Use of two-dimensional nanorod arrays with slanted ITO film to enhance optical absorption for photovoltaic applications.

Two-dimensional (2D) Si-nanorod arrays offer a promising architecture that has been widely recognized as attractive devices for photovoltaic applications. To further reduce the Fresnel reflection that occurs at the interface between the air and the 2D Si-nanorod array because of the large difference in their effective refractive indices, we propose and adopt a slanted ITO film as an intermediate layer by using oblique-angle sputtering deposition. The nearly continuous surface of the slanted ITO film is lossless and has high electrical conductivity; therefore, it could serve as an electrode layer for solar cells. As a result, the combination of the above-mentioned nanostructures exhibits high optical absorption over a broad range of wavelengths and incident angles, along with a calculated short-circuit current density of JSC = 32.81 mA/cm2 and a power generation efficiency of η = 22.70%, which corresponds to an improvement of approximately 42% over that of its bare single-crystalline Si counterpart.