Towards 30% Power Conversion Efficiency in Thin-Silicon Photonic-Crystal Solar Cells

Abstract

Silicon solar cells have dominated the photovoltaics industry for decades, but the quest for lower cost, higher efficiency, thinner, and more flexible systems has shifted research to a variety of other materials for harvesting solar energy. The research in this article, exploiting the wave nature of sunlight, suggests that thin-film silicon could leapfrog past competing technologies. Using wave-interference-based light trapping in a thin, flexible sheet of silicon photonic crystal, the authors discuss the possibility of achieving power-conversion efficiency beyond the world record for any single material.