Boosting Solar Cell Power with Photonic Crystals

Scientists have made big strides in improving solar cells by adding photonic crystals. These tiny, repeating patterns can boost how well solar cells absorb and emit light. When tested, solar cells with surface photonic crystals showed an 89% increase in light brightness, while those with embedded photonic crystals jumped by 114%. The short-circuit current, which measures how much electricity a solar cell can produce, also saw a big boost. Solar cells with embedded photonic crystals had a 31% increase, while those with surface photonic crystals had a 6% increase. The open-circuit voltage, which checks how much voltage a solar cell produces, also went up in surface photonic crystal solar cells.Efficiency is another key area where these solar cells shone. Solar cells with surface photonic crystals had a 10. 6% efficiency boost, while those with embedded photonic crystals saw a 7. 7% increase. These improvements show that photonic crystals can really help solar cells convert sunlight into electricity better. Yet, it's not all sunshine. The fill factor, which looks at how well solar cells collect electrical charges, was higher in surface photonic crystal solar cells (86%) compared to embedded photonic crystal solar cells (76%). This suggests that while both types of crystals help, surface photonic crystals might have an edge in charge collection.