Toward the Lambertian Limit of Light Trapping in Thin Nanostructured Silicon Solar Cells

We examine light trapping in thin silicon nanoscructures for solar cell applications. Using group theory, we design surface nanoscructures with an absorptance exceeding the Lambertian limit over a broad band at normal incidence. Further, we demonstrate that the absorptance of nanorod arrays closely follows the Lambertian limit for isotropic incident radiation. These effects correspond to a reduction in silicon mass by 2 orders of magnitude, pointing to the promising future of thin crystalline silicon solar cells.