Abstract
An optoelectronic device simulation framework valid for arbitrary spatial variation of electronic potentials and optical modes, and for transport regimes ranging from ballistic to diffusive, is used to study the nonlocal photon absorption, photocurrent generation and carrier extraction in ultra-thin film, and nanostructure-based solar cell devices at the radiative limit. Among the effects that are revealed by the microscopic approach and which are inaccessible to macroscopic models is the impact of structure, doping- or bias-induced nanoscale potential variations on the local photogeneration rate and the photocarrier transport regime.
Highlights
Since the introduction of novel light-trapping schemes reaching beyond the ray-optics limit, high-efficiency solar cells with an active absorber thickness of only a fraction of the typical irradiation wavelength are becoming interesting alternatives to expensive wafer-based architecture
The same applies to a wide range of nanostructure-based photovoltaic device components, such as quantum well and quantum dot structures or highly doped tunnel junctions, in which the local electronic structure deviates strongly from the flat band bulk picture conventionally assumed in photovoltaic device simulations
Deviations from the bulk or flat-band picture are revealed by applying the above formalism to specific structures encountered as components of advanced nanostructure-based solar cell architectures, such as ultra-thin films, superlattices, and heterostructure tunnel junctions
Summary
Since the introduction of novel light-trapping schemes reaching beyond the ray-optics limit, high-efficiency solar cells with an active absorber thickness of only a fraction of the typical irradiation wavelength are becoming interesting alternatives to expensive wafer-based architecture. The same applies to a wide range of nanostructure-based photovoltaic device components, such as quantum well and quantum dot structures or highly doped tunnel junctions, in which the local electronic structure deviates strongly from the flat band bulk picture conventionally assumed in photovoltaic device simulations. In this situation, microscopic theories on the quantum kinetic level allow for the step beyond the local and macroscopic description by enabling the consideration of arbitrary potential variations and general nonequilibrium carrier distributions at the nanoscale. The focus is on the impact of structure, doping- or bias-induced nanoscale potential variations on the local photogeneration rate and the photocarrier transport regime, as these features are not accessible in macroscopic approaches.[6]
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