Lanthanide-based downshifting layers tested in a solar car race
Journal Title: Opto-Electronic Advances - Year 2019, Vol 2, Issue 6
Abstract
The mismatch between the AM1.5G spectrum and the photovoltaic (PV) cells absorption is one of the most limiting factors for PV performance. To overcome this constraint through the enhancement of solar energy harvesting, luminescent downshifting (LDS) layers are very promising to shape the incident sunlight and, thus, we report here the use of Tb3+- and Eu3+-doped organic-inorganic hybrid materials as LDS layers on Si PV cells. Electrical measurements on the PV cell, done before and after the deposition of the LDS layers, confirm the positive effect of the coatings on the cell’s performance in the UV spectral region. The maximum delivered power and the maximum absolute external quantum efficiency increased 14% and 27%, respectively. Moreover, a solar powered car race was organized in which the small vehicle containing the coated PV cells presented a relative increase of 9% in the velocity, when compared to that with the uncoated one.
Authors and Affiliations
Sandra F. H. Correia, Ana R. N. Bastos, Lianshe Fu, Luís D. Carlos, Paulo S. André*, Rute A. S. Ferreira*
Distributed multicore fiber sensors
Multicore fiber (MCF) which contains more than one core in a single fiber cladding has attracted ever increasing attention for application in optical sensing systems owing to its unique capability of independent light tr...
Demonstration of orbital angular momentum channel healing using a Fabry-Pérot cavity
Orbital angular momentum (OAM) mode division provides a promising solution to push past the already exhausted available degrees of freedom available in conventional optical communications. Nevertheless, the practical dep...
Athermal third harmonic generation in micro-ring resonators
Nonlinear high-harmonic generation in micro-resonators is a common technique used to extend the operating range of applications such as self-referencing systems and coherent communications in the visible region. However,...
High-sensitivity distributed dynamic strain sensing by combining Rayleigh and Brillouin scattering
The phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry (φ-OTDR) is a good candidate for distributed dynamic strain sensing, due to its high sensitivity and fast measurement, which has already been widely used in intrusion...
Recent development of flat supercontinuum generation in specialty optical fibers
Supercontinuum (SC) generation has attracted a significant scientific interest in the past decades due to its promising applications covering the fields of metrology, spectroscopy, defense, as well as medical treatments....