Gap modes assisted enhanced broadband light absorption in plasmonic thin film solar cell

Abstract

In this paper, gap modes assisted enhanced broadband light localization and possible absorption in a thin film silicon solar cell is presented. The existence of gap modes in metal particle-surface based thin film silicon solar cell is numerically investigated for improved light absorption. About 10.2% increment in light absorption compared to bare thin film silicon solar cell is obtained and enhanced light absorption at longer wavelength range is observed. The enhancement is due to the modification of localized surface plasmon modes around the nanoparticles via exciting the gap modes in the space between the nanoparticle and the surface.