PROGRESS WITH ALL-SILICON TANDEM CELLS BASED ON SILICON QUANTUM DOTS IN A DIELECTRIC MATRIX

摘要

Mature PV technologies are likely to push to ever increasing efficiency due to the cost leverage provided by high efficiency. Although a range of "third generation" techniques has been suggested for improving cell efficiency beyond that of a single cell, the tandem cell approach is the only one so far to give improved experimental performance. The reliability of silicon wafer-based modules is well established. However, there are no obvious candidates for suitable high-bandgap cells to use with silicon that would not, to some extent, compromise this reliability and stability or depend upon toxic or scarce elements. This work seeks to engineer wide-bandgap silicon-based materials by using quantum-confinement in silicon quantum dots dispersed in a matrix of silicon carbide, nitride or oxide.