Abstract
Two-dimensional arrays of hollow nanotubes made of TiO are a promising platform for sensing, spectroscopy and light harvesting applications. Their straightforward fabrication via electrochemical anodization, growing nanotube pillars of finite length from a Ti foil, allows precise tailoring of geometry and, thus, material properties. We theoretically investigate these photonic crystal structures with respect to reduction of front surface reflection, achievable field enhancement, and photonic bands. Employing the Rigorous Coupled Wave Analysis (RCWA), we study the optical response of photonic crystals made of thin-walled nanotubes relative to their bare Ti foil substrate, including under additional charge carrier doping which might occur during the growth process.
Highlights
Titanium dioxide (TiO2 ) nanostructures and their electrical, chemical and optical properties are of high interest in various scientific fields [1]
It can be increased through doping of the structure, which we discuss later on. This and the straightforward fabrication and geometrical tuning of TiO2 nanotubes makes this an ideal material system to study photonic crystals made of hollow nanotube arrays
One important property of photonic crystals as front layers for light harvesting devices is their ability to reduce surface reflection, similar to e.g., “Black Silicon” [33,34]. This is accompanied by an increase in the efficiency of forward scattering towards the photoactive layer typically lying underneath the nanostructured front surface
Summary
Titanium dioxide (TiO2 ) nanostructures and their electrical, chemical and optical properties are of high interest in various scientific fields [1]. It was demonstrated that additional, free electrons can yield high optical field enhancement in densely packed, thin-walled TiO2 NT arrays, independent from the chemical environment [4]. Such arrays have wide applications in sensing [5], as filters and nanosized test tubes in biomedicine [6], as photonic crystal fiber lasers and demultiplexers [7,8,9], and as nanostructured electrodes for (surface enhanced Raman) spectroscopy [3,4]. Self-assembled nanostructures are favorable with view to their fabrication costs in particular in a highly competitive industry such as PV technology [19,20]
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