Nanowire polymer transfer for enhanced solar cell performance and lower cost

Abstract

The diffusion of photovoltaic systems is deterred by the struggle in combining high efficiency and low cost. Nanowire devices have been demonstrated to hold great promise to solve this predicament, but the substrate cost is still an unavoidable obstacle. Repeated nanowire growth on a single substrate is demonstrated by embedding InP nanowires in a polymer layer and removing them from the substrate. Our approach promises cost reduction by using the substrate multiple times. In addition, it provides a pathway to increase the open-circuit voltage by placing a mirror at the backside of the cell.