Increased Photovoltaic Power Output via Diffractive Spectrum Separation
Name
Kim-2013-Increased photovoltaic power output via diffractive spectrum separation.pdf
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Author(s)
Kim, Ganghun
Dominguez-Caballero, Jose Antonio
Lee, Howard
Friedman, Daniel J.
Menon, Rajesh
Date Issued
March 2013
Journal
Physical Review Letters
Publisher
American Physical Society
Citation
Kim, Ganghun, Jose A. Dominguez-Caballero, Howard Lee, Daniel J. Friedman, and Rajesh Menon. Increased Photovoltaic Power Output via Diffractive Spectrum Separation. Physical Review Letters 110, no. 12 (March 2013).
Version
Final published version
Abstract
In this Letter, we report the preliminary demonstration of a new paradigm for photovoltaic power generation that utilizes a broadband diffractive-optical element (BDOE) to efficiently separate sunlight into laterally spaced spectral bands. These bands are then absorbed by single-junction photovoltaic cells, whose band gaps correspond to the incident spectral bands. We designed such BDOEs by utilizing a modified version of the direct-binary-search algorithm. Gray scale lithography was used to fabricate these multilevel optics. They were experimentally characterized with an overall optical efficiency of 70% over a wavelength range of 350–1100 nm, which was in excellent agreement with simulation predictions. Finally, two prototype devices were assembled: one with a pair of copper indium gallium selenide based photovoltaic devices, and another with GaAs and c-Si photovoltaic devices. These devices demonstrated an increase in output peak electrical power of ∼42% and ∼22%, respectively, under white-light illumination. Because of the optical versatility and manufacturability of the proposed BDOEs, the reported spectrum-splitting approach provides a new approach toward low-cost solar power.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.123901
