Inorganic Colloidal Quantum Dot Solar Cells.

在一个小时内，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。太阳能是丰富、清洁和免费的。今天，它不是以同时低成本和高效率的方式收获的。 我们的整体研究计划旨在通过创新的材料加工策略来应对这一关键挑战。胶体量子点（CQD）是在溶液相中合成并从溶液相中加工的半导体纳米颗粒。它们吸收太阳红外线能量的一半。迄今为止，绝大多数CQD光致发光材料的工作都采用有机配体来实现胶体稳定性和表面钝化。 这里提出的研究项目将开辟一个新的方向。我们有初步的结果表明，无机配体在太阳能电池实现提供了很大的希望。事实上，我们最近报道的全无机CQD太阳能电池代表了迄今为止发表的最高记录的CQD性能。该项目的目标是低成本，高效率，全无机CQD光伏器件。我们的目标设备显示> 15%的太阳能转换效率，并在空气中稳定运行。 工程将沿沿着三个方向推进。我们将开发CQD的无机化学钝化和CQD器件内部工作的模型。我们将开发新的材料加工策略，以我们的模型为指导，加速高迁移率CQD薄膜的进展。我们将建造新型设备，如多结光电转换器和等离子体增强型太阳能电池，这些设备使用建筑创新来提高效率。 该项目将产生对新型纳米结构材料的科学见解，并将导致太阳能电池性能的进步。它将直接支持培训7名高素质人员。培训环境将是跨学科和国际合作的，并将利用世界一流的研究基础设施。

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.