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Extraordinary sunlight absorption and one nanometer thick photovoltaics using two-dimensional monolayer materials
Marco Bernardi1, Maurizia Palummo, Jeffrey C Grossman
1Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139-4307, United States.
Nano Letters
|June 12, 2013
Summary
Two-dimensional monolayer materials like MoS2, MoSe2, and WS2 show remarkable sunlight absorption for ultrathin photovoltaic devices. These materials achieve high power conversion efficiencies, paving the way for nanoscale solar energy solutions.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Renewable Energy
Background:
- Graphene and transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) monolayers are key for next-generation ultrathin optoelectronic devices.
- Graphene absorbs 2.3% of visible light at 3.3 Å thickness, while TMD monolayers offer semiconducting properties for photovoltaic applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the sunlight absorption capabilities of MoS2, MoSe2, and WS2 monolayers.
- To develop and analyze ultrathin photovoltaic devices based on stacked TMD monolayers.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of Schottky barrier and excitonic solar cells using stacked MoS2, WS2, and graphene monolayers.
- Measurement of sunlight absorption and power conversion efficiencies of the fabricated devices.
Main Results:
- TMD monolayers (MoS2, MoSe2, WS2) absorb 5-10% of incident sunlight at <1 nm thickness, significantly outperforming GaAs and Si.
- Photovoltaic devices with 1 nm active layers achieved ~1% power conversion efficiency, demonstrating 1-3 orders of magnitude higher power densities than existing ultrathin solar cells.
Conclusions:
- Two-dimensional monolayer materials possess significant potential for nanoscale solar energy absorption and conversion.
- Ultrathin photovoltaic devices based on stacked TMD monolayers offer a promising route for high-efficiency, low-thickness solar energy harvesting.
