Tantalum Oxide Electron-Selective Heterocontacts for Silicon Photovoltaics and Photoelectrochemical Water Reduction

Date

2017

Authors

Wan, Yimao
Karuturi, Siva Krishna
Samundsett, Christian
Bullock, James
Hettick, Mark
Yan, Di
Peng, Jun
Narangari, Parvathala Reddy
Mokkapati, Sudha
Tan, Hark Hoe

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Abstract

Crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells have been dominating the photovoltaic (PV) market for decades, and c-Si based photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells are regarded as one of the most promising routes for water splitting and renewable production of hydrogen. In this work, we demonstrate a nanoscale tantalum oxide (TaOx, ∼6 nm) as an electron-selective heterocontact, simultaneously providing high-quality passivation to the silicon surface and effective transport of electrons to either an external circuit or a water-splitting catalyst. The PV application of TaOx is demonstrated by a proof-of-concept device having a conversion efficiency of 19.1%. In addition, the PEC application is demonstrated by a photon-to-current efficiency (with additional applied bias) of 7.7%. These results represent a 2% and 3.8% absolute enhancement over control devices without a TaOx interlayer, respectively. The methods presented in this Letter are not limited to c-Si based devices and can be viewed as a more general approach to the interface engineering of optoelectronic and photoelectrochemical applications.

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Source

ACS Energy Letters

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Journal article

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Open Access

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ACS Free to Read License

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