Enhanced absorption of thin-film photovoltaic cells using an optical cavity
JOURNAL OF OPTICS, vol.17, no.5, 2015 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Publication Type: Article / Article
- Volume: 17 Issue: 5
- Publication Date: 2015
- Doi Number: 10.1088/2040-8978/17/5/055901
- Journal Name: JOURNAL OF OPTICS
- Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
- Keywords: photovoltaics, light trapping, ray tracing, SOLAR-CELLS, FUNDAMENTAL LIMIT, PERFORMANCE, EFFICIENCY, COST
- Open Archive Collection: AVESIS Open Access Collection
- Middle East Technical University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
We show via numerical simulations that the absorption and solar energy conversion efficiency of a thin-film photovoltaic (PV) cell can be significantly enhanced by embedding it into an optical cavity. A reflective hemi-ellipsoid with an aperture for sunlight placed over a tilted PV cell reflects unabsorbed photons back to the cell, allowing for multiple opportunities for absorption. Ray tracing simulations predict that with the proposed cavity a textured thin-film silicon cell can exceed the Yablonovitch (Lambertian) limit for absorption across a broad wavelength range, while the performance of the cavity-embedded planar PV cell approaches that of the cell with the surface texturing.