EAGER: Feasibility Demonstration of Laser Manufacturing of Silicon Photonic Crystals for Solar Cells

EARLY概念探索性研究赠款（EAGER）赠款为大面积太阳能电池激光制造3D硅光子晶体的可行性研究提供资金。电动力学计算和实验将进行探索的可行性纳米光子光捕获在三维光子晶体的光活性区域，以提高太阳能电池的效率。将开发一种可扩展的激光制造方法，以展示低成本3D硅光子结构的初步结果。所提出的工艺涉及使用激光干涉光刻，化学气相沉积和模板渗透。这一过程已经被模拟，但尚未在3D硅晶体上得到验证。如果成功，这项研究的结果将证明一种新的光子晶体太阳能电池结构的概念验证，该结构具有更高的效率，可以以生产规模和低成本制造。研究工作的长期目标是确定激光制造的3D光子晶体的光学吸收的过程-结构-性质关系。这里产生的初步数据将作为未来研究的基础。

This EArly-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) grant provides funding for feasibility studies for the laser manufacturing of 3D silicon photonic crystals for large area solar cells. Both electrodynamic computations and experiments will be performed to explore the feasibility of nanophotonic light trapping in 3D photonic crystal photoactive regions for enhanced efficiencies in solar cells. A scalable laser manufacturing method will be developed to demonstrate preliminary results on low-cost 3D silicon photonic structures. The proposed process involves the use of laser interference lithography, chemical vapor deposition and template infiltration. This process has been simulated but not yet demonstrated for 3D silicon crystals.If successful, the results of this research will demonstrate the proof-of-concept for a new photonic crystal solar cell structure that exhibits enhanced efficiencies and that can be manufactured at production scale and low cost. The long term goal of the research effort is to determine process-structure-property relationships for the optical absorption of laser manufactured 3D photonic crystals. The preliminary data generated here will serve as the foundation for a future study.