Nanoimprint-Transfer-Patterned Solids Enhance Light Absorption in Colloidal Quantum Dot Solar Cells

Younghoon Kim, Kristopher Bicanic, Hairen Tan, Olivier Ouellette, Brandon R. Sutherland, F. Pelayo García De Arquer, Jea Woong Jo, Mengxia Liu, Bin Sun, Min Liu, Sjoerd Hoogland, Edward H. Sargent*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

46 Scopus citations

Abstract

Colloidal quantum dot (CQD) materials are of interest in thin-film solar cells due to their size-tunable bandgap and low-cost solution-processing. However, CQD solar cells suffer from inefficient charge extraction over the film thicknesses required for complete absorption of solar light. Here we show a new strategy to enhance light absorption in CQD solar cells by nanostructuring the CQD film itself at the back interface. We use two-dimensional finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations to study quantitatively the light absorption enhancement in nanostructured back interfaces in CQD solar cells. We implement this experimentally by demonstrating a nanoimprint-transfer-patterning (NTP) process for the fabrication of nanostructured CQD solids with highly ordered patterns. We show that this approach enables a boost in the power conversion efficiency in CQD solar cells primarily due to an increase in short-circuit current density as a result of enhanced absorption through light-trapping.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2349-2353
Number of pages5
JournalNano letters
Volume17
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 12 2017

Keywords

  • Colloidal quantum dots
  • light trapping
  • nanostructured quantum dot solids
  • photovoltaics

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Bioengineering
  • General Chemistry
  • General Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Mechanical Engineering

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