Solar Cells: Is Being Thin Better? (It’s certainly more fun.)

This talk will begin with a primer on solar cell basics including how one deduces the maximum energy conversion efficiency that is possible for an ideal (single junction) solar cell. I will then compare crystalline silicon solar cell technology with the leading thin film based technologies. Finally, I will examine one particular method that my research group has found to be useful for characterizing the electronic properties of thin-film semiconducting materials. This will include a discussion of how those deduced properties can be related to the corresponding solar cell performance parameters.

Prof. Cohen's research group website:
http://www.uoregon.edu/~msiuo/cohen/research.html