Hot embossing of moth eye-like nanostructure array on transparent glass with enhanced antireflection for solar cells

Abstract

Antireflection (AR) silicon and glass surfaces are necessarily required for solar cells, because a reflective silicon solar cell with a glass covering will reflect a percentage of sunlight. In this work, we demonstrate a universal and scalable net-shape nanofabrication method for broadband nanostructured AR surface on transparent glass, intended for solar cell applications. Moth eye-like glass nanopillars with various diameters were successfully fabricated by a combination of precision hot embossing and ultrasonic vibration demolding process. The morphologies of nanopillars were detected to characterize different profiles formed by glass flow at elevated temperatures. Facile optical experiments were designed and conducted to measure the AR performance at varying wavelengths and angle of incidences and the proposed nanostructures exhibit excellent AR property. Additionally, a feasible optical modeling is developed and compared with the measurement to evaluate the theoretical optical behaviors of glass nanostructures based on their embossed shapes. The inexpensive and environmental hot embossing method with ultrasonic vibration demolding is expected to create AR glass nanostructured surfaces for widespread applications such as solar cells, displays and laser systems.