Rational Integration of Photovoltaics for Solar Hydrogen Generation

The development of commercially viable solar hydrogen generators needs to be accelerated to meet the needs of the emerging global hydrogen economy. Many different hydrogen generators have been demonstrated on a lab scale, employing semiconductor photovoltaic components integrated into the system in a variety of ways: as solar cells, photoelectrodes, and photoelectrochemical cells. Despite this, the effect of system configuration on performance has not yet been independently considered. In this work, we demonstrate that the way in which the photovoltaic components are integrated into the system is critical to maximize the solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency. We introduce a new framework, based on simple equivalent circuit models, to show that decoupling the PV components from the electrochemical cell by employing power management can significantly increase the system efficiency. Decoupled systems can also take advantage of existing solar cell technologies and the maturity of the silicon PV industry to rapidly advance solar hydrogen generation.This work is funded by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (grant number KC007). Dr. Beck is the recipient of an Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Award (project number DE180100383) funded by the Australian Government

Plasmonic light trapping leads to responsivity increase in colloidal quantum dot photodetectors

We report broadband responsivity enhancement in PbS colloidal quantum dot (CQDs) photoconductive photodetectors due to absorption increase offered by a plasmonic scattering layer of Ag metal nanoparticles. Responsivity enhancements are observed in the near infrared with a maximum 2.4-fold increase near the absorption band edge of 1 lm for 400 nm thick devices. Additionally, we study the effect of the mode structure on the efficiency of light trapping provided by random nanoparticle scattering in CQD films and provide insights for plasmonic scattering enhancement in CQD thin films.This research has been partially supported by Fundacio´ Privada Cellex Barcelona. We also acknowledge support from European Commission’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research under contract PIRG06-GA-2009-256355

Tunable light trapping for solar cells using localized surface plasmons

Effective light management is imperative in maintaining high efficiencies as photovoltaic devices become thinner. We demonstrate a simple and effective method of enhancing light trapping in solar cells with thin absorber layers by tuning localized surface plasmons in arrays of Agnanoparticles. By redshifting the surface plasmon resonances by up to 200 nm, through the modification of the local dielectric environment of the particles, we can increase the optical absorption in an underlying Si wafer fivefold at a wavelength of 1100 nm and enhance the external quantum efficiency of thin Si solar cells by a factor of 2.3 at this wavelength where transmission losses are prevalent. Additionally, by locating the nanoparticles on the rear of the solar cells, we can avoid absorption losses below the resonance wavelength due to interference effects, while still allowing long wavelength light to be coupled into the cell. Results from numerical simulations support the experimental findings and show that the fraction of light backscattered into the cell by nanoparticles located on the rear is comparable to the forward scattering effects of particles on the front. Using nanoparticle self-assembly methods and dielectrics commonly used in photovoltaic fabrication this technology is relevant for application to large-scale photovoltaic devices

Comparing nanowire, multijunction, and single junction solar cells in the presence of light trapping

In this paper we quantify the constraints and opportunities for radial junctionnanowiresolar cells, compared to single junction and multijunction solar cells, when light trapping is included. Both nanowire and multijunction designs are reliant on a very low level of traps in the junction region, and without this, single junction designs are optimal. If low trap density at the junction can be achieved, multijunction cells lead to higher efficiencies than nanowire cells for a given diffusion length, except in the case of submicron diffusion lengths. Thus the radial junctionstructure is not in itself an advantage in general, though if nanowires allow faster deposition or better light trapping than other structures they could still prove advantageous.This work was supported by the Australian Research Council

The semantics and morphology of household container names in Icelandic and Dutch

In this paper, we report an experiment on the naming of household containers in Dutch and Icelandic carried out as part of the Evolution of Semantic Systems project (EoSS; Majid et al., 2011). This naming experiment allows us to support and elaborate on a hypothesis by Malt et al. (2003) that productive morphology in the naming domain can have an influence on boundary placement within the extensional space. Specifically, we demonstrate that the Dutch diminutive -(t)je favours a cut between small items versus others, whereas Icelandic, which does not use the diminutive in this domain, favours a cut between large items and others. This is not a typological effect, as Dutch and Icelandic are both Germanic languages and both have diminutive morphology available in principle. We find no evidence that the diminutive produces a proliferation of terms and/or fine-grained nesting within the extensional domain. Rather, the Dutch diminutive favours a more even distribution of terms across the space whereas Icelandic favours broad inclusive terms with a number of narrower specialist terms. Further, the extensional space defined by the diminutive is not associated with its own clear prototypical exemplar. Using evidence from compounding and modification, we also consider which semantic features are prominent in differentiating categories within the domain. By far the most prominent in both languages is the inferred contents of the container. Other than contents, however, the languages differ in the range and prominence of features such as intended usage or material of composition. Our results demonstrate that in order to understand the processes that produce semantic divisions of basic object classes, we should consider fine-grained analyses of closely related languages alongside analyses of typologically different languages

Asymmetry in photocurrent enhancement by plasmonic nanoparticle arrays located on the front or on the rear of solar cells

We show experimentally that there is asymmetry in photocurrent enhancement by Agnanoparticle arrays located on the front or on the rear of solar cells. The scattering cross-section calculated for front- and rear-located nanoparticles can differ by up to a factor of 3.7, but the coupling efficiency remains the same. We attribute this to differences in the electric field strength and show that the normalized scattering cross-section of a front-located nanoparticle varies from two to eight depending on the intensity of the driving field. In addition, the scattering cross-section of rear-located particles can be increased fourfold using ultrathin spacer layers.This work is financially supported by the Australian Research Council and the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter FOM which is supported by NWO, as part of the Joint Solar Program

Optically controlled grippers for manipulating micron-sized particles

We report the development of a joystick controlled gripper for the real-time manipulation of micron-sized objects, driven using holographic optical tweezers (HOTs). The gripper consists of an arrangement of four silica beads, located in optical traps, which can be positioned and scaled in order to trap an object indirectly. The joystick can be used to grasp, move (lateral or axial), and change the orientation of the target object. The ability to trap objects indirectly allows us to demonstrate the manipulation of a strongly scattering micron-sized metallic particle

Designing periodic arrays of metal nanoparticles for light-trapping applications in solar cells

We present criteria for optimizing the light-trapping efficiency of periodic arrays of metal nanoparticles for Si solar cell applications. The scattering cross section of the nanoparticles and the diffraction efficiency of the grating should be maximized in the long wavelength range. The grating pitch should be chosen to allow higher order diffraction modes for long wavelengths while maintaining the highest possible fill factor. These conditions place strong constraints on the optimal parameters (particle size of ∼200 nm and pitch of ∼400 nm) for periodic arrays of metal nanoparticles, in contrast to dielectric gratings, where a relatively wide range of periods and feature sizes can be used for efficient light trapping.The authors acknowledge the A. R. C. and NOW for research conducted at the FOM as a part of the Joint Solar Programme for financial support