Numerical Analysis of Efficiency Enhancement in Plasmonic Thin-Film Solar Cells by Using the SILVACO TCAD Simulator

A physical model for simulating plasmonic solar cells (SCs) using the SILVACO TCAD simulator is established and the effects of some factors on the efficiency enhancement of the amorphous silicon thin film SCs are simulated. Through this simulation, it is demonstrated that our method can successfully...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Chinese physics letters 2012, Vol.29 (6), p.67301-1-067301-3, Article 067301
Main Authors: Kim, Un-Chol, Jiang, Xiao-Qing
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Computer simulation
Devices
Electrical properties
Mathematical models
Optical properties
Photovoltaic cells
Plasmonics
Solar cells
Thin films
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Summary:A physical model for simulating plasmonic solar cells (SCs) using the SILVACO TCAD simulator is established and the effects of some factors on the efficiency enhancement of the amorphous silicon thin film SCs are simulated. Through this simulation, it is demonstrated that our method can successfully simulate the optical and electrical properties of plasmonic solar cells without the overestimation of the characteristics and without the neglect of parameter change in the device operation process. It is shown that not only the size and kind of metal nanoparticles but also other factors, such as the surrounding medium, the distance from the bottom of particles to the device surface, and the light incident angle, play important roles in the optical and electrical properties of plasmonic SCs.
ISSN:0256-307X
1741-3540
DOI:10.1088/0256-307X/29/6/067301