Event
MSE Seminar-Dr. Danilo Romero, Laboratory for Physical Sciences
Friday, February 29, 2008
1:00 p.m.
Rm. 2108, Chemical and Nuclear Engineering Bldg.
Annette Mateus
301 405 5207
amateus@umd.edu
"Physics of Organic Bulk Heterojunction Photovoltaic Devices"
The viability of organic bulk heterojunction photovoltaic devices for large-area solar energy harvesting applications is currently being actively explored. Organic materials offer several advantages that could make them commercially competitive over their inorganic counterparts. They are inherently cheap to synthesize. The bottoms-up approach to the synthesis of organic semiconductors renders flexibility in the design of their electrical, optical, and mechanical properties that are ideal for flexible electronics applications.
The critical parameter that will determine the feasibility of an emerging photovoltaic technology for large-power generation capability is its power conversion efficiency. An estimated benchmark efficiency in order to meet the U.S. Department of Energy cost goal of $0.33/W is ~ 15%. For organic bulk heterojunction photovoltaics, efficiencies have been demonstrated above 4% for single-cell devices and better than 6% for multi-cell devices. Therefore, to critically evaluate the viability of this technology for large-power applications, it is necessary to address the issue of what is the ultimate power conversion efficiency that can be realistically expected from an organic bulk heterojunction solar cell. This talk will explore this question and discuss various routes towards achieving it.
For more information, contact Annette Mateus at (301) 405-5207 or amateus@umd.edu.
