“Nano- Materials and Patterning for Thin-film Photovoltaics”
Peichen Yu
Green Photonics Laboratory, Department of Photonics
National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu 30010 Taiwan
With the rapid development of 3rd-generation photovoltaics, achieving high-efficiency photoelectric conversion with minimal material consumption becomes a prerequisite for solar cells. Nano-technologies and materials may offer a timely solution to such a daunting task. In this presentation, I discuss some of our light harvesting and carrier collection approaches towards thin-film photovoltaics, including indium-tin-oxide (ITO) nanostructures and patterning of semiconductor materials for antireflection and organic/inorganic hybrid devices. First, the growth of ITO nanostructures is realized by oblique electron beam evaporation under oxygen deficiency. The unique surface morphology and conductive properties permit their applications for antireflective layers and embedded electrodes for organic solar cells. We show that the nano-electrodes exhibit ubiquitous carrier harvesting characteristics which are desired for thin-film photovoltaic devices on flexible substrates and operated under diffused ambient light. Moreover, hybrid organic/silicon photovoltaics may effectively lower the manufacturing cost without sacrificing the power conversion efficiency. Our recent experimental and theoretical results reveal that an ultimate efficiency above 20% is attainable by controlling defect densities, back surface recombination, doping concentration, and band alignment.
Speaker Biography:
Prof. Peichen Yu received her PhD (2004) in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She then worked for Intel Corporation at Hillsboro, Oregon as a RET design engineer. In 2006, she joined the Department of Photonics at National Chiao Tung University at the rank of assistant professor and was promoted to associate professor in August 2009. Her research interests include the design and development of nanostructured solar cells and light emitting diodes. She is also actively engaged in the development of OPC and DFM solutions for CMOS 32 nm microlithography and beyond. She has published over 50 refereed technical papers in the above research areas. Her work has been selected for Virtual Journal of Nanoscale Science & Technology and highlighted by SPIE newsroom, NPG Nature Asia-Material, etc. She is currently the regional executive director of Asian Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Association in Taiwan and has received the 2010 Y. Z. Hsu Scientific Paper Award and the 2011 Outstanding Yong Women Scientists in Taiwan.