Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

P-N junction

P-N junction

A p-n junction is formed when p-type and n-type semiconductor materials are joined together. At the interface of the p-n junction, holes from the p-side and electrons from the n-side begin to diffuse into the opposite sides due to the concentration gradient. This diffusion of carriers leads to a region around the junction where there are no free charge carriers, known as the depletion region. The charge density within the depletion region for the n-side and p-side can be described by the...

Biasing of Metal-Semiconductor Junctions

Biasing of Metal-Semiconductor Junctions

Biasing metal-semiconductor junctions involves applying a voltage across the junction. Specifically, the metal is connected to a voltage source, while the semiconductor is grounded. This technique is essential for controlling the direction and magnitude of current flow in electronic devices, including diodes, transistors, and photovoltaic cells.
In Schottky junctions, where the semiconductor is n-type, applying a positive voltage to the metal relative to the semiconductor reduces its Fermi...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Unconventional Phase Shift in Spin Hall Magnetoresistance of Antiferromagnetic Insulators.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026

Same author

Coherent 2D-3D van der Waals perovskite epitaxial heterostructures.

Nature nanotechnology·2026

Same author

Scalable fabrication of COF membranes for aliphatic/aromatic separation of crude oil.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026

Same author

Polar nano-regions enable large spin Hall conductivity in metallic PtCoO<sub>2</sub>.

Nature materials·2026

Same author

Preferential B-Site Fe Substitution Enables Defect-Mediated Grain Growth and Domain Engineering in (K, Na)NbO<sub>3</sub>-Based Lead-Free Ceramics.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026

Same author

High encoding-sensitivity vision sensor with complementary nonlinear neuromorphic computing.

Nature communications·2026

Same journal

Sub1 contributes to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction driven by aging in mice.

Nature communications·2026

Same journal

The BRCA1-A complex restricts replication fork reversal-dependent DNA repair in ATM deficient cells.

Nature communications·2026

Same journal

Signaling downstream of tumor-stroma interaction regulates mucinous colorectal adenocarcinoma apicobasal polarity.

Nature communications·2026

Same journal

Click-polymerized polyenamine membranes for efficient lithium extraction.

Nature communications·2026

Same journal

Joint trajectories of brain atrophy, white matter hyperintensities and cognition quantify brain maintenance.

Nature communications·2026

Same journal

Proton shuttling at electrochemical interfaces under alkaline hydrogen evolution.

Nature communications·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 12, 2026

Polycrystalline Silicon Thin-film Solar cells with Plasmonic-enhanced Light-trapping

Polycrystalline Silicon Thin-film Solar cells with Plasmonic-enhanced Light-trapping

Published on: July 2, 2012

High-efficiency bulk photovoltaic effect with ferroelectric-increased shift current.

Pu Feng^1,2, Zhihao Gong³, Baoyu Wang^1,2

¹Center for Quantum Matter, School of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.

Nature Communications

|November 7, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers boosted solar cell efficiency using ferroelectric materials and engineered shift currents. This bulk photovoltaic effect achieved a record short-circuit current density and significantly improved overall photoelectric conversion efficiency.

More Related Videos

Morphology Control for Fully Printable Organic–Inorganic Bulk-heterojunction Solar Cells Based on a Ti-alkoxide and Semiconducting Polymer

Morphology Control for Fully Printable Organic–Inorganic Bulk-heterojunction Solar Cells Based on a Ti-alkoxide and Semiconducting Polymer

Published on: January 10, 2017

Monovalent Cation Doping of CH3NH3PbI3 for Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Monovalent Cation Doping of CH3NH3PbI3 for Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Published on: March 19, 2017

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 12, 2026

Polycrystalline Silicon Thin-film Solar cells with Plasmonic-enhanced Light-trapping

Polycrystalline Silicon Thin-film Solar cells with Plasmonic-enhanced Light-trapping

Published on: July 2, 2012

Morphology Control for Fully Printable Organic–Inorganic Bulk-heterojunction Solar Cells Based on a Ti-alkoxide and Semiconducting Polymer

Morphology Control for Fully Printable Organic–Inorganic Bulk-heterojunction Solar Cells Based on a Ti-alkoxide and Semiconducting Polymer

Published on: January 10, 2017

Monovalent Cation Doping of CH3NH3PbI3 for Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Monovalent Cation Doping of CH3NH3PbI3 for Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Published on: March 19, 2017

Area of Science:

Materials Science
Solid State Physics
Renewable Energy

Background:

Bulk photovoltaic (BPV) effect, driven by shift currents in symmetry-breaking materials, offers a route beyond the Shockley-Queisser limit for solar cells.
Current BPV devices face limitations in open-circuit voltage (V_oc) and short-circuit current density (J_sc), hindering photoelectric conversion efficiency.

Purpose of the Study:

To identify BPV materials for co-optimizing V_oc and J_sc.
To enhance BPV efficiency through ferroelectric engineered shift currents.
To demonstrate a high-efficiency BPV device using NbOBr₂.

Main Methods:

Theoretical analysis and experimental validation.
Fabrication of a two-dimensional in-plane device using ferroelectric NbOBr₂.
Investigation of BPV effect dominated by giant shift current.

Main Results:

NbOBr₂ devices exhibited a record-high J_sc in their spontaneous polarization state.
Electrically aligned polarization in NbOBr₂ led to simultaneous enhancement of V_oc and J_sc.
Achieved a colossal photoelectric conversion efficiency of 1.25%, a four-order-of-magnitude improvement.

Conclusions:

Ferroelectric engineered shift currents offer a promising strategy for high-efficiency BPV solar cells.
NbOBr₂ is a viable material for next-generation BPV devices.
The findings provide a pathway for screening and developing superior BPV materials.