Enhancing the Performance of Thin Film Photovoltaic Solar Cells using Truncated Conical Nanoparticles

Plasmonic photovoltaics are considered as promising photovoltaic candidate with enhanced optical absorption and quantum efficiency by embedding metallic nanoparticles in the photovoltaic active layer. In this paper, the efficiency enhancement of ultra-thin film solar cells with embedded truncated cone nanoparticles is studied. First, the natural electric field modes of the truncated cone in free-space are examined when excited by a plane wave. Parametric study is then performed to investigate the effects of the geometrical parameters of the structure on its resonant modes. Second, a uniform periodic array of truncated cones is embedded within the active region of photovoltaic solar cell. The absorbed power inside the active region in the presence and absence of these nanoparticles is calculated and compared. It is demonstrated that embedding truncated cone nanoparticles provides high absorption enhancement in both the visible and near infrared spectra.