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Fabrication of large area high density, ultra-low reflection silicon nanowire arrays for efficient solar cell applications

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Abstract

High density vertically aligned and high aspect ratio silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays have been fabricated on a Si substrate using a template and a catalytic etching process. The template was formed from polystyrene (PS) nanospheres with diameter 30–50 nm and density 1010/cm2, produced by nanophase separation of PS-containing block-copolymers. The length of the SiNWs was controlled by varying the etching time with an etching rate of 12.5 nm/s. The SiNWs have a biomimetic structure with a high aspect ratio (∼100), high density, and exhibit ultra-low reflectance. An ultra-low reflectance of approximately 0.1% was achieved for SiNWs longer than 750 nm. Well-aligned SiNW/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxy-thiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) heterojunction solar cells were fabricated. The n-type silicon nanowire surfaces adhered to PEDOT:PSS to form a core-sheath heterojunction structure through a simple and efficient solution process. The large surface area of the SiNWs ensured efficient collection of photogenerated carriers. Compared to planar cells without the nanowire structure, the SiNW/PEDOT:PSS heterojunction solar cell exhibited an increase in short-circuit current density from 2.35 mA/cm2 to 21.1 mA/cm2 and improvement in power conversion efficiency from 0.4% to 5.7%.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate Institute of Optoelectronic Engineering, Department of Electrical Engineering, Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 40227, Taiwan, China

    Subramani Thiyagu, B. Parvathy Devi & Zingway Pei

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  1. Subramani Thiyagu
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  2. B. Parvathy Devi
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  3. Zingway Pei
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Correspondence to Zingway Pei.

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Thiyagu, S., Devi, B.P. & Pei, Z. Fabrication of large area high density, ultra-low reflection silicon nanowire arrays for efficient solar cell applications. Nano Res. 4, 1136–1143 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-011-0162-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-011-0162-5

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