Investigation of light propagation in thin-film silicon solar cells by dual-probe scanning near-field optical microscopy
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Beschreibung
Energiewende Global climate change, scarcity of resources, and reservations about
nuclear energy have triggered a signicant change in energy policy towards sustainability.
Even the New York Times and The Economist use the German term Energiewende today
to describe the ongoing transition to renewable energy [13]. Huge eorts are necessary
to implement this transition. Several technologies for renewable energy are operational
and are competing in terms of eciency and energy costs. In the end, the acceptance of
renewable energy, depends on reasonable costs.
Solar Cells Thin-lm solar cells are likely to reduce costs in comparison to crystalline
solar cells as they require less energy during the production process. In the case
of silicon-based thin-lm solar cells, the use of abundant and nontoxic material is an
additional benet. Furthermore, less silicon is required. However, while the low layer
thickness signicantly reduces the cost of production, it also reduces the capacity for light
absorption. Weak absorptance has to be compensated for by advanced photon management
techniques which trap the light by prolonging the light path inside the absorber
layer. Various approaches for light-trapping have been developed, which use a variety of
dierent physical phenomena [4]. No matter which kind of light-trapping concept is nally
applied, the performance has to be evaluated using a suitable characterisation method.
Characterisation Standard characterisation methods, e.g. current-voltage characteristics
and quantum eciency measurements, can supply information about whether or
not a solar cell equipped with a certain light-trapping concept achieves a higher eciency.
Nonetheless, these methods are often restricted to macroscopic information on the entire
solar cell. The internal mechanism of light guidance therefore remains unknown. A deeper
understanding of the internal mechanism is, however, the basis of a targeted development
and implementation of new light-trapping concepts. Simulations are one way of gaining
access to microscopic information about the interaction of light with sub-wavelength
structures.
Autor*in
Stephan Lehnen