Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS March Meeting 2021
Volume 66, Number 1
Monday–Friday, March 15–19, 2021; Virtual; Time Zone: Central Daylight Time, USA
Session J61: Energy Research -- Solar EnergyLive
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Sponsoring Units: GERA Chair: Emmanouil Kioupakis, University of Michigan; Xiao Zhang, University of Michigan |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 3:00PM - 3:12PM Live |
J61.00001: Fundamental limits of photovoltaic conversion efficiency Andrei Sergeev, Kimberly Sablon Fundamental limits imposed by thermodynamic laws on photovoltaic conversion efficiency are critical for basic science and numerous applications, such as solar energy and thermal energy conversion. Recent paper [1] has demonstrated that the Carnot efficiency can be approached in the photovoltaic (PV) system with infinite number of PV cells coupled via time-asymmetric optical components. We propose and investigate a PV converter based on a single sell with time-asymmetric photon recycling. We confirm that the multi-color (multi-junction) limit of PV conversion is given by the Carnot efficiency. Operating exactly at the Carnot limit requires an infinite number of recycling processes in our design. We also establishes the single-junction limiting efficiency. The performance of this converter with the GaAs solar cell is evaluated. The same time-asymmetric photonic management may be used to enhance sensitivity of photodetectors. [1] S. Buddhiraju et al., PNAS E3609, 2018. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 3:12PM - 3:24PM Live |
J61.00002: Valley Photovoltaics: An alternative approach towards a practical hot carrier solar cell Kyle R Dorman, Hamidreza Esmaielpour, David K Ferry, Tetsuya D Mishima, Michael B Santos, Vincent R. Whiteside, Brandon Kenneth Durant, Ian R Sellers Hot carrier solar cells offer the potential to increase the efficiency of single gap solar cells beyond 60%. Here, a different approach is investigated where hot carriers are scattered to the L and X valleys prior to thermalization via a combination of intervalley scattering and the Gunn Effect. Transfer and storage, followed by successful extraction, of high energy carriers through satellite valleys of absorber has the potential to produce strong photocurrent and above-bandgap photovoltage, which in an optimized system would exceed the single gap limit. A simple AlInAs/InGaAs/AlInAs heterojunction solar cell provides proof-of-principle operation evidenced in simultaneous monochromatic current-voltage and photoluminescence measurements. Measurements of the contribution of photoinduced and field enhanced valley scattering are presented, and the effect of valley dependent carrier extraction discussed. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 3:24PM - 3:36PM Live |
J61.00003: Fabrication of cost-effective FTO/TiO2/CuO/Au heterojunction Solar Cell Sajal Islam, Rifat Ara Shams, Bishwajite Karmakar, Ariful Haque, M.F.N. Taufique, Kartik Ghosh Oxide heterostructures have great potentiality in the fabrication of low-cost solar cells. We have done experimental and simulation studies of the heterojunction solar cell using TiO2 and CuO as n-type and p-type layers, respectively. The thickness and dopant concentration-dependent simulations have shown, the solar cell operates at a maximum efficiency of 19.15% when the thickness of TiO2/CuO layers are chosen 1.4µm/1.2µm, with fluorine-doped tin oxide and gold as anode and cathode, respectively. Based on these simulation results, the solar cell on FTO substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) for the TiO2 layer and spin coating for the CuO layer is fabricated. We have conducted structural-property correlations of individual layers using XRD, Raman, PL spectroscopy, SEM-EDS, and electrical measurements, e.g. hall measurements, and sheet resistance measurements. Results and analyses, confirm the successful growth of high-quality oxide layers of TiO2 (rutile and anatase phase) and CuO. The solar cell characterization is performed by the I-V measurements using a standard solar simulator. This facile and cost-effective fabrication of all oxide-based heterojunction solar cells will reduce overall cost and increase performance. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 3:36PM - 3:48PM Live |
J61.00004: Energy transfer design principles in aqueous organic molecules and photosynthetic light harvesting systems with predictive time-dependent density functional theory Caroline McKeon, Samia M Hamed, Chenchen Song, Jeffrey Neaton Photosynthetic light-harvesting systems have unparalleled energy transduction efficiency in synthetic contexts. A complete understanding of this efficiency remains lacking. Here, we present a workflow for calculating optical absorption spectra of chromophore monomers and dimers using classical molecular dynamics simulations, and optimally-tuned range separated hybrid functionals (OTRSH) within time-dependent density functional theory. We apply our approach to Sulforhodamine B (SRB) and AlexaFluor488 chromophore monomers and dimers and compare our results with experimental absorption spectra. We discuss how solvation models, including implicit treatment of a dielectric medium within the OTRSH functional, affect predictions of the excited states of aqueously solvated organic molecules. We discuss progress towards identifying key factors in the high quantum efficiencies found exclusively in natural photosynthetic systems. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 3:48PM - 4:00PM Live |
J61.00005: Comparison of Computed and Experimental Redox Thermodynamics and High-Throughput DFT Studies of Metal Oxides for Solar Thermochemical Water-Splitting Applications Bianca Baldassarri, Jiangang He, Christopher Wolverton Thermochemical water-splitting offers a renewable alternative to fossil fuels by utilizing solar energy for the production of hydrogen via a two-step redox reaction sequence involving a metal oxide. Current and past efforts have been aimed at identifying the best candidates for such reactions based on thermodynamic and kinetic properties, and in the present work, we focus on the enthalpy of reduction, a key quantity impacting the temperature and extent of reduction possible for a given oxide. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 4:00PM - 4:12PM Live |
J61.00006: First-principles evaluation of Ca-Ce-M-O (M = 3d transition metal) oxide perovskites for solar thermochemical applications Sai Gautam Gopalakrishnan, Ellen B. Stechel, Emily A Carter Solar thermochemical (STC) processes that use redox-active, transition-metal oxide substrates to split water and/or CO2 have potential to be an efficient way to generate renewable fuels or fuel precursors. STC processes require oxides that are thermally stable over a wide range of temperatures, tolerate high degrees of oxygen off-stoichiometry and resistant to adverse phase transformations, to yield better efficiencies than state-of-the-art CeO2. In this work, we explore the chemical space of Ca-Ce-M-O (M=3d transition metal) perovskites as potential STC candidates using first principles calculations. Specifically, we use a Hubbard U corrected strongly constrained and appropriately normed exchange-correlation functional to treat the electronic exchange and correlation. While we consider Ca and Ce occupation of the A site (in an ABO3 perovskite) because of their similar ionic radii and the potential redox-activity of Ce, we consider all 3d transition metals except Zn on the B-site. Subsequently, we evaluate the oxygen vacancy formation energy (~enthalpy of reduction in an STC process), electronic properties, and thermodynamic stability of ternary Ca-M-O, Ce-M-O, and quaternary Ca-Ce-M-O perovskites and identify promising candidates that might optimize STC water and CO2 splitting. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 4:12PM - 4:24PM Live |
J61.00007: Ultraviolet and Near-Infrared Dual-Band Selective-Harvesting Transparent Luminescent Solar Concentrators Chenchen Yang, Wei Sheng, Mehdi Moemeni, Matthew Bates, Christopher Herrera, Babak Borhan, Richard R Lunt Visibly transparent photovoltaic (TPV) technologies can be readily integrated onto mobile electronics, automobiles, buildings, and greenhouses to effectively convert these passive surfaces into power generating sources without compromising their aesthetics or functionality. Transparent luminescent solar concentrators (TLSC) have emerged as a promising transparent solar technology that features the highest visible transparency, structural simplicity, superior scalability, and affordability. In this work, we report TLSC systems incorporated with massive-downshifting phosphorescent nanoclusters and fluorescent organic molecules as ultraviolet (UV) and near-infrared (NIR) selective-harvesting luminophores. The photoluminescence of both UV and NIR luminophores is tuned into the NIR to minimize visual impact and maximize the overall aesthetic quality. We will describe the device design and optimization that results in dual-band TLSCs with a record power conversion efficiency over 3% with average visible transmittance exceeding 75%. This is the first work to demonstrate a wavelength-selective TPV device exceeding the non-wavelength-selective practical limit at high visible transparency. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 4:24PM - 4:36PM Live |
J61.00008: Electrical and Optical Properties of CuO-Cu2O Phase Mixture for Solar Cell Applications Rifat Ara Shams, Sajal Islam, Ariful Haque, M.F.N. Taufique, Kartik Ghosh CuO and Cu2O both being direct bandgap material and having high absorption co-efficient, have potential application for fabrication of solar cell. These two materials have been separately used as an active layer in solar cell manufacturing. But using different ratios of CuO and Cu2O phase content can bring variance in absorbance which can present new and diverse aspect in solar cell fabrication with added efficiency. This research has synthesized Cu2O–CuO nanocomposites using a hydrothermal technique and characterized the structural, optical, and electrical properties of phase mixture of CuO and Cu2O using X-rAY diffraction (XRD), Raman, UV-VIS, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and 4-probe resistance measurement techniques. Also after the qualitative study of the phase mixture, this research targets to fabricate a solar cell using the CuO+Cu2O phase mixture with the optimum ratio. The result obtained from this research will be discussed in this presentation. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 4:36PM - 4:48PM Live |
J61.00009: Device fabrication and characterization of type-II CdTe submonolayer quantum dots embedded in ZnCdSe for the use in an intermediate band solar cell Milan Begliarbekov, Vasilios Deligiannakis, Piphat Cheng, Igor Kuskovsky, Maria C Tamargo Intermediate band (IB) photovoltaic devices are a new class of materials that have the potential of overcoming the Schockly-Quisser limit for single junction solar cells (SC), with the potential of achieving efficiencies as high as 63%. Previous proof of concept devices have been demonstrated using III-V materials; however, in these devices an unwanted decrease in the in the open circuit voltage limits device efficiency. To overcome these limitations, we propose an alternate system based on type-II CdTe/ZnCdSe sub-monolayer quantum dots (QDs) that have been shown to have promising properties for IBSCs. Here we analyze the I-V characteristics of refence SCs and QD-SCs. Reference SCs are made of an n-type region of Cl doped ZnxCd1-xSe , a p-type region of ZnSe1-xTex doped with N, and an intrinsic region of ZnxCd1-xSe. The QD-SCs have CdTe sub-monolayer QDs embedded within the intrinsic region. To better understand the role of the IB two-step photon absorption is used in the QD-SC by performing photocurrent measurements coupled with an IR source. The QD-SC outperformed reference SC devices. The proposed system is viable material system for IBSC devices and we will discuss ways to improve effectiveness to achieve efficiencies. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 4:48PM - 5:00PM Live |
J61.00010: Interface strength of silicon with surface engineered 2D-materials Vidushi Sharma, Dibakar Datta Beyond commercial solar cells, silicon is now venturing into EV applications due to its high electrochemical potency. However, battery technology cannot rely on silicon alone as it suffers from stress-mediated mechanical failures and requires additives to combat stresses in the electrode architecture. 2D-materials such as graphene and transition metal carbides (MXenes) are the two most promising additives which besides providing mechanical stability to silicon electrode, also impart flexibility and improved electrochemical performance. Thus, to realize these combinations at the commercial level, it is critical to understand the important characteristics of the interface formed between them. We use Density functional theory (DFT) to calculate the strength of silicon-graphene and silicon-MXene interfaces. Most importantly, our work focuses on understanding the variation of interface strength between silicon and 2D materials as surface functional groups on later are altered. A comprehensive analysis of surface chemistry and electron redistribution at the interfaces is also presented to better describe the physio-chemical phenomenon impacting the changes in interface strength. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 5:00PM - 5:12PM Live |
J61.00011: Solvation properties of PbI2 and MAPbI3 in γ-Butyrolactone Ali Kachmar, Eros Radicchi, Edoardo Mosconi, Filippo De Angelis Lead-halide perovskites represents the most studied family of materials in the last decade, due to their very peculiar optoelectronic properties that have allowed their rapid application in widespread devices. Experimentally, it was shown that the synthesis process of perovskites is crucial for their morphology and growth, and thus for the final quality of the devices. Therefore, understanding the growth and nucleation of perovskites in solution is of tremendous interest for higher efficiency and performance. Highly polar solvents or their mixtures are generally employed in the perovskite synthesis. Therefore, it is necessary to find out the coordinating ability of solvents to PbI2 and MAPbI3 so that we can choose the solvent combination for the fast blade coating of perovskites. Recently, we employed a fine-tuned theoretical framework, combining state-of-the-art computational methods, to investigate the interaction mechanisms and optical properties of PbI2 within the low coordinative γ-Butyrolactone (GBL) solvent. We will present and discuss the coordination ability of GBL to PbI2 and its correlation to the experimental UV-vis absorption spectrum. Using an extended approach, we will discuss new results of the structural and dynamics properties of PbCl2 and MAPbI3 in solution. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 5:12PM - 5:24PM Live |
J61.00012: Implementing Glucose-Derived Carbon Nanodots in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells to Increase External Quantum Efficiency* Max Markuson-DiPrince, Harsh Uppala, Eric Marsh, Joel Destino, Dave Sidebottom, Andrew G Baruth Although carbon nanodot isolation has been a consistent challenge due to the presence of molecular byproducts in a bottom-up synthesis approach using hydrothermal degradation of carbohydrate solutions, their resultant photoluminescence shows promise for down-converting UV photons into the visible regime with an associated increase in quantum efficiency. Excitation emission matrices show a wavelength-dependent luminescence with peak emission at 430nm for excitation at 340nm for carbon nanodot solutions, with a 90nm red shift in emission for devices. Carbonaceous nanodot solutions were derived from thermal treatment of high-concentration glucose solutions. Dialysis, combined with solid-phase extraction, of carbon nanodot solutions retained photoluminescent properties while successfully allowing for carbon nanodot isolation in acetonitrile, the dye solvent used for sensitizing the TiO2 nanocrystalline matrix. Photoluminescence and external quantum efficiency of these carbon nanodot-modified devices are shown, including a nearly 800% increase in quantum efficiency at an excitation of 340nm, verifying this low-cost, earth-abundant approach to efficiency enhancement of dye-sensitized solar cells. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 5:24PM - 5:36PM On Demand |
J61.00013: Same Benzodithiophene Unit-Based Polymer Acceptor and Donor with High Molecular Compatibility Enabled Efficient, Thermally Stable, and Mechanically Robust All-Polymer Solar Cells Jin-Woo Lee, Bumjoon Kim The existing class of polymer solar cells is undergoing a dilemma between two types of acceptors; i) non-fullerene small molecular acceptors (NFSMAs) with high power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) but inferior operational stabilities, and ii) polymer acceptors (PAs) for all polymer solar cells (all-PSCs) with excellent stabilities but lower PCEs due to demixing of polymer donors (PDs) and polymer acceptors (PAs). Here, we design new PAs [P(BDT2BOY5-X), X = H, F, Cl], based on two major principles; i) polymerizing NFSMA to endow both excellent efficiency and mechanical ductility, and ii) embedding same building unit (i. e., BDT) into both the PD and PA to generate high molecular compatibility. The all-PSCs with P(BDT2BOY5-X) PAs exhibit highly enhanced morphological compatibilities, higher PCE (11.12%) and superior thermal/mechanical stabilities compared to the devices with NFSMA or conventional PA, suggesting a crucial consideration in the PA designs for efficient and stable all-PSCs. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 5:36PM - 5:48PM On Demand |
J61.00014: A Comprehensive Study of Polymer Donor Aggregation Effects in Two Different Types of Non-Fullerene Organic Solar Cells Jin Su Park, Nayoun Choi, Changyeon Lee, Jong-Woon Ha, Do-Hoon Hwang, Bumjoon Kim We report the first comparative study of polymer donor (PD) aggregation effects in all-polymer solar cells (all-PSCs) and non-fullerene small molecule acceptor (NFSMA)-PSCs. Three BDT-ttTPD-based polymer donors with different aggregation behaviors are designed and synthesized, which are employed to P(NDI2OD-T2)-based all-PSC and Y6-based NFSMA-PSC systems. We demonstrate that PD aggregation is a decisive factor in both systems, but its impact is more significant in all-PSCs. The P-Si PD with the strongest aggregation yields severe phase separation in the all-polymer blend, resulting in low power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of corresponding all-PSCs. In contrast, the P-Si based NFSMA-PSC shows a well-mixed blend morphology, leading to the highest PCE of 12%. These different roles of PD aggregation originate from distinct entropic contributions to the mixing of two materials, which is inversely related to the molecular size of the acceptor. Thus, our work provides a comprehensive understanding of the PD aggregation-blend morphology relationship in two non-fullerene PSC systems. |
Tuesday, March 16, 2021 5:48PM - 6:00PM On Demand |
J61.00015: Application of Artificial Neural Network to predict the PV-Efficiency of Monocrystalline, Polycrystalline, and Amorphous photovoltaic systems Caouthar Bahanni, Mustapha Mabrouki, Souad TOUAIRI The aim of this work is to investigate in details the impacts of the temperature on the performance of three technologies of photovoltaic (PV) solar modules. Using the experimental data recorded during a year as inputs, the artificial neural network is employed to develop models to predict the efficiency of PV modules based on the effective parameters, including ambient temperature and irradiance, and having developed and validated the models, a comprehensive parametric study is conducted. The parametric study is performed to find the impacts of temperature on the power, and efficiency, as the main characteristics of a solar module. A monocrystalline, polycrystalline and amorphous solar modules with the same capacity are considered and compared together. The results show that the PV efficiency have a downward trend when the temperature increase. Moreover, in general, the monocrystalline type is found more sensitive to the temperature followed by the polycrystalline type, while the amorphous represents the type least influenced by the temperature. |
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