BaY2F8 doped with Er3+: An upconverter material for photovoltaic application

Abstract

Fluoride crystals (BaY2F8) doped with Er3+ ions with different doping level have been grown with a home-made Czochralski furnace. A spectroscopic characterization consisting in both absorption and fluorescence measurements were performed in order to investigate the upconversion mechanism occurring when the material is excited with a radiation at 1557 nm. The measured emission spectrum shows a photoluminescence mainly distributed in the Near Infrared (NIR) region at ≃1 μm. The spectral conversion due to the upconversion makes this material suitable for photovoltaic applications, especially if we combine it with a crystalline silicon solar cell. A device made of single face solar cell+upconverter material (PV-UC) was designed and his external quantum efficiency (EQE) at 1557 nm was measured. EQE values of 6.5% and 4.1% were reached under 8.5 W cm–2 power density illumination for the 30%Er3+ and 20%Er3+ samples, respectively.