Harvesting sunshine: solar cells, photosynthesis and the thermodynamics of light
Harvesting sunshine: solar cells, photosynthesis and the thermodynamics of light
Effective capture of sunlight represents one of the grand challenges of photovoltaics today. This paper looks at the opportunities that exist, at the fundamental level, to manage light as the first step of photovoltaic conversion; in particular, how photonics can improve the efficiency and reduce the cost of solar cells. Starting from the current view of light trapping we shall introduce an additional variable: photon frequency. The example of fluorescent collectors will be used to discuss the principal features of frequency management, leading to a novel form of light trapping and, ultimately, the photonic bandgap solar cell. The discussion will be guided by arguments based on thermodynamics to describe photon transformation as part of the absorption / emission / conversion process. By drawing parallels with the capture of light in photosynthetic organisms we shall briefly discuss another important aspect: light harvesting energy collection, and the oportunity this represents for reducing the materials usage in future generations of solar cells
fundamentals, light trapping, optical losses, high efficiency, light harvesting, photonics
Markvart, T.
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Danos, L.
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Alderman, N.
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Fang, L.
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Parel, T.
c348cf89-74e9-4354-b2a8-a9bd43ec42f8
September 2012
Markvart, T.
f21e82ec-4e3b-4485-9f27-ffc0102fdf1c
Danos, L.
c831e137-37b9-42cc-ab8c-49de31038922
Alderman, N.
0bf3a57d-dc33-491d-b5fd-0922098edabf
Fang, L.
02af2887-a677-4931-8506-f3210a28ecaa
Parel, T.
c348cf89-74e9-4354-b2a8-a9bd43ec42f8
Markvart, T., Danos, L., Alderman, N., Fang, L. and Parel, T.
(2012)
Harvesting sunshine: solar cells, photosynthesis and the thermodynamics of light.
27th European Solar Photovoltaic Conference and Exhibition, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
24 - 28 Sep 2012.
6 pp
.
Record type:
Conference or Workshop Item
(Other)
Abstract
Effective capture of sunlight represents one of the grand challenges of photovoltaics today. This paper looks at the opportunities that exist, at the fundamental level, to manage light as the first step of photovoltaic conversion; in particular, how photonics can improve the efficiency and reduce the cost of solar cells. Starting from the current view of light trapping we shall introduce an additional variable: photon frequency. The example of fluorescent collectors will be used to discuss the principal features of frequency management, leading to a novel form of light trapping and, ultimately, the photonic bandgap solar cell. The discussion will be guided by arguments based on thermodynamics to describe photon transformation as part of the absorption / emission / conversion process. By drawing parallels with the capture of light in photosynthetic organisms we shall briefly discuss another important aspect: light harvesting energy collection, and the oportunity this represents for reducing the materials usage in future generations of solar cells
Text
27th_PVSEC_-_preprint.pdf
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Published date: September 2012
Venue - Dates:
27th European Solar Photovoltaic Conference and Exhibition, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 2012-09-24 - 2012-09-28
Keywords:
fundamentals, light trapping, optical losses, high efficiency, light harvesting, photonics
Organisations:
Engineering Mats & Surface Engineerg Gp
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 344396
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/344396
PURE UUID: 023fdc1c-1cef-4c59-9f9d-7b82ba9ec680
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 23 Oct 2012 12:50
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 12:12
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Contributors
Author:
L. Danos
Author:
N. Alderman
Author:
L. Fang
Author:
T. Parel
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