Abstract
Polycrystalline Si photovoltaic cells were coated with photoluminescent phosphors to increase the power conversion efficiency by down-conversion of high energy ultraviolet photons to less energetic visible photons, for which the Si solar cell conversion efficiency is greater. Phosphor coatings consisting of Y2O3:Eu3+, Y2O2S:Eu3+, 3,9-perylenedicarboxylic acid bis(2-methylpropyl) ester, and tetraphenylporphyrin dispersed in either polyvinyl alcohol or polymethylmethacrylate were tested. Cells coated with the Y2O3:Eu3+ or Y2O2S:Eu3+ showed an increased power conversion efficiency by up to a factor of 14 under UV illumination. The increased power conversion efficiency was shown to depend on the quantum efficiency of the down-conversion phosphor, the overlap between the photoluminescence excitation and the illumination spectra, and the overlap of the emission spectrum and the solar cell spectral response function.
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