Download or read book Light Trapping in Solar Cells Using Resonant Nanostructures written by and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 145 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Photovoltaics is a sustainable and environmentally clean source of energy that has the potential to become a major source of energy for our society. In order for this to happen, photovoltaics needs to be economically competitive with other conventional energy sources. This can be achieved by reducing the production costs of solar panels and by improving their photovoltaic conversion efficiency. For Si solar cells, both challenges can be achieved by reducing the thickness of the solar cell. However, major optical losses occur when the thickness of Si solar cell is reduced, due to incomplete absorption of light. In this thesis, we investigate new ways of enhancing light absorption in Si solar cells by using nanostructures that show resonant interaction with light. We study the fundamental aspects of resonant scattering of light by metallic and dielectric nanoparticles placed on top of thick and thin dielectric substrates. If optimally designed these nanostructures can lead to efficient light coupling and trapping in solar cells. This allows the realization of novel solar cell architectures with higher efficiency that can be made at lower costs."--Samenvatting auteur.