High density core-shell silicon nanowire array for the realization of third generation solar cell

The future use of nanostructures such as silicon nanowires in solar cells will only occur if their growth is selforganized, with high density, controlled dimensions and spacing. In this work we develop and study the first elaboration steps of high quality arrays of nanowires functionalized as solar cells using a radial junction. The core of the structure is made of a P-doped nanowire grown by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) using the Vapor-Liquid-Solid (VLS) method, and the shell is fabricated by a 2D conformal deposition of N-doped silicon layer by CVD. The resulting device is then a dense array of vertically aligned and functionalized silicon nanowires that presents interesting enhanced light absorption.