Spectral response of the intrinsic region of a GaAs–InAs quantum dot solar cell considering the absorption spectra of ideal cubic dots

• Analysis of the spectral response of the intrinsic region of a GaAs–InAs quantum dot solar cell, considering the absorption spectra of ideal cubic dots.
• Plotting the spectral response contribution of the quantum dots embedded in the intrinsic region.
• Studying the effects of quantum dot size dispersion and quantum dot size on the spectral response of the intrinsic region of the GaAs–InAs quantum dot solar cell.
• Investigating the power conversion efficiency considering moderate quantum dot size.

Recently, attempts have been made by some researchers to improve the efficiency of quantum dot solar cells by incorporating different types of quantum dots. In this paper, the photocurrent density has been obtained considering the absorption spectra of ideal cubic dots. The effects of quantum dot size dispersion on the spectral response of the intrinsic region of a GaAs–InAs quantum dot solar cell have been studied. The dependence of the spectral response of this region on the size of quantum dots of such solar cell has also been investigated. The investigation shows that for smaller quantum dot size dispersion, the spectral response of the intrinsic region of the cell increases significantly. It is further observed that by enlarging the quantum dot size it is possible to enhance the spectral response of such solar cells as it causes better match between absorption spectra of the quantum dots and the solar spectrum. These facts indicate the significant role of quantum dot size and size dispersion on the performance of such devices. Also, the power conversion efficiency of such solar cell has been studied under 1 sun, AM 1.5 condition.

Graphical AbstractAn analytical study on the spectral response of the intrinsic region of a GaAs–InAs quantum dot solar cell has been carried out considering the absorption spectra of ideal cubic dots. The figure shows the variation of total spectral response of the intrinsic region of a GaAs–InAs quantum dot solar cell for different values of the quantum dot height. From the figure it is observed that the spectral response of the i-region increases with the increase of quantum dot height which implies the significant role of QD-size on the performance of such devices.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide