Enhanced Efficiency in Transparent Organic Photovoltaics Using Oxide Plasmonic Nanostructures

该项目涉及低成本光伏（PV）薄膜技术，可以提供将太阳能技术集成到建筑物中的替代方法。将太阳能收集组件集成到建筑物外壳中是一种变革性的途径，可以捕获太阳能用于发电，同时降低有效的太阳能电池安装成本并提高建筑物的能源效率。该基础研究项目涉及低成本薄膜有机光伏技术，该技术在可见光谱中高度透明，能够集成到建筑物外壳的窗户，玻璃系统和壁板上。该项目致力于基础研究，通过使用嵌入设备中的氧化物等离子体纳米颗粒增加近红外光的吸收来提高这些薄膜透明系统的功率转换效率。该研究将利用氧化物等离子体纳米粒子在近红外区域的独特光学特性，以增强光吸收和功率转换效率。该项目还将推进对氧化物等离子体纳米粒子的基本理解，这些纳米粒子有望用于更广泛的应用，如热管理和夜视设备。该项目的教育和推广部分将培训研究生和本科生研究人员，使他们对纳米尺度的光和物质有一个新的认识。现有的透明有机光致发光材料由于使用不到50%的入射近红外太阳光而效率低下。本项目的目的是识别和理解氧化物等离子体纳米颗粒的局部表面等离子体共振增强透明有机光致发光材料的功率转换效率的机制。氧化物等离子体纳米颗粒在近红外区具有低浓度的自由电子和局部表面等离子体共振，因此将增强有机薄膜的近红外光吸收和透明有机光致发光器件中的光子-电流转换，同时保持器件的视觉透明度。具体的研究目标包括：（1）合成和表征支持近红外局域表面等离子体共振的氧化物等离子体纳米粒子，（2）探测有机薄膜和氧化物等离子体纳米粒子界面处的电子和能量转移，以及（3）研究引入氧化物等离子体纳米粒子的透明有机光伏器件的效率增强。该项目将推进氧化物等离子体纳米粒子和透明有机光电子学领域的基础知识。

This project addresses low-cost photovoltaic (PV) thin film technology that can offer alternative methods to integrating solar energy technology into building envelops. The integration of solar-harvesting components into the building envelope is a transformative route to capturing solar energy for electricity generation while lowering effective solar cell installation costs and improving building energy efficiency. This fundamental research project addresses low-cost thin-film organic photovoltaic technology that is highly transparent in the visible light spectrum enabling integration onto windows, glazing systems, and siding in the building envelope. This project addresses fundamental research to increase the power conversion efficiency of these thin-film transparent systems by increasing absorption of near infrared light using oxide plasmonic nanoparticles embedded in the device. The research will exploit unique optical properties of oxide plasmonic nanoparticles in the near-infrared regime to enhance light absorption and power conversion efficiency. The project will also advance the fundamental understanding of oxide plasmonic nanoparticles, which are promising for a wider range of applications such as thermal management and night vision devices. The educational and outreach component of this project will train graduate and undergraduate researchers to gain a new level of understanding of light and matter at the nanometer scale.Existing transparent organic photovoltaics have low efficiency due to the use of less than 50% of incident near-infrared sunlight. The objective of this project is to identify and understand mechanisms by which localized surface plasmon resonances of oxide plasmonic nanoparticles enhance the power conversion efficiency of transparent organic photovoltaics. With their low-concentrated free electrons and localized surface plasmon resonances in the near-infrared regime, oxide plasmonic nanoparticles will enhance near-infrared light absorption by organic thin films and the photon-current conversion in transparent organic photovoltaics while retaining visual transparency of the devices. The specific research aims include: (1) synthesize and characterize oxide plasmonic nanoparticles that support near-infrared localized surface plasmon resonances, (2) probe electron and energy transfer at the interfaces of organic thin films and oxide plasmonic nanoparticles, and (3) investigate efficiency enhancement of transparent organic photovoltaic devices that incorporate oxide plasmonic nanoparticles. The project will advance fundamental knowledge in the field of optoelectronics of oxide plasmonic nanoparticles and transparent organic photovoltaics.