to be atomic oxygen resistant and withstand rapid thermal cycling environments. A mechanically robust solar cell interconnect is also required in order to withstand handling during fabrication and survive during launch. The need to produce the solar cell interconnects has been identified as a primary goal of the PowerSphere program and is the topic of this paper. Details of the trade study leading to the final design involving the solar cell wrap around contact, flex blanket, welding process, and frame will be presented at the conference

Effect of Ag doping on opto-electrical properties of CdS thin films for solar cell applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nazir, Adnan; Toma, Andrea; Shah, Nazar Abbas; Panaro, Simone; Butt, Sajid; Sagar, Rizwan ur Rehman; Raja, Waseem; Rasool, Kamran; Maqsood, Asghari

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Polycrystalline CdS thin films are fabricated by means of Close Spaced Sublimation technique. • Ag is doped by simple ion-exchange technique in order to reduce resistivity of CdS thin films. • Remarkable reduction in resistivity without introducing many transparency losses. - Abstract: Cadmium sulfide (CdS) polycrystalline thin films of different thicknesses (ranging from 370 nm to 750 nm) were fabricated on corning glass substrates using Close Spaced Sublimation (CSS) technique. Optical and electrical investigation revealed that CdS thin films show an appreciable transparency (50–70% transmission) in visible range and a highly resistive behavior (10 6 Ω cm). Samples were doped by silver (Ag) at different concentrations, using ion exchange technique, in order to reduce the resistivity of CdS thin films and to improve their efficiency as a window layer for solar cell application. The doping of Ag in pure CdS thin films resulted into an increase of surface roughness and a decrease both in electrical resistivity and in transparency. By optimizing annealing parameters, we were able to properly control the optical properties of the present system. In fact, the Ag doping of pure CdS films has led to a decrease of the sample resistivity by three orders of magnitude (10 3 Ω cm) against a 20% cut in optical transmission

Indium tin oxide thin films by bias magnetron rf sputtering for heterojunction solar cells application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao Liang; Zhou Zhibin; Peng Hua; Cui Rongqiang

2005-01-01

In this investigation ITO thin films were prepared by bias magnetron rf sputtering technique at substrate temperature of 180 deg. C and low substrate-target distance for future a-Si:H/c-Si heterojunction (HJ) solar cells application. Microstructure, surface morphology, electrical and optical properties of these films were characterized and analyzed. The effects of ion bombardments on growing ITO films are well discussed. XRD analysis revealed a change in preferential orientation of polycrystalline structure from (2 2 2) to (4 0 0) plane with the increase of negative bias voltage. Textured surface were observed on AFM graphs of samples prepared at high negative bias. Hall measurements showed that the carrier density and Hall mobility of these ITO films are sensitive to the bias voltage applied. We attributed these effects to the sensitivity of energy of Ar + ions bombarding on growing films to the applied bias voltage in our experiments. At last the figure of merit was calculated to evaluate the quality of ITO thin films, the results of which show that sample prepared at bias voltage of -75 V is good to be used in HJ cells application

Process parameter impact on properties of sputtered large-area Mo bilayers for CIGS thin film solar cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Badgujar, Amol C.; Dhage, Sanjay R., E-mail: dhage@arci.res.in; Joshi, Shrikant V.

2015-08-31

Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) has emerged as a promising candidate for thin film solar cells, with efficiencies approaching those of silicon-based solar cells. To achieve optimum performance in CIGS solar cells, uniform, conductive, stress-free, well-adherent, reflective, crystalline molybdenum (Mo) thin films with preferred orientation (110) are desirable as a back contact on large area glass substrates. The present study focuses on cylindrical rotating DC magnetron sputtered bilayer Mo thin films on 300 mm × 300 mm soda lime glass (SLG) substrates. Key sputtering variables, namely power and Ar gas flow rates, were optimized to achieve best structural, electrical and optical properties. The Mo films were comprehensively characterized and found to possess high degree of thickness uniformity over large area. Best crystallinity, reflectance and sheet resistance was obtained at high sputtering powers and low argon gas flow rates, while mechanical properties like adhesion and residual stress were found to be best at low sputtering power and high argon gas flow rate, thereby indicating a need to arrive at a suitable trade-off during processing. - Highlights: • Sputtering of bilayer molybdenum thin films on soda lime glass • Large area deposition using rotating cylindrical direct current magnetron • Trade of sputter process parameters power and pressure • High uniformity of thickness and best electrical properties obtained • Suitable mechanical and optical properties of molybdenum are achieved for CIGS application.

Analysis of Electrical Characteristics of Thin Film Photovoltaic Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Kasick, Michael P.

2004-01-01

Solar energy is the most abundant form of energy in many terrestrial and extraterrestrial environments. Often in extraterrestrial environments sunlight is the only readily available form of energy. Thus the ability to efficiently harness solar energy is one of the ultimate goals in the design of space power systems. The essential component that converts solar energy into electrical energy in a solar energy based power system is the photovoltaic cell. Traditionally, photovoltaic cells are based on a single crystal silicon absorber. While silicon is a well understood technology and yields high efficiency, there are inherent disadvantages to using single crystal materials. The requirements of weight, large planar surfaces, and high manufacturing costs make large silicon cells prohibitively expensive for use in certain applications. Because of silicon s disadvantages, there is considerable ongoing research into alternative photovoltaic technologies. In particular, thin film photovoltaic technologies exhibit a promising future in space power systems. While they are less mature than silicon, the better radiation hardness, reduced weight, ease of manufacturing, low material cost, and the ability to use virtually any exposed surface as a substrate makes thin film technologies very attractive for space applications. The research group lead by Dr. Hepp has spent several years researching copper indium disulfide as an absorber material for use in thin film photovoltaic cells. While the group has succeeded in developing a single source precursor for CuInS2 as well as a unique method of aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition, the resulting cells have not achieved adequate efficiencies. While efficiencies of 11 % have been demonstrated with CuInS2 based cells, the cells produced by this group have shown efficiencies of approximately 1 %. Thus, current research efforts are turning towards the analysis of the individual layers of these cells, as well as the junctions between

Newtech - Comparison of three 1 kW thin-film solar cell installations; Newtech. Vergleich 3 x 1 kWp Duennschichtzellenanlagen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Renken, C.; Haeberlin, H.

2003-07-01

This final report for the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) presents the results of tests made on 3 types of thin-film solar cells by the photovoltaics laboratory at the University of Applied Science in Burgdorf, Switzerland. The three 1-kW{sub p} installations are all mounted on the flat roof of an industrial building and deliver the power produced to the local electricity utility. The thin-film technologies tested are described. These include copper-indium-diselenide (CIS) cells, amorphous silicon tandem cells and amorphous silicon triple cells. The measurement equipment used is described and the results obtained are discussed. These showed that the CIS cells had the highest annual specific yield and that the triple cells had a relatively high performance ratio at low irradiance levels. The performance of the thin-film modules is also compared to that of conventional, crystalline modules installed at a nearby location.

Controllable Electrochemical Synthesis of Reduced Graphene Oxide Thin-Film Constructed as Efficient Photoanode in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Soon Weng Chong

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A controllable electrochemical synthesis to convert reduced graphene oxide (rGO from graphite flakes was introduced and investigated in detail. Electrochemical reduction was used to prepare rGO because of its cost effectiveness, environmental friendliness, and ability to produce rGO thin films in industrial scale. This study aimed to determine the optimum applied potential for the electrochemical reduction. An applied voltage of 15 V successfully formed a uniformly coated rGO thin film, which significantly promoted effective electron transfer within dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs. Thus, DSSC performance improved. However, rGO thin films formed in voltages below or exceeding 15 V resulted in poor DSSC performance. This behavior was due to poor electron transfer within the rGO thin films caused by poor uniformity. These results revealed that DSSC constructed using 15 V rGO thin film exhibited high efficiency (η = 1.5211% attributed to its higher surface uniformity than other samples. The addition of natural lemon juice (pH ~ 2.3 to the electrolyte accelerated the deposition and strengthened the adhesion of rGO thin film onto fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO glasses.

Ternary Precursors for Depositing I-III-VI2 Thin Films for Solar Cells via Spray CVD

Science.gov (United States)

Banger, K. K.; Hollingsworth, J. A.; Jin, M. H.-C.; Harris, J. D.; Duraj, S. A.; Smith, M.; Scheiman, D.; Bohannan, E. W.; Switzer, J. A.; Buhro, W. E.

2002-01-01

The development of thin-film solar cells on flexible, lightweight, space-qualified substrates provides an attractive cost solution to fabricating solar arrays with high specific power (W/kg). Thin-film fabrication studies demonstrate that ternary single source precursors (SSP's) can be used in either a hot or cold-wall spray chemical vapour deposition (CVD) reactor, for depositing CuInS2, CuGaS2, and CuGaInS2 at reduced temperatures (400 to 450 C), which display good electrical and optical properties suitable for photovoltaic (PV) devices. X-ray diffraction studies, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed the formation of the single phase CIS, CGS, CIGS thin-films on various substrates at reduced temperatures.

Cuinse2 Thin Film For Solar Cell By Flash Evaporation

OpenAIRE

A.H. Soepardjo

2009-01-01

Deposition of thin films for material solar cell CuInSe2 are relatively simple. In this research mainly focused on the use of flash evaporation method, and the material created can then be characterized by optical and electrical properties. The optical characterization is done by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), and transmission and reflection by UV-VIS spectrophotometry. Electrical characterization is done by utilizing the Hall effect equipment. From these chara...

A thin-film silicon/silicon hetero-junction hybrid solar cell for photoelectrochemical water-reduction applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vasudevan, R.A.; Thanawala, Z; Han, L.; Buijs, Thom; Tan, H.; Deligiannis, D.; Perez Rodriguez, P.; Digdaya, I.A.; Smith, W.A.; Zeman, M.; Smets, A.H.M.

2016-01-01

A hybrid tandem solar cell consisting of a thin-film, nanocrystalline silicon top junction and a siliconheterojunction bottom junction is proposed as a supporting solar cell for photoelectrochemical applications.Tunneling recombination junction engineering is shown to be an important consideration

Ceramic Composite Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Ruoff, Rodney S. (Inventor); Stankovich, Sasha (Inventor); Dikin, Dmitriy A. (Inventor); Nguyen, SonBinh T. (Inventor)

2013-01-01

A ceramic composite thin film or layer includes individual graphene oxide and/or electrically conductive graphene sheets dispersed in a ceramic (e.g. silica) matrix. The thin film or layer can be electrically conductive film or layer depending the amount of graphene sheets present. The composite films or layers are transparent, chemically inert and compatible with both glass and hydrophilic SiOx/silicon substrates. The composite film or layer can be produced by making a suspension of graphene oxide sheet fragments, introducing a silica-precursor or silica to the suspension to form a sol, depositing the sol on a substrate as thin film or layer, at least partially reducing the graphene oxide sheets to conductive graphene sheets, and thermally consolidating the thin film or layer to form a silica matrix in which the graphene oxide and/or graphene sheets are dispersed.

Ultrasonic Substrate Vibration-Assisted Drop Casting (SVADC) for the Fabrication of Photovoltaic Solar Cell Arrays and Thin-Film Devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Eslamian, Morteza; Zabihi, Fatemeh

2015-12-01

A simple, low-cost, versatile, and potentially scalable casting method is proposed for the fabrication of micro- and nano-thin films, herein termed as ultrasonic "substrate vibration-assisted drop casting" (SVADC). The impingement of a solution drop onto a substrate in a simple process called drop casting, usually results in spreading of the liquid solution and the formation of a non-uniform thin solid film after solvent evaporation. Our previous and current supporting results, as well as few similar reports by others, confirm that imposing ultrasonic vibration on the substrate can simply convert the uncontrollable drop casting method into a controllable coating technique. Therefore, the SVADC may be used to fabricate an array of emerging thin-film solar cells, such as polymer, perovskite, and quantum-dot solar cells, as well as other small thin-film devices, in a roll-to-roll and automated fabrication process. The preliminary results demonstrate a ten-fold increase in electrical conductivity of PSS made by SVADC compared with the film made by conventional drop casting. Also, simple planar perovskite solar cells made here using SVADC show promising performance with an efficiency of over 3 % for a simple structure without performing process optimization or using expensive materials and treatments.

Influence of thin film thickness of working electrodes on photovoltaic characteristics of dye-sensitized solar cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lai Yeong-Lin

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the study of the influence of thin film thickness of working electrodes on the photovoltaic characteristics of dye-sensitized solar cells. Titanium dioxide (TiO2 thin films, with the thickness from 7.67 to 24.3 μm, were used to fabricate the working electrodes of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs. A TiO2 film was coated on a fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO conductive glass substrate and then sintered in a high-temperature furnace. On the other hand, platinum (Pt solution was coated onto an FTO substrate for the fabrication of the counter electrode of a DSSC. The working electrode immersed in a dye, the counter electrode, and the electrolyte were assembled to complete a sandwich-structure DSSC. The material analysis of the TiO2 films of DSSCs was carried out by scanning electron microscopy (SEM and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis spectroscopy, while the photovoltaic characteristics of DSSCs were measured by an AM-1.5 sunlight simulator. The light transmittance characteristics of the TiO2 working electrode depend on the TiO2 film thickness. The thin film thickness of the working electrode also affects the light absorption of a dye and results in the photovoltaic characteristics of the DSSC, including open-circuited voltage (VOC, short-circuited current density (JSC, fill factor, and photovoltaic conversion efficiency.

PLD prepared nanostructured Pt-CeO{sub 2} thin films containing ionic platinum

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vorokhta, M., E-mail: vorohtam@gmail.com [Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague 8 (Czech Republic); Khalakhan, I.; Matolínová, I.; Nováková, J.; Haviar, S. [Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague 8 (Czech Republic); Lančok, J.; Novotný, M. [Institute of Physics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Na Slovance 2, 182 21 Prague, Czhech Republic (Czech Republic); Yoshikawa, H. [National Institute for Materials Science, Sengen 1-2-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0047 (Japan); Matolín, V. [Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Department of Surface and Plasma Science, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague 8 (Czech Republic)

2017-02-28

Highlights: • Nanostructured Pt-CeO{sub 2} thin catalyst films were grown on plasma etched and non-etched carbon substrates by pulsed laser deposition. • The surface composition of the nanostructured Pt-CeO{sub 2} films was investigated by surface analysis techniques. • The effect of film roughening was separated from the effect of platinum-ceria atomic interactions. - Abstract: The composition of nanostructured Pt-CeO{sub 2} films on graphite substrates prepared by pulsed laser deposition has been investigated by means of hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. The influence of morphology of the graphite substrates was investigated with respect to the relative concentrations of ionic and metallic Pt species in the films. It was found that the degree of Pt{sup 2+} enrichment is directly related to the surface morphology of graphite substrates. In particular, the deposition of Pt-CeO{sub 2} films on rough graphite substrate etched in oxygen plasma yielded nanostructured Pt-CeO{sub 2} catalyst films with high surface area and high Pt{sup 2+}/Pt{sup 0} ratio. The presented results demonstrate that PLD is a suitable method for the preparation of thin Pt-CeO{sub 2} catalyst films for fuel cell applications.

Laser nanostructuring of ZnO thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nedyalkov, N., E-mail: nned@ie.bas.bg [Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Keio University, 3-14-1 Hiyoshi Kohoku-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken 223-8522 (Japan); Institute of Electronics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Tzarigradsko shousse 72, Sofia 1784 (Bulgaria); Koleva, M.; Nikov, R.; Atanasov, P. [Institute of Electronics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Tzarigradsko shousse 72, Sofia 1784 (Bulgaria); Nakajima, Y.; Takami, A.; Shibata, A.; Terakawa, M. [Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Keio University, 3-14-1 Hiyoshi Kohoku-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken 223-8522 (Japan)

2016-06-30

Highlights: • Nanosecond laser pulse nanostructuring of ZnO thin films on metal substrate is demonstrated. • Two regimes of the thin film modification are observed depending on the applied laser fluence. • At high fluence regime the ZnO film is homogeneously decomposed into nanosized particles. • The characteristic size of the formed nanostructures corresponds to the domain size of the thin film. - Abstract: In this work, results on laser processing of thin zinc oxide films deposited on metal substrate are presented. ZnO films are obtained by classical nanosecond pulsed laser deposition method in oxygen atmosphere on tantalum substrate. The produced films are then processed by nanosecond laser pulses at wavelength of 355 nm. The laser processing parameters and the film thickness are varied and their influence on the fabricated structures is estimated. The film morphology after the laser treatment is found to depend strongly on the laser fluence as two regimes are defined. It is shown that at certain conditions (high fluence regime) the laser treatment of the film leads to formation of a discrete nanostructure, composed of spherical like nanoparticles with narrow size distribution. The dynamics of the melt film on the substrate and fast cooling are found to be the main mechanisms for fabrication of the observed structures. The demonstrated method is an alternative way for direct fabrication of ZnO nanostructures on metal which can be easy implemented in applications as resistive sensor devices, electroluminescent elements, solar cell technology.

Fabrication of ATO/Graphene Multi-layered Transparent Conducting Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Na; Chen, Fei; Shen, Qiang; Wang, Chuanbin; Zhang, Lianmeng

2013-03-01

A novel transparent conducting oxide based on the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films has been developed to satisfy the application of transparent conductive electrode in solar cells. The ATO thin films are prepared by pulsed laser deposition method with high quality, namely the sheet resistance of 49.5 Ω/sq and average transmittance of 81.9 %. The prepared graphene sheet is well reduced and shows atomically thin, spotty distributed appearance on the top of the ATO thin films. The XRD and optical micrographs are used to confirm the successfully preparation of the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films. The Hall measurements and UV-Vis spectrophotometer are conducted to evaluate the sheet resistance and optical transmittance of the innovative structure. It is found that graphene can improve the electrical properties of the ATO thin films with little influence on the optical transmittance.

Fabrication of ATO/Graphene Multi-layered Transparent Conducting Thin Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Na; Chen Fei; Shen Qiang; Wang Chuanbin; Zhang Lianmeng

2013-01-01

A novel transparent conducting oxide based on the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films has been developed to satisfy the application of transparent conductive electrode in solar cells. The ATO thin films are prepared by pulsed laser deposition method with high quality, namely the sheet resistance of 49.5 Ω/sq and average transmittance of 81.9 %. The prepared graphene sheet is well reduced and shows atomically thin, spotty distributed appearance on the top of the ATO thin films. The XRD and optical micrographs are used to confirm the successfully preparation of the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films. The Hall measurements and UV-Vis spectrophotometer are conducted to evaluate the sheet resistance and optical transmittance of the innovative structure. It is found that graphene can improve the electrical properties of the ATO thin films with little influence on the optical transmittance.

Effect of hydrogen doping on the properties of Al and F co-doped ZnO films for thin film silicon solar cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Fang-Hsing, E-mail: fansen@dragon.nchu.edu.tw; Yang, Tung-Hsin

2016-04-30

Aluminum and fluorine co-doped zinc oxide (AFZO) thin films were prepared in Ar + H{sub 2} atmospheres by rf magnetron sputtering at room temperature. The structural, electrical, and optical properties of the prepared films were investigated using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, Hall-effect measurement, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and ultraviolet–visible spectrometry, and their dependence on deposition atmosphere (i.e. H{sub 2} / (H{sub 2} + Ar) ratio) was studied. The resulting films showed a (0 0 2) diffraction peak, indicating a typical wurtzite structure, and the optimal film crystallinity was obtained with the H{sub 2} / (H{sub 2} + Ar) ratio of 3%. The electrical resistivity of AFZO films decreased to 9.16 × 10{sup −4} Ω-cm, which was lower than ZnO:Al and ZnO:F films due to double doping effect of Al and F. The resistivity further decreased to below 5 × 10{sup −4} Ω-cm for the AFZO film with the H{sub 2} / (H{sub 2} + Ar) ratio of 3%–5%. All the films regardless of hydrogen content displayed high transmittances (> 92%) in the visible wavelength range. Applying the developed AFZO films as front transparent electrodes, amorphous Si thin film solar cells were fabricated and the open-circuit voltage, fill factor, and efficiency of the cell with the hydrogenated AFZO film were improved in contrast to those without the hydrogenated film. - Highlights: • H{sub 2} doping improves optoelectronic properties of Al, F co-doped ZnO (AFZO) films. • Resistivity of AFZO films decreases to 4.4 × 10{sup −4} Ω-cm with the 3% H{sub 2}/(Ar + H{sub 2}) ratio. • AFZO films show high average visible transmittances of above 92%. • Efficiency of a-Si thin film solar cells is improved by AFZO:H as front electrode.

Achievement report for fiscal 1997 on development of technologies for practical photovoltaic system under New Sunshine Program. Manufacture of thin-film solar cell / low-cost and large-area module / next-generation thin-film solar cell (Manufacture of thin-film polycrystalline solar module); 1997 nendo taiyoko hatsuden system jitsuyoka gijutsu kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Usumaku taiyo denchi no seizo gijutsu kaihatsu, tei cost daimenseki module seizo gijutsu kaihatsu, jisedai usumaku taiyo denchi no seizo gijutsu kaihatsu (usumaku takessho taiyo denchi module no seizo gijutsu kaihatsu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

Fiscal 1997 is the first year of another 4-year-long research and development phase. In addition to researches for improving on thin-film polycrystalline Si cell efficiency that have been under way, new efforts are started, which include the development of practicality-conscious thin film producing technologies aiming at higher throughput and yield and the development of modularization process technologies which are necessary for putting thin-film cells to practical use. Concerning the formation of a power generation layer on a polycrystalline Si thin film formed by the ZMR (zone-melting recrystallization) process, studies are conducted for improvement on its throughput and yield using a new CVD (chemical vapor deposition) unit. A method of modularization is evaluated, which involves a laminate of a thin-film cell attached to a resin-coated, reinforced glass substrate and an EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) back film. A remarkable achievement is earned toward the practicalization of technologies of thin film formation enhanced in quality and throughput and technologies of thin film modularization. (NEDO)

Large-area SnO2: F thin films by offline APCVD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Yan; Wu, Yucheng; Qin, Yongqiang; Zhang, Zhihai; Shi, Chengwu; Zhang, Qingfeng; Li, Changhao; Xia, Xiaohong; Sun, Stanley; Chen, Leon

2011-01-01

Highlights: → Large-area (1245 mm x 635 mm) FTO thin films were successfully deposited by offline APCVD process. → The as-prepared FTO thin films with sheet resistance 8-11 Ω/□ and direct transmittance more than 83% exhibited better than that of the online ones. → The maximum quantum efficiency of the solar cells based on offline FTO substrate was 0.750 at wavelength 540 nm. → The power of the solar modules using the offline FTO as glass substrates was 51.639 W, higher than that of the modules based on the online ones. -- Abstract: In this paper, we reported the successful preparation of fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) thin films on large-area glass substrates (1245 mm x 635 mm x 3 mm) by self-designed offline atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) process. The FTO thin films were achieved through a combinatorial chemistry approach using tin tetrachloride, water and oxygen as precursors and Freon (F-152, C2H4F2) as dopant. The deposited films were characterized for crystallinity, morphology (roughness) and sheet resistance to aid optimization of materials suitable for solar cells. We got the FTO thin films with sheet resistance 8-11 Ω/□ and direct transmittance more than 83%. X-ray diffraction (XRD) characterization suggested that the as-prepared FTO films were composed of multicrystal, with the average crystal size 200-300 nm and good crystallinity. Further more, the field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) images showed that the films were produced with good surface morphology (haze). Selected samples were used for manufacturing tandem amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) thin film solar cells and modules by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). Compared with commercially available FTO thin films coated by online chemical vapor deposition, our FTO coatings show excellent performance resulting in a high quantum efficiency yield for a-Si:H solar cells and ideal open voltage and short circuit current for a-Si:H solar

InGaN-based thin film solar cells: Epitaxy, structural design, and photovoltaic properties

Science.gov (United States)

Sang, Liwen; Liao, Meiyong; Koide, Yasuo; Sumiya, Masatomo

2015-03-01

InxGa1-xN, with the tunable direct bandgaps from ultraviolet to near infrared region, offers a promising candidate for the high-efficiency next-generation thin-film photovoltaic applications. Although the adoption of thick InGaN film as the active region is desirable to obtain efficient light absorption and carrier collection compared to InGaN/GaN quantum wells structure, the understanding on the effect from structural design is still unclear due to the poor-quality InGaN films with thickness and difficulty of p-type doping. In this paper, we comprehensively investigate the effects from film epitaxy, doping, and device structural design on the performances of the InGaN-based solar cells. The high-quality InGaN thick film is obtained on AlN/sapphire template, and p-In0.08Ga0.92N is achieved with a high hole concentration of more than 1018 cm-3. The dependence of the photovoltaic performances on different structures, such as active regions and p-type regions is analyzed with respect to the carrier transport mechanism in the dark and under illumination. The strategy of improving the p-i interface by using a super-thin AlN interlayer is provided, which successfully enhances the performance of the solar cells.

Host thin films incorporating nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Qureshi, Uzma

The focus of this research project was the investigation of the functional properties of thin films that incorporate a secondary nanoparticulate phase. In particular to assess if the secondary nanoparticulate material enhanced a functional property of the coating on glass. In order to achieve this, new thin film deposition methods were developed, namely use of nanopowder precursors, an aerosol assisted transport technique and an aerosol into atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition system. Aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) was used to deposit 8 series of thin films on glass. Five different nanoparticles silver, gold, ceria, tungsten oxide and zinc oxide were tested and shown to successfully deposit thin films incorporating nanoparticles within a host matrix. Silver nanoparticles were synthesised and doped within a titania film by AACVD. This improved solar control properties. A unique aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) into atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition (APCVD) system was used to deposit films of Au nanoparticles and thin films of gold nanoparticles incorporated within a host titania matrix. Incorporation of high refractive index contrast metal oxide particles within a host film altered the film colour. The key goal was to test the potential of nanopowder forms and transfer the suspended nanopowder via an aerosol to a substrate in order to deposit a thin film. Discrete tungsten oxide nanoparticles or ceria nanoparticles within a titanium dioxide thin film enhanced the self-cleaning and photo-induced super-hydrophilicity. The nanopowder precursor study was extended by deposition of zinc oxide thin films incorporating Au nanoparticles and also ZnO films deposited from a ZnO nanopowder precursor. Incorporation of Au nanoparticles within a VO: host matrix improved the thermochromic response, optical and colour properties. Composite VC/TiC and Au nanoparticle/V02/Ti02 thin films displayed three useful

Transparent indium zinc oxide thin films used in photovoltaic cells based on polymer blends

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Besleaga, Cristina; Ion, L.; Ghenescu, Veta; Socol, G.; Radu, A.; Arghir, Iulia; Florica, Camelia; Antohe, S.

2012-01-01

Indium zinc oxide (IZO) thin films were obtained using pulsed laser deposition. The samples were prepared by ablation of targets with In concentrations, In/(In + Zn), of 80 at.%, at low substrate temperatures under reactive atmosphere. IZO films were used as transparent electrodes in polymer-based – poly(3-hexylthiophene) and 1-(3-methoxycarbonyl)-propyl-1-phenyl-(6,6)C61 1:1 blend – photovoltaic cells. The action spectra measurements revealed that IZO-based photovoltaic structures have performances comparable with those using indium–tin–oxide as transparent electrode. - Highlights: ► Indium zinc oxide films were grown by pulsed laser deposition at room temperature. ► The films had large free carrier density and reasonably high mobility. ► These films fit for transparent electrodes in polymer-based photovoltaic cells.

Preparation of SDC electrolyte thin films on dense and porous substrates by modified sol-gel route

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin Hongfei; Ding, Changsheng; Sato, Kazuhisa; Tsutai, Yoshifumi; Ohtaki, Hiromichi; Iguchi, Mabito; Wada, Chiharu; Hashida, Toshiyuki

2008-01-01

Nanocrystalline fluorite type samarium doped ceria (SDC) electrolyte thin film for intermediate temperature-solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs) application were prepared on the dense and porous substrates at low temperatures of 573-1373 K using a novel citrate sol-gel route combined with a sol suspension spray coating technique. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that the decomposition of the citrate gel film and the initial crystallization of the SDC occurred at a low temperature of about 590 K. XRD examination revealed that the annealing of the green film at temperatures of 573-1373 K provided cubic nanocrystalline SDC phase. The crystallite sizes were in the range of 9-19 nm. Microscopic observations indicated that the derived film was homogeneous, dense and crack-free without pinholes. The desired thickness for preparation of thin electrolyte films from hundreds of nm to several μm should be controllable and feasible by repeating the simple and inexpensive citrate sol-gel spray coating process

Advances in copper-chalcopyrite thin films for solar energy conversion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kaneshiro, Jess; Gaillard, Nicolas; Rocheleau, Richard; Miller, Eric [Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1680 East-West Road, Post 109, Honolulu, HI 96822 (United States)

2010-01-15

Promising alternatives to crystalline silicon as the basic building block of solar cells include copper-chalcopyrite thin films such as copper indium gallium diselenide, a class of thin films exhibiting bandgap-tunable semiconductor behavior, direct bandgaps and high absorption coefficients. These properties allow for the development of novel solar-energy conversion configurations like ultra-high efficiency multi-junction solar cells utilizing combinations of photovoltaic and photoelectrochemical junctions for hydrogen production. This paper discusses the current worldwide status as well as the development and optimization of copper-chalcopyrite thin films deposited onto various substrate types for different photovoltaic and photoelectrochemical applications at the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute. (author)

Optical modeling and simulation of thin-film photovoltaic devices

CERN Document Server

Krc, Janez

2013-01-01

In wafer-based and thin-film photovoltaic (PV) devices, the management of light is a crucial aspect of optimization since trapping sunlight in active parts of PV devices is essential for efficient energy conversions. Optical modeling and simulation enable efficient analysis and optimization of the optical situation in optoelectronic and PV devices. Optical Modeling and Simulation of Thin-Film Photovoltaic Devices provides readers with a thorough guide to performing optical modeling and simulations of thin-film solar cells and PV modules. It offers insight on examples of existing optical models

Surface Modification of Aerosol-Assisted CVD Produced TiO2 Thin Film for Dye Sensitised Solar Cell

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SuPei Lim

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We report a simple and convenient method for the preparation of Ag/TiO2 thin films supported on indium tin oxide, which was achieved by sonochemical deposition of Ag+ on aerosol-assisted chemical vapour deposited TiO2 thin films. Posttreatment was performed on the film by immersion in HCl. The as-prepared composite film was characterised by X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and field emission scanning electron microscopy. The photoelectrochemical measurements and J-V characterisation showed approximately fivefold increase in photocurrent density generation and approximately sevenfold enhancement in dye sensitiser solar cell (DSSC conversion efficiency, which was achieved after modification of the TiO2 film with HCl posttreatment and Ag particle deposition. The improved photocurrent density of 933.30 μA/cm2, as well as DSSC power conversion efficiency of 3.63% with high stability, is an indication that the as-synthesised thin film is a potential candidate for solar energy conversion applications.

Osteoblast Adhesion on Cathodic Arc Plasma Deposited Nano-Multilayered TiCrAlSiN Thin Films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Sun Kyu [University of Ulsan, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of); Pham, Vuong Hung [Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST), Hanoi (Viet Nam)

2014-03-15

Adhesion of osteoblast cells to TiCrAlSiN thin films was evaluated in vitro. Ti and TiCrAlSiN thin films were deposited on glass substrates by cathodic arc deposition. Surface roughness and chemistry of the TiCrAlSiN thin films was characterized by AFM and EPMA, respectively. Ti and TiCrAlSiN thin films and glass coverslips were cultured with human osteoblast cells (hFOB 1.19). The cell cytoskeleton was analyzed by observing the organization of actin stress fibers and microtubules. Cell proliferation was investigated by MTT assay and visualization. Focal contact adhesion was studied by observing the vinculin density. The results indicated that the TiCrAlSiN coating significantly influenced the actin cytoskeleton and microtubule organization. Human osteoblasts hFOB attached and proliferated better on TiCrAlSiN thin films with more focal contact adhesions than on Ti thin films or glass surfaces. These results suggest that TiCrAlSiN thin films can be an implantable material where the maximum cell adhesion is required.

Silicon-Light: a European FP7 Project Aiming at High Efficiency Thin Film Silicon Solar Cells on Foil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Soppe, W.; Haug, F.-J.; Couty, P.

2011-01-01

Silicon-Light is a European FP7 project, which started January 1st, 2010 and aims at development of low cost, high-efficiency thin film silicon solar cells on foil. Three main routes are explored to achieve these goals: a) advanced light trapping by implementing nanotexturization through UV Nano...... calculations of ideal nanotextures for light trapping in thin film silicon solar cells; the fabrication of masters and the replication and roll-to-roll fabrication of these nanotextures. Further, results on ITO variants with improved work function are presented. Finally, the status of cell fabrication on foils...

energy efficiency of a photovoltaic cell based thin films czts by scaps

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Mebarkia C, Dib D, Zerfaoui H, Belghith R

2016-05-01

May 1, 2016 ... The basic equations are as follows: Poisson's equation that relates the load to the electrostatic potential and continuity equations for electrons and holes. However, several additional options must be present in the program when you want to simulate thin film solar cells. It should be able to take into account ...

NMR characterization of thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Gerald II, Rex E.; Klingler, Robert J.; Rathke, Jerome W.; Diaz, Rocio; Vukovic, Lela

2010-06-15

A method, apparatus, and system for characterizing thin film materials. The method, apparatus, and system includes a container for receiving a starting material, applying a gravitational force, a magnetic force, and an electric force or combinations thereof to at least the starting material, forming a thin film material, sensing an NMR signal from the thin film material and analyzing the NMR signal to characterize the thin film of material.

NMR characterization of thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Gerald, II, Rex E.; Klingler, Robert J.; Rathke, Jerome W.; Diaz, Rocio; Vukovic, Lela

2008-11-25

A method, apparatus, and system for characterizing thin film materials. The method, apparatus, and system includes a container for receiving a starting material, applying a gravitational force, a magnetic force, and an electric force or combinations thereof to at least the starting material, forming a thin film material, sensing an NMR signal from the thin film material and analyzing the NMR signal to characterize the thin film of material.

Textured surface boron-doped ZnO transparent conductive oxides on polyethylene terephthalate substrates for Si-based thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Xinliang; Lin Quan; Ni Jian; Zhang Dekun; Sun Jian; Zhao Ying; Geng Xinhua

2011-01-01

Textured surface boron-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:B) thin films were directly grown via low pressure metal organic chemical vapor deposition (LP-MOCVD) on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) flexible substrates at low temperatures and high-efficiency flexible polymer silicon (Si) based thin film solar cells were obtained. High purity diethylzinc and water vapors were used as source materials, and diborane was used as an n-type dopant gas. P-i-n silicon layers were fabricated at ∼ 398 K by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition. These textured surface ZnO:B thin films on PET substrates (PET/ZnO:B) exhibit rough pyramid-like morphology with high transparencies (T ∼ 80%) and excellent electrical properties (Rs ∼ 10 Ω at d ∼ 1500 nm). Finally, the PET/ZnO:B thin films were applied in flexible p-i-n type silicon thin film solar cells (device structure: PET/ZnO:B/p-i-n a-Si:H/Al) with a high conversion efficiency of 6.32% (short-circuit current density J SC = 10.62 mA/cm 2 , open-circuit voltage V OC = 0.93 V and fill factor = 64%).

Trade-off between Photon Management Efficacy and Material Quality in Thin-Film Solar Cells on Nanostructured Substrates of High Aspect Ratio Structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan H. Chin

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Although texturing of the transparent electrode of thin-film solar cells has long been used to enhance light absorption via light trapping, such texturing has involved low aspect ratio features. With the recent development of nanotechnology, nanostructured substrates enable improved light trapping and enhanced optical absorption via resonances, a process known as photon management, in thin-film solar cells. Despite the progress made in the development of photon management in thin-film solar cells using nanostructures substrates, the structural integrity of the thin-film solar cells deposited onto such nanostructured substrates is rarely considered. Here, we report the observation of the reduction in the open circuit voltage of amorphous silicon solar cells deposited onto a nanostructured substrate with increasing areal number density of high aspect ratio structures. For a nanostructured substrate with the areal number density of such nanostructures increasing in correlation with the distance from one edge of the substrate, a correlation between the open circuit voltage reduction and the increase of the areal number density of high aspect ratio nanostructures of the front electrode of the small-size amorphous silicon solar cells deposited onto different regions of the substrate with graded nanostructure density indicates the effect of the surface morphology on the material quality, i.e., a trade-off between photon management efficacy and material quality. This observed trade-off highlights the importance of optimizing the morphology of the nanostructured substrate to ensure conformal deposition of the thin-film solar cell.

Aluminum–Titanium Alloy Back Contact Reducing Production Cost of Silicon Thin-Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hsin-Yu Wu

2016-11-01

Full Text Available In this study, metal films are fabricated by using an in-line reactive direct current magnetron sputtering system. The aluminum–titanium (AlTi back contacts are prepared by changing the pressure from 10 mTorr to 25 mTorr. The optical, electrical and structural properties of the metal back contacts are investigated. The solar cells with the AlTi had lower contact resistance than those with the silver (Ag back contact, resulting in a higher fill factor. The AlTi contact can achieve a solar cell conversion efficiency as high as that obtained from the Ag contact. These findings encourage the potential adoption of AlTi films as an alternative back contact to silver for silicon thin-film solar cells.

Materials and Light Management for High-Efficiency Thin-Film Silicon Solar Cells

OpenAIRE

Tan, H.

2015-01-01

Direct conversion of sunlight into electricity is one of the most promising approaches to provide sufficient renewable energy for humankind. Solar cells are such devices which can efficiently generate electricity from sunlight through the photovoltaic effect. Thin-film silicon solar cells, a type of photovoltaic (PV) devices which deploy the chemical-vapor-deposited hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) and nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H) and their alloys as the absorber layers and doped ...

Rapid fabrication of mesoporous TiO2 thin films by pulsed fibre laser for dye sensitized solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Hadi, Aseel; Alhabradi, Mansour; Chen, Qian; Liu, Hong; Guo, Wei; Curioni, Michele; Cernik, Robert; Liu, Zhu

2018-01-01

In this paper we demonstrate for the first time that a fibre laser with a wavelength of 1070 nm and a pulse width of milliseconds can be applied to generate mesoporous nanocrystalline (nc) TiO2 thin films on ITO coated glass in ambient atmosphere, by complete vaporisation of organic binder and inter-connection of TiO2 nanoparticles, without thermally damaging the ITO layer and the glass substrate. The fabrication of the mesoporous TiO2 thin films was achieved by stationary laser beam irradiation of 1 min. The dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) with the laser-sintered TiO2 photoanode reached higher power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 3.20% for the TiO2 film thickness of 6 μm compared with 2.99% for the furnace-sintered. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy studies revealed that the laser sintering under the optimised condition effectively decreased charge transfer resistance and increased electron lifetime of the TiO2 thin films. The use of the fibre laser with over 40% wall-plug efficiency offers an economically-feasible, industrial viable solution to the major challenge of rapid fabrication of large scale, mass production of mesoporous metal oxide thin film based solar energy systems, potentially for perovskite and monolithic tandem solar cells, in the future.

Natively textured surface hydrogenated gallium-doped zinc oxide transparent conductive thin films with buffer layers for solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Xin-liang, E-mail: cxlruzhou@163.com; Wang, Fei; Geng, Xin-hua; Huang, Qian; Zhao, Ying; Zhang, Xiao-dan

2013-09-02

Natively textured surface hydrogenated gallium-doped zinc oxide (HGZO) thin films have been deposited via magnetron sputtering on glass substrates. These natively textured HGZO thin films exhibit rough pyramid-like textured surface, high optical transmittances in the visible and near infrared region and excellent electrical properties. The experiment results indicate that tungsten-doped indium oxide (In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:W, IWO) buffer layers can effectively improve the surface roughness and enhance the light scattering ability of HGZO thin films. The root-mean-square roughness of HGZO, IWO (10 nm)/HGZO and IWO (30 nm)/HGZO thin films are 28, 44 and 47 nm, respectively. The haze values at the wavelength of 550 nm increase from 7.0% of HGZO thin film without buffer layer to 18.37% of IWO (10 nm)/HGZO thin film. The optimized IWO (10 nm)/HGZO exhibits a high optical transmittance of 82.18% in the visible and near infrared region (λ ∼ 400–1100 nm) and excellent electrical properties with a relatively low sheet resistance of 3.6 Ω/□ and the resistivity of 6.21 × 10{sup −4} Ωcm. - Highlights: • Textured hydrogenated gallium-doped zinc oxide (HGZO) films were developed. • Tungsten-doped indium oxide (IWO) buffer layers were applied for the HGZO films. • Light-scattering ability of the HGZO films can be improved through buffer layers. • Low sheet resistance and high haze were obtained for the IWO(10 nm)/HGZO film. • The IWO/HGZO films are promising transparent conductive layers for solar cells.

Development of natively textured surface hydrogenated Ga-doped ZnO-TCO thin films for solar cells via magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Fei; Chen, Xin-liang; Geng, Xin-hua; Zhang, De-kun; Wei, Chang-chun; Huang, Qian; Zhang, Xiao-dan; Zhao, Ying

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Natively textured surface hydrogenated gallium-doped zinc oxide (HGZO) thin films have been deposited via magnetron sputtering on glass substrates. ► The directly deposited HGZO thin films present rough crater-type surface morphology. ► Typical HGZO thin film exhibits a high electron mobility of 41.3 cm 2 /V s and a relative low sheet resistance of ∼7.0 Ω. ► These HGZO thin films have high optical transmittances in the visible and near infrared region (∼380–1100 nm). ► A gradient H 2 growth method for fabricating HGZO thin films has been proposed in magnetron sputtering process. - Abstract: The main purposes are to obtain high quality transparent conductive oxide (TCO) based on zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films with high optical transparency in the visible and near infrared spectral range, high electrical conductivity and good light-scattering capability to enhance the path of the light inside the Si-based thin film solar cells. Natively textured surface hydrogenated gallium-doped ZnO (HGZO) thin films have been deposited via pulsed direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering on glass substrates at a substrate temperature of 553 K. These natively textured HGZO thin films exhibit high optical transmittance (over 80%) in the visible and near infrared region (λ = 380–1100 nm) and excellent electrical properties. The optimized HGZO thin film with crater-type textured surface obtained at the hydrogen flow rate of ∼2.0 sccm exhibits a high electron mobility of 41.3 cm 2 /V s and a relatively low sheet resistance of ∼7.0 Ω. The influences of hydrogen flow rates on the surface morphology, electrical and optical properties of HGZO thin films were investigated in detail. In addition, we put forward a method of gradient H 2 growth technique for fabricating HGZO thin films so as to obtain rough surface structure with good light-scattering capability and high electrical conductivity. “Crater-like” surface feature size and optical transmittance

Handbook of thin film technology

CERN Document Server

Frey, Hartmut

2015-01-01

“Handbook of Thin Film Technology” covers all aspects of coatings preparation, characterization and applications. Different deposition techniques based on vacuum and plasma processes are presented. Methods of surface and thin film analysis including coating thickness, structural, optical, electrical, mechanical and magnetic properties of films are detailed described. The several applications of thin coatings and a special chapter focusing on nanoparticle-based films can be found in this handbook. A complete reference for students and professionals interested in the science and technology of thin films.

Electronic grain boundary properties in polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se2 semiconductors for thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baier, Robert

2012-01-01

Solar cells based on polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 (CIGSe) thin film absorbers reach the highest energy conversion efficiency among all thin film solar cells. The record efficiency is at least partly attributed to benign electronic properties of grain boundaries (GBs) in the CIGSe layers. However, despite a high amount of research on this phenomenon the underlying physics is not sufficiently understood. This thesis presents an elaborate study on the electronic properties of GBs in CIGSe thin films. Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) was employed to investigate the electronic properties of GBs in dependence of the Ga-content. Five CIGSe thin lms with various Ga-contents were grown by means of similar three stage co-evaporation processes. Both as grown as well as chemically treated (KCN etched) thin films were analyzed. The chemical treatment was employed to remove surface oxides. No difference in electronic GB properties was found with or without the chemical treatment. Therefore, we conclude that a moderate surface oxidation does not alter the electronic properties of GBs. In general, one can observe significant variations of electronic potential barriers at GBs. Under consideration of the averaging effect of the work function signal of nanoscale potential distributions in KPFM measurements which was quantified in the course of this thesis both positive and negative potential barriers in a range between ∼-350 mV and ∼+450 mV were detected. Additionally, variations in the defect densities at GBs between ∼3.1 x 10 11 cm -2 and ∼2.1 x 10 12 cm -2 were found. However, no correlation between the electronic properties of GBs and the Ga-content of CIGSe thin films was discovered. Consequently, one cannot explain the drop in device efficiency observed for CIGSe thin film solar cells with a high Ga-content by a change of the electronic properties of GBs. Combined KPFM and electron backscatter diffraction measurements were employed for the first time on CIGSe thin

XRD total scattering of the CZTS nanoparticle absorber layer for the thin film solar cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Symonowicz, Joanna; Jensen, Kirsten M. Ø.; Engberg, Sara Lena Josefin

Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin film solar cells are cheap, non-toxic and present an efficiency up to 9,2% [1]. They can be easily manufactured by the deposition of the nanoparticle ink as a thin film followed by a thermal treatment to obtain large grains [2]. Therefore, CZTS has the potential...... to revolutionize the solar energy market. However, to commercialize CZTS nanoparticle thin films, the efficiency issues must yet be resolved. In order to do so, it is vital to understand in detail their nanoscale atomic structure. CZTS crystallize in the kesterite structure, where Cu and Zn is distributed between......-ray Diffraction data with X-ray total scattering with Pair Distribution Function analysis. Powder neutron diffraction will furthermore allow characterization of the cation disorder on the metal sites in the kesterite structure. The nanoparticle ink is also characterized by XRD, EDS, and Raman spectroscopy...

Rare Earth Oxide Thin Films

CERN Document Server

Fanciulli, Marco

2007-01-01

Thin rare earth (RE) oxide films are emerging materials for microelectronic, nanoelectronic, and spintronic applications. The state-of-the-art of thin film deposition techniques as well as the structural, physical, chemical, and electrical properties of thin RE oxide films and of their interface with semiconducting substrates are discussed. The aim is to identify proper methodologies for the development of RE oxides thin films and to evaluate their effectiveness as innovative materials in different applications.

Preparation of CulnS2 Thin Films on the Glass Substrate by DC Sputtering for Solar Cell Component

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bambang Siswanto; Wirjoadi; Darsono

2007-01-01

The CuInS 2 alloys were deposited on glass substrate using plasma DC sputtering technique. A CuInS 2 alloy target was made from Cu, In, Se powder with impurity of 99.998%. The deposition process was done with the following process parameter variations: deposition time and substrate temperature were the range of 15 to 45 min and 150 to 300 ℃, the gas pressure was kept at 1.4x10 -1 Torr. The purpose of the research is to obtain the solar cell component of CuInS 2 thin films. The electrical and optical properties measurement has been done by four-point probe and UV-Vis. Crystal structure was analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD). The result shows that minimum resistance of CuInS 2 thin films is 35.7 kΩ and optical transmittance is 14.7 %. The crystal structure of CuInS 2 is oriented at (112) plane and by Touc-plot method was obtained that the band gap energy of thin films is 1.45 eV. It could be concluded that the CuInS 2 thin film can be used as a solar cell component. (author)

Process for forming thin film, heat treatment process of thin film sheet, and heat treatment apparatus therefor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watanabe, S.

1984-01-01

The invention provides a process for forming a magnetic thin film on a base film, a heat treatment process of a thin film sheet consisting of the base film and the magnetic thin film, and an apparatus for performing heat treatment of the thin film sheet. Tension applied to the thin film sheet is substantially equal to that applied to the base film when the magnetic thin film is formed thereon. Then, the thin film sheet is treated with heat. The thin film sheet is heated with a given temperature gradient to a reactive temperature at which heat shrinkage occurs, while the tension is being applied thereto. Thereafter, the thin film sheet to which the tension is still applied is cooled with substantially the same temperature gradient as applied in heating. The heat treatment apparatus has a film driving unit including a supply reel, a take-up reel, a drive source and guide rollers; a heating unit including heating plates, heater blocks and a temperature controller for heating the sheet to the reactive temperature; and a heat insulating unit including a thermostat and another temperature controller for maintaining the sheet at the nonreactive temperature which is slightly lower than the reactive temperature

Microcrystalline silicon carbide alloys prepared with HWCVD as highly transparent and conductive window layers for thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finger, F.; Astakhov, O.; Bronger, T.; Carius, R.; Chen, T.; Dasgupta, A.; Gordijn, A.; Houben, L.; Huang, Y.; Klein, S.; Luysberg, M.; Wang, H.; Xiao, L.

2009-01-01

Crystalline silicon carbide alloys have a very high potential as transparent conductive window layers in thin-film solar cells provided they can be prepared in thin-film form and at compatible deposition temperatures. The low-temperature deposition of such material in microcrystalline form (μc-Si:C:H) was realized by use of monomethylsilane precursor gas diluted in hydrogen with the Hot-Wire Chemical Vapor Deposition process. A wide range of deposition parameters has been investigated and the structural, electronic and optical properties of the μc-SiC:H thin films have been studied. The material, which is strongly n-type from unintentional doping, has been used as window layer in n-side illuminated microcrystalline silicon solar cells. High short-circuit current densities are obtained due to the high transparency of the material resulting in a maximum solar cell conversion efficiency of 9.2%.

Effect of the thickness of a fluoropolymer film on the radiotically prepared fuel cell membranes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ko, Beom Seok; Sohn, Joon Yong; Nho, Young Chang; Shin, Jun Hwa [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Jeongeup (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jong Il [Chonbuk National University, Jeonju (Korea, Republic of)

2010-06-15

To observe the effect of the thickness of a fluoropolymer film on the radiotically prepared fuel cell membranes, fuel cell membranes with various thickness were prepared by simultaneous radiation grafting of styrene into polyethylene-co-tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) with various thicknesses (25, 50 and 100 {mu}m) and subsequent sulfonation. The physico-chemical properties of the prepared membranes such as ion exchange capacity, water uptake, distribution of sulfonic acid group were evaluated in the correlation with the thickness of ETFE film. In additions, proton conductivity and methanol permeability of the prepared membranes were also evaluated. The results revealed that the proton conductivity and methanol permeability of the prepared membranes were largely affected by the thickness of ETFE film utilized as a base film.

Effect of the thickness of a fluoropolymer film on the radiotically prepared fuel cell membranes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ko, Beom Seok; Sohn, Joon Yong; Nho, Young Chang; Shin, Jun Hwa; Kim, Jong Il

2010-01-01

To observe the effect of the thickness of a fluoropolymer film on the radiotically prepared fuel cell membranes, fuel cell membranes with various thickness were prepared by simultaneous radiation grafting of styrene into polyethylene-co-tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) with various thicknesses (25, 50 and 100 μm) and subsequent sulfonation. The physico-chemical properties of the prepared membranes such as ion exchange capacity, water uptake, distribution of sulfonic acid group were evaluated in the correlation with the thickness of ETFE film. In additions, proton conductivity and methanol permeability of the prepared membranes were also evaluated. The results revealed that the proton conductivity and methanol permeability of the prepared membranes were largely affected by the thickness of ETFE film utilized as a base film

Polycrystalline ZnO: B grown by LPCVD as TCO for thin film silicon solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fay, Sylvie; Steinhauser, Jerome; Nicolay, Sylvain; Ballif, Christophe

2010-01-01

Conductive zinc oxide (ZnO) grown by low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) technique possesses a rough surface that induces an efficient light scattering in thin film silicon (TF Si) solar cells, which makes this TCO an ideal candidate for contacting such devices. IMT-EPFL has developed an in-house LPCVD process for the deposition of nanotextured boron doped ZnO films used as rough TCO for TF Si solar cells. This paper is a general review and synthesis of the study of the electrical, optical and structural properties of the ZnO:B that has been performed at IMT-EPFL. The influence of the free carrier absorption and the grain size on the electrical and optical properties of LPCVD ZnO:B is discussed. Transport mechanisms at grain boundaries are studied. It is seen that high doping of the ZnO grains facilitates the tunnelling of the electrons through potential barriers that are located at the grain boundaries. Therefore, even if these potential barriers increase after an exposition of the film to a humid atmosphere, the heavily doped LPCVD ZnO:B layers show a remarkable stable conductivity. However, the introduction of diborane in the CVD reaction induces also a degradation of the intra-grain mobility and increases over-proportionally the optical absorption of the ZnO:B films. Hence, the necessity to finely tune the doping level of LPCVD ZnO:B films is highlighted. Finally, the next challenges to push further the optimization of LPCVD ZnO:B films for thin film silicon solar cells are discussed, as well as some remarkable record cell results achieved with LPCVD ZnO:B as front electrode.

Thin film photovoltaic panel and method

Science.gov (United States)

Ackerman, Bruce; Albright, Scot P.; Jordan, John F.

1991-06-11

A thin film photovoltaic panel includes a backcap for protecting the active components of the photovoltaic cells from adverse environmental elements. A spacing between the backcap and a top electrode layer is preferably filled with a desiccant to further reduce water vapor contamination of the environment surrounding the photovoltaic cells. The contamination of the spacing between the backcap and the cells may be further reduced by passing a selected gas through the spacing subsequent to sealing the backcap to the base of the photovoltaic panels, and once purged this spacing may be filled with an inert gas. The techniques of the present invention are preferably applied to thin film photovoltaic panels each formed from a plurality of photovoltaic cells arranged on a vitreous substrate. The stability of photovoltaic conversion efficiency remains relatively high during the life of the photovoltaic panel, and the cost of manufacturing highly efficient panels with such improved stability is significantly reduced.

Ion beam-based characterization of multicomponent oxide thin films and thin film layered structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krauss, A.R.; Rangaswamy, M.; Lin, Yuping; Gruen, D.M.; Schultz, J.A.; Schmidt, H.K.; Chang, R.P.H.

1992-01-01

Fabrication of thin film layered structures of multi-component materials such as high temperature superconductors, ferroelectric and electro-optic materials, and alloy semiconductors, and the development of hybrid materials requires understanding of film growth and interface properties. For High Temperature Superconductors, the superconducting coherence length is extremely short (5--15 Angstrom), and fabrication of reliable devices will require control of film properties at extremely sharp interfaces; it will be necessary to verify the integrity of thin layers and layered structure devices over thicknesses comparable to the atomic layer spacing. Analytical techniques which probe the first 1--2 atomic layers are therefore necessary for in-situ characterization of relevant thin film growth processes. However, most surface-analytical techniques are sensitive to a region within 10--40 Angstrom of the surface and are physically incompatible with thin film deposition and are typically restricted to ultra high vacuum conditions. A review of ion beam-based analytical methods for the characterization of thin film and multi-layered thin film structures incorporating layers of multicomponent oxides is presented. Particular attention will be paid to the use of time-of-flight techniques based on the use of 1- 15 key ion beams which show potential for use as nondestructive, real-time, in-situ surface diagnostics for the growth of multicomponent metal and metal oxide thin films

Effects of preannealing temperature of ZnO thin films on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kao, M.C.; Chen, H.Z.; Young, S.L. [Hsiuping Institute of Technology, Department of Electronic Engineering, Taichung (China)

2010-03-15

The preferred (002) orientation zinc oxide (ZnO) nanocrystalline thin films have been deposited on FTO-coated glass substrates by sol-gel spin-coating technology and rapid thermal annealing for use in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). The effects of preannealing temperature (100 and 300 C) on the microstructure, morphology and optical properties of ZnO thin films were studied. The ZnO thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopic (SEM) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis. The photoelectric performance of DSSC was studied by I-V curve and the incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE), respectively. From the results, the intensities of (002) peaks of ZnO thin films increases with increasing preannealing temperature from 100 C to 300 C. The increase in pore size and surface area of ZnO films crystallized at the increased preannealing temperature contributed to the improvement on the absorption of N3 dye onto the films, the short-circuit photocurrent (J{sub sc}) and open-circuit voltage (V{sub oc}) of DSSC. The higher efficiency ({eta}) of 2.5% with J{sub sc} and V{sub oc} of 8.2 mA/cm{sup 2} and 0.64 V, respectively, was obtained by the ZnO film preannealed at 300 C. (orig.)

Structural and biocompatible characterization of TiC/a:C nanocomposite thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balázsi, K.; Vandrovcová, M.; Bačáková, L.; Balázsi, Cs.

2013-01-01

In this work, sputtered TiC/amorphous C thin films have been developed in order to be applied as potential barrier coating for interfering of Ti ions from pure Ti or Ti alloy implants. Our experiments were based on magnetron sputtering method, because the vacuum deposition provides great flexibility for manipulating material chemistry and structure, leading to films and coatings with special properties. The films have been deposited on silicon (001) substrates with 300 nm thick oxidized silicon sublayer at 200 °C deposition temperature as model substrate. Transmission electron microscopy has been used for structural investigations. Thin films consisted of ∼ 20 nm TiC columnar crystals embedded by 5 nm thin amorphous carbon matrix. MG63 osteoblast cells have been applied for in vitro study of TiC nanocomposites. The cell culture tests give strong evidence of thin films biocompatibility. Highlights: ► The main goal of this work is the relatively easy preparation of nanocomposite TiC thin films by dc magnetron sputtering. ► TEM and HREM were applied for structural characterization of columnar TiC nanocrystals and amorphous carbon matrix. ► The biocompatibility of films was showed by MG63 human osteoblast like cells during 1, 3 and 7 days seeding

Vapor transport deposition of antimony selenide thin film solar cells with 7.6% efficiency.

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, Xixing; Chen, Chao; Lu, Shuaicheng; Li, Kanghua; Kondrotas, Rokas; Zhao, Yang; Chen, Wenhao; Gao, Liang; Wang, Chong; Zhang, Jun; Niu, Guangda; Tang, Jiang

2018-06-05

Antimony selenide is an emerging promising thin film photovoltaic material thanks to its binary composition, suitable bandgap, high absorption coefficient, inert grain boundaries and earth-abundant constituents. However, current devices produced from rapid thermal evaporation strategy suffer from low-quality film and unsatisfactory performance. Herein, we develop a vapor transport deposition technique to fabricate antimony selenide films, a technique that enables continuous and low-cost manufacturing of cadmium telluride solar cells. We improve the crystallinity of antimony selenide films and then successfully produce superstrate cadmium sulfide/antimony selenide solar cells with a certified power conversion efficiency of 7.6%, a net 2% improvement over previous 5.6% record of the same device configuration. We analyze the deep defects in antimony selenide solar cells, and find that the density of the dominant deep defects is reduced by one order of magnitude using vapor transport deposition process.

InGaN-based thin film solar cells: Epitaxy, structural design, and photovoltaic properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sang, Liwen, E-mail: SANG.Liwen@nims.go.jp [International Center for Material Nanoarchitectonics (MANA), National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044 (Japan); JST-PRESTO, The Japan Science and Technology Agency, Tokyo 102-0076 (Japan); Liao, Meiyong; Koide, Yasuo [Wide Bandgap Materials Group, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044 (Japan); Sumiya, Masatomo [Wide Bandgap Materials Group, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044 (Japan); JST-ALCA, The Japan Science and Technology Agency, Tokyo 102-0076 (Japan)

2015-03-14

In{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}N, with the tunable direct bandgaps from ultraviolet to near infrared region, offers a promising candidate for the high-efficiency next-generation thin-film photovoltaic applications. Although the adoption of thick InGaN film as the active region is desirable to obtain efficient light absorption and carrier collection compared to InGaN/GaN quantum wells structure, the understanding on the effect from structural design is still unclear due to the poor-quality InGaN films with thickness and difficulty of p-type doping. In this paper, we comprehensively investigate the effects from film epitaxy, doping, and device structural design on the performances of the InGaN-based solar cells. The high-quality InGaN thick film is obtained on AlN/sapphire template, and p-In{sub 0.08}Ga{sub 0.92}N is achieved with a high hole concentration of more than 10{sup 18 }cm{sup −3}. The dependence of the photovoltaic performances on different structures, such as active regions and p-type regions is analyzed with respect to the carrier transport mechanism in the dark and under illumination. The strategy of improving the p-i interface by using a super-thin AlN interlayer is provided, which successfully enhances the performance of the solar cells.

Development in fiscal 1999 of technologies to put photovoltaic power generation systems into practical use. Development of thin film solar cell manufacturing technologies (Development of technologies to manufacture applied type thin film solar cells with new structure and development of high-efficiency hybrid thin film/sheet solar cells); 1999 nendo taiyoko hatsuden system jitsuyoka gijutsu kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Usumaku taiyo denchi no seizo gijutsu kaihatsu (oyogata shin kozo usumaku taiyo denchi no seizo gijutsu kaihatsu (kokoritsu hybrid gata usumaku / sheet taiyo denchi no seizo gijutsu kaihatsu))

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2000-03-01

With an objective to develop low-cost and high-efficiency hybrid thin film/sheet solar cells, research and development has been performed. This paper summarizes the achievements in fiscal 1999. The research is related to a hybrid construction, in which the upper cells of amorphous silicon thin film are formed on the lower cells bonded with micro-crystalline silicon thin film relative to a poly-crystalline silicon sheet. In the technology to form the upper cells, a pin-construction using amorphous silicon thin film made by using the plasma CVD process was adopted, whereas an open circuit voltage of 1.45V, a short circuit current of 13.6 mA/cm{sup 2}, and a conversion efficiency of 13.5% were obtained. In the technology to form the substrate for the lower cells, formation of flat silicon thin plate that can be peeled off was identified as a result of adopting the construction in which a graphite substrate is provided on a rotating cooling body of 12-prism type. With regard to the technology to bond and form the lower cells, electrical properties of hetero-bonded cells were discussed, and an open circuit voltage of 0.605V and a conversion efficiency of 14.3% were obtained as a result of enhancing the film quality and optimizing the film thickness. (NEDO)

Efficiency loss prevention in monolithically integrated thin film solar cells by improved front contact

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Deelen, J. van; Barink, M.; Klerk, L.; Voorthuijzen, P.; Hovestad, A.

2015-01-01

Modeling indicates a potential efficiency boost of 17% if thin-film solar panels are featured with a metallic grid. Variations of transparent conductive oxide sheet resistance, cell length, and grid dimensions are discussed. These parameters were optimized simultaneously to obtain the best result.

A Novel Semiconductor CIGS Photovoltaic Material and Thin-Film ED Technology

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2001-01-01

In order to achieve low-cost high-efficiency thin-film solar cells, a novel Semiconductor Photovoltaic (PV) active material CuIn1-xGaxSe2 (CIGS) and thin-film Electro-Deposition (ED) technology is explored. Firstly,the PV materials and technologies is investigated, then the detailed experimental processes of CIGS/Mo/glass structure by using the novel ED technology and the results are reported. These results shows that high quality CIGS polycrystalline thin-films can be obtained by the ED method, in which the polycrystalline CIGS is definitely identified by the (112), (204, 220) characteristic peaks of the tetragonal structure, the continuous CIGS thin-film layers with particle average size of about 2μm of length and around 1.6μm of thickness. The thickness and solargrade quality of CIGS thin-films can be produced with good repeatability. Discussion and analysis on the ED technique, CIGS energy band and sodium (Na) impurity properties, were also performed. The alloy CIGS exhibits not only increasing band-gap with increasing x, but also a change in material properties that is relevant to the device operation. The beneficial impurity Na originating from the low-cost soda-lime glass substrate becomes one prerequisite for high quality CIGS films. These novel material and technology are very useful for low-cost high-efficiency thin-film solar cells and other devices.

Direct current magnetron sputter-deposited ZnO thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoon, Jian-Wei; Chan, Kah-Yoong; Krishnasamy, Jegenathan; Tou, Teck-Yong; Knipp, Dietmar

2011-01-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a very promising electronic material for emerging transparent large-area electronic applications including thin-film sensors, transistors and solar cells. We fabricated ZnO thin films by employing direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering deposition technique. ZnO films with different thicknesses ranging from 150 nm to 750 nm were deposited on glass substrates. The deposition pressure and the substrate temperature were varied from 12 mTorr to 25 mTorr, and from room temperature to 450 deg. C, respectively. The influence of the film thickness, deposition pressure and the substrate temperature on structural and optical properties of the ZnO films was investigated using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrometer. The experimental results reveal that the film thickness, deposition pressure and the substrate temperature play significant role in the structural formation and the optical properties of the deposited ZnO thin films.

Yttria and ceria doped zirconia thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saporiti, F.; Juarez, R. E., E-mail: cididi@fi.uba.ar [Grupo de Materiales Avanzados, Facultad de Ingenieria, Universidad de Buenos Aires (Argentina); Audebert, F. [Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas (CONICET) (Argentina); Boudard, M. [Laboratoire des Materiaux et du Genie Physique (CNRS), Grenoble (France)

2013-11-01

The Yttria stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) is a standard electrolyte for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), which are potential candidates for next generation portable and mobile power sources. YSZ electrolyte thin films having a cubic single phase allow reducing the SOFC operating temperature without diminishing the electrochemical power density. Films of 8 mol% Yttria stabilized Zirconia (8YSZ) and films with addition of 4 weight% Ceria (8YSZ + 4CeO{sub 2}) were grown by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique using 8YSZ and 8YSZ + 4CeO{sub 2} targets and a Nd-YAG laser (355 nm). Films have been deposited on Soda-Calcia-Silica glass and Si(100) substrates at room temperature. The morphology and structural characteristics of the samples have been studied by means of X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Films of a cubic-YSZ single phase with thickness in the range of 1-3 Micro-Sign m were grown on different substrates (author)

Development of thin-film Si HYBRID solar module

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nakajima, Akihiko; Gotoh, Masahiro; Sawada, Toru; Fukuda, Susumu; Yoshimi, Masashi; Yamamoto, Kenji; Nomura, Takuji [Kaneka Corporation, 2-1-1, Hieitsuji, Otsu, Shiga 520-0104 (Japan)

2009-06-15

The device current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of thin-film silicon stacked tandem solar modules (HYBRID modules), consisting of a hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) cell and a thin-film crystalline silicon solar cell ({mu}c-Si), have been investigated under various spectral irradiance distributions. The performance of the HYBRID module varied periodically in natural sunlight due to the current-limiting property of the HYBRID module and the environmental effects. The behavior based on the current-limiting property was demonstrated by the modelling of the I-V curves using the linear interpolation method for each component cell. The improvement of the performance for the HYBRID module in natural sunlight will also be discussed from the viewpoint of the device design of the component cells. (author)

Influence of the grid and cell design on the power output of thin film Cu(InGa)Se2 cells

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Deelen, J. van; Frijters, C.; Suijlen, M.; Barink, M.

2015-01-01

The effect of the front contact characteristics on the working of monolithically integrated thin film solar panels and effective ways of improving the front contact are discussed. Efficiencies were calculated for various cell lengths and scribing areas in between cells (interconnection dead zone

Thin Film Catalyst Layers for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Witham, C. K.; Chun, W.; Ruiz, R.; Valdez, T. I.; Narayanan, S. R.

2000-01-01

One of the primary obstacles to the widespread use of the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) is the high cost of the catalyst. Therefore, reducing the catalyst loading well below the current level of 8-12 mg/cm 2 would be important to commercialization. The current methods for preparation of catalyst layers consisting of catalyst, ionomer and sometimes a hydrophobic additive are applied by either painting, spraying, decal transfer or screen printing processes. Sputter deposition is a coating technique widely used in manufacturing and therefore particularly attractive. In this study we have begun to explore sputtering as a method for catalyst deposition. Present experiments focus on Pt-Ru catalyst layers for the anode.

Low temperature solid oxide fuel cells with proton-conducting Y:BaZrO{sub 3} electrolyte on porous anodic aluminum oxide substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ha, Seungbum [School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Daehak-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151–742 (Korea, Republic of); Su, Pei-Chen [School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Ji, Sanghoon [Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology, Seoul National University, Daehak-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151–742 (Korea, Republic of); Cha, Suk Won, E-mail: swcha@snu.ac.kr [School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Daehak-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151–742 (Korea, Republic of)

2013-10-01

This paper presents the architecture of a nano thin-film yttrium-doped barium zirconate (BYZ) solid-oxide fuel cell that uses nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) as a supporting and gas-permeable substrate. The anode was fabricated by sputtering 300 nm platinum thin film that partially covered the AAO surface pores, followed by an additional conformal platinum coating to tune the pore size by atomic layer deposition. Two different nano-porous anode structures with a pore size of 10 nm or 50 nm were deposited. Proton-conducting BYZ ceramic electrolyte with increasing thicknesses of 300, 600, and 900 nm was deposited on top of the platinum anode by pulsed laser deposition, followed by a 200 nm layer of porous Pt sputtered on BYZ electrolyte as a cathode. The open circuit voltage (OCV) of the fuel cells was characterized at 250 °C with 1:1 volumetric stoichiometry of a methanol/water vapor mixture as the fuel. The OCVs were 0.17 V with a 900 nm-thick BYZ electrolyte on 50 nm pores and 0.3 V with a 600 nm-thick BYZ electrolyte on 10 nm pores, respectively, but it increased to 0.8 V for a 900 nm-thick BYZ electrolyte on 10 nm pores, indicating that increasing the film thickness and decreasing a surface pore size help to reduce the number of electrolyte pinholes and the gas leakage through the electrolyte. A maximum power density of 5.6 mW/cm{sup 2} at 250 °C was obtained from the fuel cell with 900 nm of BYZ electrolyte using methanol vapor as a fuel. - Highlights: • A low temperature ceramic fuel cell on nano-porous substrate was demonstrated. • A thin-film yttrium doped barium zirconate (BYZ) was deposited as an electrolyte. • An open circuit voltage (OCV) was measured to verify the BYZ film quality. • An OCV increased by increasing BYZ film thickness and decreasing pore size of anode. • The current–voltage performance was measured using vaporized methanol fuel at 250 °C.

Single source precursors for fabrication of I-III-VI{sub 2} thin-film solar cells via spray CVD

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hollingsworth, J.A.; Banger, K.K.; Jin, M.H.-C.; Harris, J.D.; Cowen, J.E.; Bohannan, E.W.; Switzer, J.A.; Buhro, W.E.; Hepp, A.F

2003-05-01

The development of thin-film solar cells on flexible, lightweight, space-qualified substrates provides an attractive cost solution to fabricating solar arrays with high specific power (W/kg). Thin-film fabrication studies demonstrate that ternary single source precursors can be used in either a hot, or cold-wall spray chemical vapour deposition reactor, for depositing CuInS{sub 2}, CuGaS{sub 2} and CuGaInS{sub 2} at reduced temperatures (400-450 sign C), which display good electrical and optical properties suitable for photovoltaic devices. X-ray diffraction studies, energy dispersive spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy confirmed the formation of the single phase CIS, CGS, CIGS thin-films on various substrates at reduced temperatures.

Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials as Active Layer Components in Thin-Film Photovoltaics

Science.gov (United States)

Shastry, Tejas Attreya

Thin-film photovoltaics offer the promise of cost-effective and scalable solar energy conversion, particularly for applications of semi-transparent solar cells where the poor absorption of commercially-available silicon is inadequate. Applications ranging from roof coatings that capture solar energy to semi-transparent windows that harvest the immense amount of incident sunlight on buildings could be realized with efficient and stable thin-film solar cells. However, the lifetime and efficiency of thin-film solar cells continue to trail their inorganic silicon counterparts. Low-dimensional nanomaterials, such as carbon nanotubes and two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides, have recently been explored as materials in thin-film solar cells due to their exceptional optoelectronic properties, solution-processability, and chemical inertness. Thus far, issues with the processing of these materials has held back their implementation in efficient photovoltaics. This dissertation reports processing advances that enable demonstrations of low-dimensional nanomaterials in thin-film solar cells. These low-dimensional photovoltaics show enhanced photovoltaic efficiency and environmental stability in comparison to previous devices, with a focus on semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes as an active layer component. The introduction summarizes recent advances in the processing of carbon nanotubes and their implementation through the thin-film photovoltaic architecture, as well as the use of two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides in photovoltaic applications and potential future directions for all-nanomaterial solar cells. The following chapter reports a study of the interaction between carbon nanotubes and surfactants that enables them to be sorted by electronic type via density gradient ultracentrifugation. These insights are utilized to construct of a broad distribution of carbon nanotubes that absorb throughout the solar spectrum. This polychiral distribution is then shown

Development of Deposition and Characterization Systems for Thin Film Solar Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Cimaroli, Alexander J.

Photovoltaic (PV) devices are becoming more important due to a number of economic and environmental factors. PV research relies on the ability to quickly fabricate and characterize these devices. While there are a number of deposition methods that are available in a laboratory setting, they are not necessarily able to be scaled to provide high throughput in a commercial setting. A close-space sublimation (CSS) system was developed to provide a means of depositing thin films in a very controlled and scalable manner. Its viability was explored by using it to deposit the absorber layer in Zn3P2 and CdTe solar cell devices. Excellent control over morphology and growth conditions and a high level of repeatability was demonstrated in the study of textured Zn3P2 thin films. However, some limitations imposed by the structure of Zn3P 2-based PV devices showed that CSS may not be the best approach for depositing Zn3P2 thin films. Despite the inability to make Zn3P2 solar cell devices, high efficiency CdTe solar cells were fabricated using CSS. With the introduction of Perovskite-based solar cell devices, the viability of data collected from conventional J-V measurements was questioned due to the J-V hysteresis that Perovskite devices exhibited. New methods of solar cell characterization were developed in order to accurately and quickly assess the performance of hysteretic PV devices. Both J-V measurements and steady-state efficiency measurements are prone to errors due to hysteresis and maximum power point drift. To resolve both of these issues, a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) system was developed with two algorithms: a simple algorithm and a predictive algorithm. The predictive algorithm showed increased resistance to the effects of hysteresis because of its ability to predict the steady-state current after a bias step with a double exponential decay model fit. Some publications have attempted to quantify the degree of J-V hysteresis present in fabricated Perovskite

Porous Zinc Oxide Thin Films: Synthesis Approaches and Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco Laurenti

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Zinc oxide (ZnO thin films have been widely investigated due to their multifunctional properties, i.e., catalytic, semiconducting and optical. They have found practical use in a wide number of application fields. However, the presence of a compact micro/nanostructure has often limited the resulting material properties. Moreover, with the advent of low-dimensional ZnO nanostructures featuring unique physical and chemical properties, the interest in studying ZnO thin films diminished more and more. Therefore, the possibility to combine at the same time the advantages of thin-film based synthesis technologies together with a high surface area and a porous structure might represent a powerful solution to prepare ZnO thin films with unprecedented physical and chemical characteristics that may find use in novel application fields. Within this scope, this review offers an overview on the most successful synthesis methods that are able to produce ZnO thin films with both framework and textural porosities. Moreover, we discuss the related applications, mainly focused on photocatalytic degradation of dyes, gas sensor fabrication and photoanodes for dye-sensitized solar cells.

11.3% efficiency Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 thin film solar cells via drop-on-demand inkjet printing

OpenAIRE

Lin, Xianzhong; Klenk, Reiner; Wang, Lan; Köhler, Tristan; Albert, Jürgen; Fiechter, Sebastian; Ennaoui, Ahmed; Lux-Steiner, Martha

2017-01-01

Although Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 (CIGSe) based thin film solar cells have reached efficiencies exceeding 22% based on vacuum processed CIGSSe absorbers, the supply of indium and gallium might become an issue if CIGSSe thin-film solar cells are produced in very large volumes. It is therefore mandatory to reduce the wastage of indium and gallium during the fabrication process. In this work, we report on a highly efficient precursor utilization, and a vacuum-free, and scalable route to the deposition o...

Sol–gel derived scattering layers as substrates for thin-film photovoltaic cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hegmann, Jan [Lehrstuhl für Chemische Technologie der Materialsynthese, Universität Würzburg, Röntgenring 11, 97070 Würzburg (Germany); Mandl, Magdalena [Fraunhofer-Institut für Silicatforschung, Neunerplatz 2, 97082 Würzburg (Germany); Löbmann, Peer, E-mail: peer.loebmann@isc.fraunhofer.de [Fraunhofer-Institut für Silicatforschung, Neunerplatz 2, 97082 Würzburg (Germany)

2014-08-01

Agglomerated silica particles were coated on glass by dip-coating; the resulting films exhibited optical scattering. With constant optical transmittances > 80% their haze could be modified by the withdrawal rate applied for the respective deposition procedure. Film thickness, surface topography and coverage of the substrate were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy. For the use in radiation management in thin-film silicon solar cells in a first step the scattering layers were coated with aluminum-doped zinc oxide by sputtering; the optical performance of the resulting bilayer was characterized by haze measurements and angle resolved scattering spectroscopy. Quantum efficiencies of complete solar cells could be determined after the deposition of a hydrogenated amorphous Si/hydrogenated microcrystalline Si tandem absorber and application of metallic back contacts. It turned out that the external quantum efficiency of the resulting cells is not directly related to the light scattering performance of the scattering layer used. - Highlights: • Characterization of sol–gel scattering layers • Combination of different coating-technologies to prepare stacks with optical functionality • Comprehensive material preparation and characterization for complex multilayer.

Improving Performance of CIGS Solar Cells by Annealing ITO Thin Films Electrodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chuan Lung Chuang

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Indium tin oxide (ITO thin films were grown on glass substrates by direct current (DC reactive magnetron sputtering at room temperature. Annealing at the optimal temperature can considerably improve the composition, structure, optical properties, and electrical properties of the ITO film. An ITO sample with a favorable crystalline structure was obtained by annealing in fixed oxygen/argon ratio of 0.03 at 400°C for 30 min. The carrier concentration, mobility, resistivity, band gap, transmission in the visible-light region, and transmission in the near-IR regions of the ITO sample were -1.6E+20 cm−3, 2.7E+01 cm2/Vs, 1.4E-03 Ohm-cm, 3.2 eV, 89.1%, and 94.7%, respectively. Thus, annealing improved the average transmissions (400–1200 nm of the ITO film by 16.36%. Moreover, annealing a copper-indium-gallium-diselenide (CIGS solar cell at 400°C for 30 min in air improved its efficiency by 18.75%. The characteristics of annealing ITO films importantly affect the structural, morphological, electrical, and optical properties of ITO films that are used in solar cells.

Double-layer indium doped zinc oxide for silicon thin-film solar cell prepared by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiao Bao-Chen; Zhang Xiao-Dan; Wei Chang-Chun; Sun Jian; Ni Jian; Zhao Ying

2011-01-01

Indium doped zinc oxide (ZnO:In) thin films were prepared by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis on corning eagle 2000 glass substrate. 1 and 2 at.% indium doped single-layer ZnO:In thin films with different amounts of acetic acid added in the initial solution were fabricated. The 1 at.% indium doped single-layers have triangle grains. The 2 at.% indium doped single-layer with 0.18 acetic acid adding has the resistivity of 6.82×10 −3 Ω·cm and particle grains. The double-layers structure is designed to fabricate the ZnO:In thin film with low resistivity (2.58×10 −3 Ω·cm) and good surface morphology. It is found that the surface morphology of the double-layer ZnO:In film strongly depends on the substrate-layer, and the second-layer plays a large part in the resistivity of the double-layer ZnO:In thin film. Both total and direct transmittances of the double-layer ZnO:In film are above 80% in the visible light region. Single junction a-Si:H solar cell based on the double-layer ZnO:In as front electrode is also investigated. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

Intercalation crystallization of phase-pure α-HC(NH₂)₂PbI₃ upon microstructurally engineered PbI₂ thin films for planar perovskite solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Yuanyuan; Yang, Mengjin; Kwun, Joonsuh; Game, Onkar S; Zhao, Yixin; Pang, Shuping; Padture, Nitin P; Zhu, Kai

2016-03-28

The microstructure of the solid-PbI2 precursor thin film plays an important role in the intercalation crystallization of the formamidinium lead triiodide perovskite (α-HC(NH2)2PbI3). It is shown that microstructurally engineered PbI2 thin films with porosity and low crystallinity are the most favorable for conversion into uniform-coverage, phase-pure α-HC(NH2)2PbI3 perovskite thin films. Planar perovskite solar cells fabricated using these thin films deliver power conversion efficiency (PCE) up to 13.8%.

Growth, etching, and stability of sputtered ZnO:Al for thin-film silicon solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Owen, Jorj Ian

2011-07-01

Aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al) can fulfill many requirements in thin-film solar cells, acting as (1) a transparent contact through which the incident light is transmitted, (2) part of the back reflector, and (3) a source of light scattering. Magnetron sputtered ZnO:Al thin-films are highly transparent, conductive, and are typically texturized by post-deposition etching in a dilute hydrochloric acid (HCl) solution to achieve light scattering. The ZnO:Al thin-film electronic and optical properties, as well as the surface texture after etching, depend on the deposition conditions and the post-deposition treatments. Despite having been used in thin-film solar cells for more than a decade, many aspects regarding the growth, effects of heat treatments, environmental stability, and etching of sputtered ZnO:Al are not fully understood. This work endeavors to further the understanding of ZnO:Al for the purpose improving silicon thin-film solar cell efficiency and reducing ZnO:Al production costs. With regard to the growth of ZnO:Al, the influence of various deposition conditions on the resultant electrical and structural properties and their evolution with film thickness were studied. The surface electrical properties extracted from a multilayer model show that while carrier concentration of the surface layer saturates already at film thickness of 100 nm, the surface mobility continues to increases with film thickness, and it is concluded that electronic transport across grain boundaries limits mobility in ZnO:Al thin films. ZnO:Al deposited onto a previously etched ZnO:Al surface grows epitaxially, preserving both the original orientation and grain structure. Further, it is determined that a typical ZnO:Al used in thin-film silicon solar cells grows Zn-terminated on glass substrates. Concerning the affects of heat treatments and stability, it is demonstrated that a layer of amorphous silicon can protect ZnO:Al from degradation during annealing, and the mobility of Zn

Thin-film Rechargeable Lithium Batteries for Implantable Devices

Science.gov (United States)

Bates, J. B.; Dudney, N. J.

1997-05-01

Thin films of LiCoO{sub 2} have been synthesized in which the strongest x ray reflection is either weak or missing, indicating a high degree of preferred orientation. Thin film solid state batteries with these textured cathode films can deliver practical capacities at high current densities. For example, for one of the cells 70% of the maximum capacity between 4.2 V and 3 V ({approximately}0.2 mAh/cm{sup 2}) was delivered at a current of 2 mA/cm{sup 2}. When cycled at rates of 0.1 mA/cm{sup 2}, the capacity loss was 0.001%/cycle or less. The reliability and performance of Li LiCoO{sub 2} thin film batteries make them attractive for application in implantable devices such as neural stimulators, pacemakers, and defibrillators.

Electronic grain boundary properties in polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} semiconductors for thin film solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baier, Robert

2012-06-25

Solar cells based on polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGSe) thin film absorbers reach the highest energy conversion efficiency among all thin film solar cells. The record efficiency is at least partly attributed to benign electronic properties of grain boundaries (GBs) in the CIGSe layers. However, despite a high amount of research on this phenomenon the underlying physics is not sufficiently understood. This thesis presents an elaborate study on the electronic properties of GBs in CIGSe thin films. Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) was employed to investigate the electronic properties of GBs in dependence of the Ga-content. Five CIGSe thin lms with various Ga-contents were grown by means of similar three stage co-evaporation processes. Both as grown as well as chemically treated (KCN etched) thin films were analyzed. The chemical treatment was employed to remove surface oxides. No difference in electronic GB properties was found with or without the chemical treatment. Therefore, we conclude that a moderate surface oxidation does not alter the electronic properties of GBs. In general, one can observe significant variations of electronic potential barriers at GBs. Under consideration of the averaging effect of the work function signal of nanoscale potential distributions in KPFM measurements which was quantified in the course of this thesis both positive and negative potential barriers in a range between ∼-350 mV and ∼+450 mV were detected. Additionally, variations in the defect densities at GBs between ∼3.1 x 10{sup 11} cm{sup -2} and ∼2.1 x 10{sup 12} cm{sup -2} were found. However, no correlation between the electronic properties of GBs and the Ga-content of CIGSe thin films was discovered. Consequently, one cannot explain the drop in device efficiency observed for CIGSe thin film solar cells with a high Ga-content by a change of the electronic properties of GBs. Combined KPFM and electron backscatter diffraction measurements were employed for the

Thin-film silicon solar cell technology

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Shah, A. V.; Schade, H.; Vaněček, Milan; Meier, J.; Vallat-Sauvain, E.; Wyrsch, N.; Kroll, U.; Droz, C.; Bailat, J.

2004-01-01

Roč. 12, - (2004), s. 113-142 ISSN 1062-7995 R&D Projects: GA MŽP SN/320/11/03 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1010914 Keywords : thin-film silicon modules * hydrogenerated amorphous silicon(a-Si:H) * hydrogenerated microcrystalline (ćc-Si:H) * transparent conductive oxydes(TCOs) * building-integrated photovoltaics(BIPV) Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 1.196, year: 2004

Texture-Etched SnO2 Glasses Applied to Silicon Thin-Film Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bing-Rui Wu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Transparent electrodes of tin dioxide (SnO2 on glasses were further wet-etched in the diluted HCl:Cr solution to obtain larger surface roughness and better light-scattering characteristic for thin-film solar cell applications. The process parameters in terms of HCl/Cr mixture ratio, etching temperature, and etching time have been investigated. After etching process, the surface roughness, transmission haze, and sheet resistance of SnO2 glasses were measured. It was found that the etching rate was increased with the additions in etchant concentration of Cr and etching temperature. The optimum texture-etching parameters were 0.15 wt.% Cr in 49% HCl, temperature of 90°C, and time of 30 sec. Moreover, silicon thin-film solar cells with the p-i-n structure were fabricated on the textured SnO2 glasses using hot-wire chemical vapor deposition. By optimizing the texture-etching process, the cell efficiency was increased from 4.04% to 4.39%, resulting from the increment of short-circuit current density from 14.14 to 15.58 mA/cm2. This improvement in cell performances can be ascribed to the light-scattering effect induced by surface texturization of SnO2.

Thin film metal-oxides

CERN Document Server

Ramanathan, Shriram

2009-01-01

Presents an account of the fundamental structure-property relations in oxide thin films. This title discusses the functional properties of thin film oxides in the context of applications in the electronics and renewable energy technologies.

Environmental influences on the performance of thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gottschalg, Ralph

2001-01-01

The response of thin film photovoltaic devices to changes in the environment is not well understood. There are a large number of conflicting reports, reflecting largely the superimposed nature of the environmental effects. A separation of the effects is not often attempted mainly because of the lack of appropriate spectral data. An experimental system has been designed and operated to facilitate the separation of the environmental effects, including spectral effects. This involves measurements in a controlled laboratory environment as well as outdoor monitoring. Furthermore, a number of analysis tools have been developed and tested for their suitability. In order to develop a system model, the applicability of parametric models for thin film devices is probed. The thermal variation of the underlying physical parameters is investigated and problems of describing thin film devices with parametric models are discussed. It is shown that the magnitude of the spectral effects for thin film devices is potentially much more significant than for conventional crystalline silicon devices. This analysis is centred on the primary spectral effect, i.e. it is conducted purely on the basis of available light and does not consider any absorption profiles or device structures. It is also shown that there is a strong daily and seasonal variation in the fraction of the useful light for devices employing a larger band gap. Environmental effects are observed directly from outdoor measurements. It is apparent that many of the reported idiosyncrasies occurring during the operation of thin film devices can be explained simply by including spectral effects. It is possible to show the secondary spectral effect for multi-junction devices, i.e. an effect that depends on the composition of the solar irradiance and not purely on the magnitude of spectrally useful irradiance. This effect impacts mainly on the short circuit current and to some extent on the fill factor. Finally, the findings of

Unit cell determination of epitaxial thin films based on reciprocal space vectors by high-resolution X-ray diffractometry

OpenAIRE

Yang, Ping; Liu, Huajun; Chen, Zuhuang; Chen, Lang; Wang, John

2013-01-01

A new approach, based on reciprocal space vectors (RSVs), is developed to determine Bravais lattice types and accurate lattice parameters of epitaxial thin films by high-resolution X-ray diffractometry (HR-XRD). The lattice parameters of single crystal substrates are employed as references to correct the systematic experimental errors of RSVs of thin films. The general procedure is summarized, involving correction of RSVs, derivation of raw unit cell, subsequent conversion to the Niggli unit ...

13.7%-efficient Zn(Se,OH){sub x}/Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se){sub 2} thin-film solar cell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ennaoui, A. [Hahn-Meitner-Institut, Bereich Physikalische Chemie, Berlin (Germany); Blieske, U.; Lux-Steiner, M.Ch. [Hahn-Meitner-Institut, Bereich Festkoerperphysik, Berlin (Germany)

1998-12-01

Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGS) and related semiconducting compounds have demonstrated their high potential for high-efficiency thin-film solar cells. The highest efficiency for CIGS based thin-film solar cells has been achieved with CdS buffer layers prepared by a solution growth method known as chemical based deposition (CBD). With the aim of developing Cd-free chalcopyrite-based thin-film solar cells, Zn(Se,OH){sub x} buffer layers were deposited by CBD on polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se){sub 2} (CIGSS). A total-area conversion efficiency of 13.7% was certified by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems. The CIGSS absorber was fabricated by Siemens Solar Industries (California). For device optimisation, the thickness and good surface coverage were controlled by XPS-UPS photoemission spectroscopy. A Zn(Se,OH){sub x} thickness below 7 nm has been found to be optimum for achieving a homogeneous and compact buffer film on CIGSS, with open-circuit photovoltage V{sub oc} = 535 mV, fill factor FF = 70.76% and a high short-circuit photocurrent density J{sub sc} 36.1 mA cm{sup -2}. (Author)

Research on fabrication technology for thin film solar cells for practical use. Technological development for qualitative improvement (development of fabrication technology of thin film polycrystalline Si solar cell); Usumaku taiyo denchi seizo gijutsu no jitsuyoka kenkyu. Kohinshitsuka gijutsu (usumaku takessho silicon kei taiyo denchi seizo no gijutsu kaihatsu)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tatsuta, M [New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, Tokyo (Japan)

1994-12-01

This paper reports the study results on the fabrication technology of thin film polycrystalline Si solar cells in fiscal 1994. (1) On the fabrication technology of high-quality Si thin films, the new equipment was studied which allows uniform stable melting recrystallization over a large area. The new equipment adopted a heating method based on RTP system, and is now under adjustment. (2) On the fabrication technology of light/carrier confinement structure, degradation of hydrogen-treated thin film Si solar cells by light irradiation was examined. As a result, since any characteristic degradation was not found even by long time light irradiation, the high quality of the cells was confirmed regardless of hydrogen-treatment. Fabrication of stable reproducible fine texture structure became possible by using fabrication technology of light confinement structure by texture treatment of cell surfaces. (3) On low-cost process technology, design by VEST process, estimation of cell characteristics by simulation, and characteristics of prototype cells were reported. 33 figs., 1 tab.

ZnO transparent conductive oxide for thin film silicon solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Söderström, T.; Dominé, D.; Feltrin, A.; Despeisse, M.; Meillaud, F.; Bugnon, G.; Boccard, M.; Cuony, P.; Haug, F.-J.; Faÿ, S.; Nicolay, S.; Ballif, C.

2010-03-01

There is general agreement that the future production of electric energy has to be renewable and sustainable in the long term. Photovoltaic (PV) is booming with more than 7GW produced in 2008 and will therefore play an important role in the future electricity supply mix. Currently, crystalline silicon (c-Si) dominates the market with a share of about 90%. Reducing the cost per watt peak and energy pay back time of PV was the major concern of the last decade and remains the main challenge today. For that, thin film silicon solar cells has a strong potential because it allies the strength of c-Si (i.e. durability, abundancy, non toxicity) together with reduced material usage, lower temperature processes and monolithic interconnection. One of the technological key points is the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) used for front contact, barrier layer or intermediate reflector. In this paper, we report on the versatility of ZnO grown by low pressure chemical vapor deposition (ZnO LP-CVD) and its application in thin film silicon solar cells. In particular, we focus on the transparency, the morphology of the textured surface and its effects on the light in-coupling for micromorph tandem cells in both the substrate (n-i-p) and superstrate (p-i-n) configurations. The stabilized efficiencies achieved in Neuchâtel are 11.2% and 9.8% for p-i-n (without ARC) and n-i-p (plastic substrate), respectively.

Preparation of thin films, with base to precursor materials of type Cu-In-Se elaborated by electrodeposition for the solar cells elaboration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fernandez, A.M.

1999-01-01

Thin films of chalcogenide compounds are promising because they have excellent optoelectronic characteristics to be applied in solar cells. In particular, CuInSe 2 and Cd Te thin films have shown high solar to electrical conversion efficiency. However, this efficiency is limited by the method of preparation, in this case, physical vapor deposition techniques are used. In order to increase the area of deposition t is necessary to use chemical methods, for example, electrodeposition technique. In this paper, the preparation of Cu-In-Se precursors thin films by electrochemical method is reported. These precursors were used to build solar cells with 7.9 % of efficiency. (Author)

Band gap engineering of hydrogenated amorphous carbon thin films for solar cell application

Science.gov (United States)

Dwivedi, Neeraj; Kumar, Sushil; Dayal, Saurabh; Rauthan, C. M. S.; Panwar, O. S.; Malik, Hitendra K.

2012-10-01

In this work, self bias variation, nitrogen introduction and oxygen plasma (OP) treatment approaches have been used for tailoring the band gap of hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H) thin films. The band gap of a-C:H and modified a- C:H films is varied in the range from 1.25 eV to 3.45 eV, which is found to be nearly equal to the full solar spectrum (1 eV- 3.5 eV). Hence, such a-C:H and modified a-C:H films are found to be potential candidate for the development of full spectrum solar cells. Besides this, computer aided simulation with considering variable band gap a-C:H and modified a- C:H films as window layer for amorphous silicon p-i-n solar cells is also performed by AFORS-HET software and maximum efficiency as ~14 % is realized. Since a-C:H is hard material, hence a-C:H and modified a-C:H films as window layer may avoid the use of additional hard and protective coating particularly in n-i-p configuration.

Complementary Characterization of Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ Thin-Film Photovoltaic Cells Using Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry, Auger Electron Spectroscopy, and Atom Probe Tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, Yun Jung; Lee, Jihye; Jeong, Jeung-Hyun; Lee, Kang-Bong; Kim, Donghwan; Lee, Yeonhee

2018-05-01

To enhance the conversion performance of solar cells, a quantitative and depth-resolved elemental analysis of photovoltaic thin films is required. In this study, we determined the average concentration of the major elements (Cu, In, Ga, and Se) in fabricated Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) thin films, using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence, and wavelengthdispersive electron probe microanalysis. Depth profiling results for CIGS thin films with different cell efficiencies were obtained using secondary ion mass spectrometry and Auger electron spectroscopy to compare the atomic concentrations. Atom probe tomography, a characterization technique with sub-nanometer resolution, was used to obtain three-dimensional elemental mapping and the compositional distribution at the grain boundaries (GBs). GBs are identified by Na increment accompanied by Cu depletion and In enrichment. Segregation of Na atoms along the GB had a beneficial effect on cell performance. Comparative analyses of different CIGS absorber layers using various analytical techniques provide us with understanding of the compositional distributions and structures of high efficiency CIGS thin films in solar cells.

Plasmonic metamaterial-based chemical converted graphene/TiO2/Ag thin films by a simple spray pyrolysis technique

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Promod; Swart, H. C.

2018-04-01

Graphene based hybrid nanostructures have received special attention in both the scientific and technological development due to their unique physicochemical behavior, which make them attractive in various applications such as, batteries, supercapacitors, fuel cells, solar cells, photovoltaic devices and bio-sensors. In the present study, the role of plasmonic metamaterials in light trapping photovoltaics for inorganic semiconducting materials by a simple and low cost spray pyrolysis technique has been studied. The plasmonic metamaterials thin film has been fabricated by depositing chemically converted graphene (CCG) onto TiO2-Ag nanoparticles which has a low resistivity and a low electron-hole recombination probability. The localized surface plasmon resonance at the metal-dielectric interface for the Ag nanoparticles has been observed at 403 nm after depositing chemical converted graphene (CCG) on the TiO2-Ag thin film. The results suggest that the stacking order of the CCG/TiO2/Ag plasmonic metamaterials samples did not change the band gap of TiO2 while it changed the conductivity of the film. Thus the diffusion of the noble metals in the glass and TiO2 matrices based thin films can trap the light of a particular wavelength by mean of plasmonic resonance and may be useful for superior photovoltaic and optoelectronic applications.

Grating-coupled surface plasmon enhanced short-circuit current in organic thin-film photovoltaic cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Baba, Akira; Aoki, Nobutaka; Shinbo, Kazunari; Kato, Keizo; Kaneko, Futao

2011-06-01

In this study, we demonstrate the fabrication of grating-coupled surface plasmon resonance (SPR) enhanced organic thin-film photovoltaic cells and their improved photocurrent properties. The cell consists of a grating substrate/silver/P3HT:PCBM/PEDOT:PSS structure. Blu-ray disk recordable substrates are used as the diffraction grating substrates on which silver films are deposited by vacuum evaporation. P3HT:PCBM films are spin-coated on silver/grating substrates. Low conductivity PEDOT:PSS/PDADMAC layer-by-layer ultrathin films deposited on P3HT:PCBM films act as the hole transport layer, whereas high conductivity PEDOT:PSS films deposited by spin-coating act as the anode. SPR excitations are observed in the fabricated cells upon irradiation with white light. Up to a 2-fold increase in the short-circuit photocurrent is observed when the surface plasmon (SP) is excited on the silver gratings as compared to that without SP excitation. The finite-difference time-domain simulation indicates that the electric field in the P3HT:PCBM layer can be increased using the grating-coupled SP technique. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Cu2ZnSnSe4 Thin Film Solar Cell with Depth Gradient Composition Prepared by Selenization of Sputtered Novel Precursors.

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Fang-I; Yang, Jui-Fu; Chen, Wei-Chun; Kuo, Shou-Yi

2017-11-22

In this study, we proposed a new method for the synthesis of the target material used in a two stage process for preparation of a high quality CZTSe thin film. The target material consisting of a mixture of Cu x Se and Zn x Sn 1-x alloy was synthesized, providing a quality CZTSe precursor layer for highly efficient CZTSe thin film solar cells. The CZTSe thin film can be obtained by annealing the precursor layers through a 30 min selenization process under a selenium atmosphere at 550 °C. The CZTSe thin films prepared by using the new precursor thin film were investigated and characterized using X-ray diffraction, Raman scattering, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. It was found that diffusion of Sn occurred and formed the CTSe phase and Cu x Se phase in the resultant CZTSe thin film. By selective area electron diffraction transmission electron microscopy images, the crystallinity of the CZTSe thin film was verified to be single crystal. By secondary ion mass spectroscopy measurements, it was confirmed that a double-gradient band gap profile across the CZTSe absorber layer was successfully achieved. The CZTSe solar cell with the CZTSe absorber layer consisting of the precursor stack exhibited a high efficiency of 5.46%, high short circuit current (J SC ) of 37.47 mA/cm 2 , open circuit voltage (V OC ) of 0.31 V, and fill factor (F.F.) of 47%, at a device area of 0.28 cm 2 . No crossover of the light and dark current-voltage (I-V) curves of the CZTSe solar cell was observed, and also, no red kink was observed under red light illumination, indicating a low defect concentration in the CZTSe absorber layer. Shunt leakage current with a characteristic metal/CZTSe/metal leakage current model was observed by temperature-dependent I-V curves, which led to the discovery of metal incursion through the CdS buffer layer on the CZTSe absorber layer. This leakage current, also known as space charge-limited current, grew larger as the measurement temperature increased and

Structural and Electrochemical Properties of Lithium Nickel Oxide Thin Films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gyu-bong Cho

2014-01-01

Full Text Available LiNiO2 thin films were fabricated by RF magnetron sputtering. The microstructure of the films was determined by X-ray diffraction and field-emission scanning electron microscopy. The electrochemical properties were investigated with a battery cycler using coin-type half-cells. The LiNiO2 thin films annealed below 500°C had the surface carbonate. The results suggest that surface carbonate interrupted the Li intercalation and deintercalation during charge/discharge. Although the annealing process enhanced the crystallization of LiNiO2, the capacity did not increase. When the annealing temperature was increased to 600°C, the FeCrNiO4 oxide phase was generated and the discharge capacity decreased due to an oxygen deficiency in the LiNiO2 thin film. The ZrO2-coated LiNiO2 thin film provided an improved discharge capacity compared to bare LiNiO2 thin film suggesting that the improved electrochemical characteristic may be attributed to the inhibition of surface carbonate by ZrO2 coating layer.

Transparent conductive ZnO layers on polymer substrates: Thin film deposition and application in organic solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dosmailov, M. [Institute of Applied Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Leonat, L.N. [Linz Institute for Organic Solar Cells (LIOS)/Institute of Physical Chemistry, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Patek, J. [Institute of Applied Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Roth, D.; Bauer, P. [Institute of Experimental Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Scharber, M.C.; Sariciftci, N.S. [Linz Institute for Organic Solar Cells (LIOS)/Institute of Physical Chemistry, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Pedarnig, J.D., E-mail: johannes.pedarnig@jku.at [Institute of Applied Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria)

2015-09-30

Aluminum doped ZnO (AZO) and pure ZnO thin films are grown on polymer substrates by pulsed-laser deposition and the optical, electrical, and structural film properties are investigated. Laser fluence, substrate temperature, and oxygen pressure are varied to obtain transparent, conductive, and stoichiometric AZO layers on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) that are free of cracks. At low fluence (1 J/cm{sup 2}) and low pressure (10{sup −3} mbar), AZO/PET samples of high optical transmission in the visible range, low electrical sheet resistance, and high figure of merit (FOM) are produced. AZO films on fluorinated ethylene propylene have low FOM. The AZO films on PET substrates are used as electron transport layer in inverted organic solar cell devices employing P3HT:PCBM as photovoltaic polymer-fullerene bulk heterojunction. - Highlights: • Aluminum doped and pure ZnO thin films are grown on polyethylene terephthalate. • Growth parameters laser fluence, temperature, and gas pressure are optimized. • AZO films on PET have high optical transmission and electrical conductance (FOM). • Organic solar cells on PET using AZO as electron transport layer are made. • Power conversion efficiency of these OSC devices is measured.

Influence of oblique-angle sputtered transparent conducting oxides on performance of Si-based thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leem, Jung Woo; Yu, Jae Su

2011-01-01

The transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films with low-refractive-index (low-n) are fabricated by the oblique-angle sputtering method. By using the experimentally measured physical data of the fabricated low-n TCO films as the simulation parameters, the effect of low-n TCOs on the performance of a-Si:H/μc-Si:H tandem thin film solar cells is investigated using Silvaco ATLAS. The Al-doped zinc oxide, indium tin oxide (ITO), and Sb-doped tin oxide films are deposited at the flux incidence angles of θ i = 0 (normal sputtering) and θ i = 80 from the sputtering target during the sputtering process. The oblique-angle sputtered films at θ i = 80 show the inclined columnar nanostructures compared to those at θ i = 0 , modifying the optical properties of the films. This is caused mainly by the increase of porosity within the film which leads to its low-n characteristics. The a-Si:H/μc-Si:H tandem thin film solar cell incorporated with the low-n ITO film exhibits an improvement in the conversion efficiency of ∝1% under AM1.5g illumination because of its higher transmittance and lower absorption compared to that with the ITO film at θ i = 0 , indicating a conversion efficiency of 13.75%. (Copyright copyright 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Tunable thin-film optical filters for hyperspectral microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Favreau, Peter F.; Rich, Thomas C.; Prabhat, Prashant; Leavesley, Silas J.

2013-02-01

Hyperspectral imaging was originally developed for use in remote sensing applications. More recently, it has been applied to biological imaging systems, such as fluorescence microscopes. The ability to distinguish molecules based on spectral differences has been especially advantageous for identifying fluorophores in highly autofluorescent tissues. A key component of hyperspectral imaging systems is wavelength filtering. Each filtering technology used for hyperspectral imaging has corresponding advantages and disadvantages. Recently, a new optical filtering technology has been developed that uses multi-layered thin-film optical filters that can be rotated, with respect to incident light, to control the center wavelength of the pass-band. Compared to the majority of tunable filter technologies, these filters have superior optical performance including greater than 90% transmission, steep spectral edges and high out-of-band blocking. Hence, tunable thin-film optical filters present optical characteristics that may make them well-suited for many biological spectral imaging applications. An array of tunable thin-film filters was implemented on an inverted fluorescence microscope (TE 2000, Nikon Instruments) to cover the full visible wavelength range. Images of a previously published model, GFP-expressing endothelial cells in the lung, were acquired using a charge-coupled device camera (Rolera EM-C2, Q-Imaging). This model sample presents fluorescently-labeled cells in a highly autofluorescent environment. Linear unmixing of hyperspectral images indicates that thin-film tunable filters provide equivalent spectral discrimination to our previous acousto-optic tunable filter-based approach, with increased signal-to-noise characteristics. Hence, tunable multi-layered thin film optical filters may provide greatly improved spectral filtering characteristics and therefore enable wider acceptance of hyperspectral widefield microscopy.

Properties of solid polymer electrolyte fluorocarbon film. [used in hydrogen/oxygen fuel cells

Science.gov (United States)

Alston, W. B.

1973-01-01

The ionic fluorocarbon film used as the solid polymer electrolyte in hydrogen/oxygen fuel cells was found to exhibit delamination failures. Polarized light microscopy of as-received film showed a lined region at the center of the film thickness. It is shown that these lines were not caused by incomplete saponification but probably resulted from the film extrusion process. The film lines could be removed by an annealing process. Chemical, physical, and tensile tests showed that annealing improved or sustained the water contents, spectral properties, thermo-oxidative stability, and tensile properties of the film. The resistivity of the film was significantly decreased by the annealing process.

Polycaprolactone thin films for retinal tissue engineering and drug delivery

Science.gov (United States)

Steedman, Mark Rory

This dissertation focuses on the development of polycaprolactone thin films for retinal tissue engineering and drug delivery. We combined these thin films with techniques such as micro and nanofabrication to develop treatments for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a disease that leads to the death of rod and cone photoreceptors. Current treatments are only able to slow or limit the progression of the disease, and photoreceptors cannot be regenerated or replaced by the body once lost. The first experiments presented focus on a potential treatment for AMD after photoreceptor death has occurred. We developed a polymer thin film scaffold technology to deliver retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) to the affected area of the eye. Earlier research showed that RPCs destined to become photoreceptors are capable of incorporating into a degenerated retina. In our experiments, we showed that RPC attachment to a micro-welled polycaprolactone (PCL) thin film surface enhanced the differentiation of these cells toward a photoreceptor fate. We then used our PCL thin films to develop a drug delivery device capable of sustained therapeutic release over a multi-month period that would maintain an effective concentration of the drug in the eye and eliminate the need for repeated intraocular injections. We first investigated the biocompatibility of PCL in the rabbit eye. We injected PCL thin films into the anterior chamber or vitreous cavity of rabbit eyes and monitored the animals for up to 6 months. We found that PCL thin films were well tolerated in the rabbit eye, showing no signs of chronic inflammation due to the implant. We then developed a multilayered thin film device containing a microporous membrane. We loaded these devices with lyophilized proteins and quantified drug elution for 10 weeks, finding that both bovine serum albumin and immunoglobulin G elute from these devices with zero order release kinetics. These experiments demonstrate that PCL is an extremely useful