Inorganic Colloidal Quantum Dot Solar Cells.

在一小时内，从太阳到达地球表面的能量足以满足全球一年的能源需求。太阳能丰富、清洁、免费。今天，它不是以一种同时低成本和高效率的方式收获的。

In one hour, enough energy reaches Earth's surface from the sun to meet global energy demand for one year. Solar power is abundant, clean, and free. Today, it is not harvested in a manner that is simultaneously low in cost and high in efficiency. Our overall research *program* seeks to address this crucial challenge using an innovative materials processing strategy. Colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are semiconductor nanoparticles synthesized in, and processed from, the solution phase. They absorb the half of the sun's power that lies in the infrared. To date, the vast majority of work on CQD photovoltaics has employed organic ligands to achieve colloidal stability and surface passivation. The research *project* proposed herein will strike out in a new direction. We have preliminary results showing that inorganic ligands offer great promise in solar cell realization. Indeed, our recent report of an all-inorganic CQD solar cell represents the highest documented CQD performance published to date. The goal of the project is a low-cost, high-efficiency, all-inorganic CQD PV device. We target devices exhibiting > 15% solar power conversion efficiency and operating stably in air. The project will advance along three thrusts. We will develop models of inorganic chemical passivation of CQDs and of the inner workings of CQD devices. We will develop new materials processing strategies, guided by our models, that accelerate progress in high-mobility CQD films. We will build novel devices, such as multijunction photovoltaics and plasmonically-enhanced solar cells, that use architectural innovation for improved efficiency. The project will generate scientific insights on novel nanostructured materials; and will lead to solar cell performance advances. It will support directly the training of 7 highly-qualified personnel. The training environment will be interdisciplinary and internationally collaborative and will exploit world-class research infrastructure.