Nanorod solar cell with an ultrathin a-Si:H absorber layer

We propose a nanostructured three-dimensional (nano-3D) solar cell design employing an ultrathin hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) n-i-p junction deposited on zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorod arrays. The ZnO nanorods were prepared by aqueous chemical growth at 80 degrees C. The photovoltaic performance of the nanorod/a-Si:H solar cell with an ultrathin absorber layer of only 25 nm is experimentally demonstrated. An efficiency of 3.6% and a short-circuit current density of 8.3 mA/cm(2) were obtained, significantly higher than values achieved for planar or even textured counterparts with three times thicker (similar to 75 nm) a-Si:H absorber layers. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3567527]