Paper
10 September 2010 Mechanism of plasmon enhancement of PV efficiency for metallic nano-modified surface of semiconductor photo-cell
W. Jacak, J. Krasnyj, J. Jacak
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
Metallic nanospheres (Au, Ag, Cu) deposited on PV-active semiconductor surface can act as light converters, collecting energy of incident photons in plasmon oscillations. This energy can be next transferred to semiconductor substrate via a near-field channel, in a more efficient manner in comparison to the direct photo-effect. We explain this enhancement by inclusion of all indirect inter-band transitions in semiconductor layer due to near-field coupling with plasmon radiation in nanoscale of the metallic components, where the momentum is not conserved as the system is not translationally invariant. The model of nano-sphere plasmon is formulated (RPA, analytical version, adjusted to description of large metallic clusters, with radius of 10-100 nm) including surface and volume modes. Damping of plasmons is analyzed including Lorentz friction, and irradiation losses in far- and near-field regimes. Resulting resonance shifts are verified experimentally for Au and Ag (10-80 nm) colloidal water solutions with respect to particle size. Probability of interband transition (within the Fermi golden rule) caused by coupling to plasmons in near-field regime turns out to be 4-order larger than for coupling of electrons to planar-wave photons. Inclusion of proximity effects (for type of deposition of nano-components and their shape) allows for explanation of photo-current growth experimentally measured. We describe also a non-dissipative collective mode of surface plasmons in a chain of near-field-coupled metallic nanospheres, for particular size/separation parameters and wave-lengths.
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W. Jacak, J. Krasnyj, and J. Jacak "Mechanism of plasmon enhancement of PV efficiency for metallic nano-modified surface of semiconductor photo-cell", Proc. SPIE 7757, Plasmonics: Metallic Nanostructures and Their Optical Properties VIII, 775734 (10 September 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.860771
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KEYWORDS
Plasmons

Semiconductors

Surface plasmons

Electrons

Optical spheres

Near field

Photons

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