Single-step colloidal quantum dot films for infrared solar harvesting
Type
ArticleAuthors
Kiani, AmirrezaSutherland, Brandon R.
Kim, Younghoon

Ouellette, Olivier

Levina, Larissa
Walters, Grant
Dinh, Cao Thang
Liu, Mengxia
Voznyy, Oleksandr

Lan, Xinzheng
Labelle, Andre J.
Ip, Alexander H.
Proppe, Andrew H.

Ahmed, Ghada H.

Mohammed, Omar F.

Hoogland, Sjoerd
Sargent, Edward H.

KAUST Department
Chemical Science ProgramKAUST Solar Center (KSC)
Physical Science and Engineering (PSE) Division
Ultrafast Laser Spectroscopy and Four-dimensional Electron Imaging Research Group
Date
2016-11-01Online Publication Date
2016-11-01Print Publication Date
2016-10-31Permanent link to this record
http://hdl.handle.net/10754/621843
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Semiconductors with bandgaps in the near- to mid-infrared can harvest solar light that is otherwise wasted by conventional single-junction solar cell architectures. In particular, colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are promising materials since they are cost-effective, processed from solution, and have a bandgap that can be tuned into the infrared (IR) via the quantum size effect. These characteristics enable them to harvest the infrared portion of the solar spectrum to which silicon is transparent. To date, IR CQD solar cells have been made using a wasteful and complex sequential layer-by-layer process. Here, we demonstrate ∼1 eV bandgap solar-harvesting CQD films deposited in a single step. By engineering a fast-drying solvent mixture for metal iodide-capped CQDs, we deposited active layers greater than 200 nm in thickness having a mean roughness less than 1 nm. We integrated these films into infrared solar cells that are stable in air and exhibit power conversion efficiencies of 3.5% under illumination by the full solar spectrum, and 0.4% through a simulated silicon solar cell filter.Citation
Kiani A, Sutherland BR, Kim Y, Ouellette O, Levina L, et al. (2016) Single-step colloidal quantum dot films for infrared solar harvesting. Applied Physics Letters 109: 183105. Available: http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4966217.Sponsors
This publication is based in part on the work supported by the Ontario Research Fund-Research Excellence Program, ORF #07-042.Publisher
AIP PublishingJournal
Applied Physics LettersAdditional Links
http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4966217ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1063/1.4966217