Breakthrough to Non-Vacuum Deposition of Single-Crystal, Ultra-Thin, Homogeneous Nanoparticle Layers: A Better Alternative to Chemical Bath Deposition and Atomic Layer Deposition.

Most thin-film techniques require a multiple vacuum process, and cannot produce high-coverage continuous thin films with the thickness of a few nanometers on rough surfaces. We present a new "paradigm shift" non-vacuum process to deposit high-quality, ultra-thin, single-crystal layers of coalesced sulfide nanoparticles (NPs) with controllable thickness down to a few nanometers, based on thermal decomposition. This provides high-coverage, homogeneous thickness, and large-area deposition over a rough surface, with little material loss or liquid chemical waste, and deposition rates of 10 nm/min.

Realizing omnidirectional light harvesting by employing hierarchical architecture for dye sensitized solar cells.

To improve the omnidirectional light-harvesting in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), here we present a dandelion-like structure composed of ZnO hemispherical shells and nanorods. Uniformly distributed hemispherical shells effectively suppress the reflection over the broadband region at incident angles up to 60°, greatly improving the optical absorption of the DSSCs. In addition, modulating the length of the ZnO nanorods controls the omnidirectional characteristics of DSSCs.

Efficiency enhancement in Cu2ZnSnS4 solar cells with subwavelength grating nanostructures.

In the article, a study of sub-wavelength grating (SWG) nanostructures for broadband and omni-directional anti-reflection coatings (ARCs) on Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) solar cells using the rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA) method is presented. Various SWG nanostructures of different shapes and periodic geometry on CZTS solar cells are discussed in detail. The optimized reflectance decreased to 1.

Flexible-textured polydimethylsiloxane antireflection structure for enhancing omnidirectional photovoltaic performance of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells.

Because of the Sun's movement across the sky, broadband and omnidirectional light harvesting is a major development in photovoltaic technology. This study reports the fabrication and characterization of flexible-textured polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) film on Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells, which is one of the simplest and cheapest peel-off processes for fabricating a three-dimensional structure. A cell containing a textured PDMS film enhanced the short-circuit current density from 22.

Dandelion-shaped nanostructures for enhancing omnidirectional photovoltaic performance.

Broadband and omnidirectional light harvesting is important in photovoltaic technology because of its wide spectral range of radiation and the sun's movement. This study reports the fabrication and characterization of zinc oxide (ZnO) dandelions on Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells. The fabrication of dandelions involves the combination of self-assembled polystyrene (PS) nanospheres and the hydrothermal method, which is one of the simplest and cheapest methods of fabricating a three-dimensional, closely packed periodic structure.

Enhanced broadband and omnidirectional performance of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells with ZnO functional nanotree arrays.

An effective approach is demonstrated for enhancing photoelectric conversion of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells with three-dimensional ZnO nanotree arrays. Under a simulated one-sun condition, cells with ZnO nanotree arrays enhance the short-circuit current density by 10.62%.