Enhance short-wavelength response of CIGS solar cell by CdSe quantum disks as luminescent down-shifting material

As the luminescent down-shifting (LDS) material, Cadmium selenide (CdSe) quantum disks (QDs) have been synthesized for improving the short-wavelength response of Cu(In, Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells. The peak of the photoluminescence spectra of the as-prepared QDs is coinciding with the peak of the external quantum efficiency (EQE) of CIGS solar cell. The absorption and photoluminescence spectra of the as-prepared CdSe QDs show that the photons of wavelength below 460 nm, which could not be converted into electricity by CIGS solar cell, would be absorbed by the QDs and generating longer wavelength photons that could contribute to charge carrier generation by the cell. The QDs were embedded into the polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) forming the colloidal fluorescent mixture. Subsequently, the mixture was applied to the surface of the solar cell as the LDS layer. It is found that the EQE of CIGS devices increases up to about 25% in the range of 300–460 nm due to LDS. The placement of the LDS layer upon the CIGS solar cell improved the electrical power output of the bare cell to 114%.