等离激元太阳能电池概述

贵金属纳米粒子的表面等离激元共振峰附近的光散射可以有效的增强薄膜太阳能电池光吸收效率.基于等离激元方法设计的太阳能电池可以很大程度上增强光吸收,并且减少太阳能电池的光吸收层厚度从而减小体积.本文针对等离激元增强太阳能电池性能的原理进行介绍,并且对其未来发展趋势进行了展望.     

基于表面等离激元的超薄隐身套的实验验证

针对超材料透波隐身套厚度大的问题,提出了基于表面等离激元的超薄隐身套,通过超材料套层将入射电磁波耦合为表面等离激元波并传输至障碍物后方,实现超薄透波隐身。设计了基于开口谐振环的表面等离激元耦合层,将其包覆在金属圆柱表面,制作了基于表面等离激元的超薄隐身套原理样件并进行了对比测试。实验结果表明,该隐身套在其厚度仅为工作波长的1/30 时具有良好的绕行透波性能。     

基于Au-TiO2涂层凹槽的D形光子晶体光纤的等离激元红外传感器设计

设计了一种基于D形光子晶体光纤（PCF）的新型等离激元传感器，用于检测低折射率的微小变化，并通过有限元法（FEM）对其性能进行了数值分析。与传统D形PCF不同，本文提出在D形光纤截面处刻蚀C型凹槽通道，并涂覆Au层来激发等离激元。C形凹槽通道的设计可以增强纤芯的能量泄露以及光纤芯模和等离子体模的耦合强度。在Au层上方增覆一层TiO2介电层，可以增强对金属层的保护和提高传感器的灵敏度，将PCF表面等离谐振（PCF-SPR）传感器的工作波长范围扩展到红外区域，仿真结果得到的最大灵敏度为24236 nm/RIU。该传感器可以有效监测低折射率的微小变化，对于生物医学和有机检测及相关应用具有潜在的价值。     

银纳米线-三角片耦合结构发射光的偏振依赖特性

银纳米线可以承载传播的表面等离激元,纳米片可以产生局域的表面等离激元,二者形成的耦合结构不但可以将传播光场耦合为局域增强光场,还可以调控光场的偏振态等性质,为纳米光调控提供新的自由度。本团队构建了银纳米线-三角片耦合结构,并发现耦合结构的发射偏振与纳米线-三角片的耦合方式有关：当三角片与纳米线之间是“线”接触耦合时,耦合结构的发射偏振随着激发偏振的旋转而旋转;当二者是“点”接触耦合时,无论激发偏振如何变化,发射偏振角度几乎保持160°不变。进一步,利用时域有限差分法验证了出射偏振对入射偏振的依赖特性。通过计算自由电流密度体积分揭示了纳米线中传播的表面等离激元模式与银纳米线-三角片耦合模式的转化机制,以及不同表面等离激元模式的叠加对发射偏振的调控。这些发现为纳米尺度上的光调控以及在纳米尺度上构建纳米光子器件提供了更多灵活性。     

石墨烯/光子晶体混合结构的可调谐表面等离激元自准直

文章探究了中红外波段表面等离激元在石墨烯/光子晶体混合结构传输的自准直现象。在石墨烯的硅基底上设计了二维周期圆形空气孔结构,该结构能够实现表面等离激元光子晶体的特性。运用平面波展开法计算石墨烯表面等离激元光子晶体的能带,并计算出等频线。从该结构的等频线可以获得自准直的频率。我们进一步应用有限时域差分方法计算自准直频率在结构中的传输,可观察到该频率下石墨烯上的表面等离激元电场在通过该结构时出现自准直现象。在基底参数不变情况下,通过调节石墨烯的费米能,来改变等离激元光子晶体的能带,从而调节等离激元自准直频率。文章提出的基于石墨烯的等离激元自准直器件,有望应用于未来集成等离激元器件之间的连接。     

无定型SiO2对纳米ZnO缺陷发光的辅助增强效应研究

利用正硅酸乙酯水解后的无定型SiO2网络结构,合成了不同尺度的纳米ZnO。X射线衍射(XRD)谱显示,当正硅酸乙酯的量从0ml增加到5ml,ZnO的粒径从14.6nm减小到1.9nm;光致发光(PL)光谱显示,发射峰位从560nm蓝移到510nm,发射强度明显增强。利用紫外-可见(UV-VIS)吸收光谱、PL光谱以及能级结构分析,我们认为,纳米ZnO随尺度下降所产生的发光增强来源于无定形SiO2所抑制的ZnO表面非辐射跃迁过程以及二者之间的再吸收过程;此外,纳米ZnO尺度的下降,使得其表面的光生电子和晶格内部的O空位(Vo)之间的距离减小,提高了辐射跃迁的几率也是获得高荧光效率的可能原因。     

具有窄带透明窗口的金属纳米颗粒流体吸收器北大核心

为了解决金纳米颗粒在构建金属流体时存在的紫外-蓝光波段吸收较弱的问题,提出可采用由种子生长法制备的金核银壳纳米棒,该结构可将金纳米棒的局域表面等离激元共振（LSPR）移向紫外-蓝光波段,在有效增强这一波段光吸收的同时,不会影响透明窗口的透射率。实验结果表明,这种由不同尺寸的金纳米棒和金核银壳纳米棒所构成的胶体溶液,能够使紫外-蓝光波段透射率降低到1%以下,在30-1 100 nm光谱范围内实现了较好的宽带吸收,同时在中心波长730 nm附近获得了一个透明窗口,其带宽约为150 nm,透射率大于40%。这种由贵金属纳米颗粒胶体溶液所构成的具有窄带透明窗口的流体吸收器的制备方法相对简单,有望用于太阳电池、传感等领域。     

ZnO薄膜紫外探测器的光电性质

采用直流反应磁控溅射的方法制备ZnO薄膜, 用X射线衍射仪(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)和紫外-可见光谱仪(UV-Vis)分别表征ZnO薄膜的晶体结构和表面形貌等特征。并用此材料制备Au/ZnO/Au金属-半导体-金属(MSM)结构光电导型ZnO薄膜紫外光探测器。实验结果表明, ZnO探测器在360 nm出现明显光响应,其光电流为2.5 mA, 在5 V偏置电压下暗电流为250 μA; ZnO紫外探测器在250～380 nm的紫外波段, 探测器有很明显的光响应, 且光电流响应比较平坦; 在380～430 nm区域, 光响应明显下降; 其光响应的上升与下降弛豫时间分别为20 s与80 s。从光谱响应图中可以看出紫外(360 nm)比可见区(450 nm)的光响应高出3个数量级, 薄膜表面存在的缺陷(如氧空位)在ZnO紫外探测器的光电效应中有重要作用。     

Ag纳米粒子点阵的表面等离激元共振特性调控

通过纳米粒子束流气相沉积方法在衬底表面沉积稠密银纳米粒子点阵。通过对纳米粒子覆盖率的精细控制与纳米粒子点阵消光谱的实时监测,实现了其表面等离激元共振峰频率的系统调控。随着Ag纳米粒子密度的增加,点阵的表面等离激元共振波长发生红移,可逐步由小于400nm增大到570nm以上。研究发现,表面等离激元共振波长的变化与随纳米粒子沉积量增加而增加的紧密相邻的纳米粒子对的百分数相关。     

纳米晶ZnO:Er~(3+)的光致发光特性

为了探讨稀土Er3 与纳米ZnO基质之间的能量传递,利用化学沉淀法制备了纳米ZnO:Er3 粉体材料,测量了样品的X射线衍射谱(XRD)、光致发光谱(PL)和激发谱(PLE)。 X射线衍射结果表明: ZnO:Er3 具有六角纤锌矿晶体结构。室温下,在365 nm激发下,在纳米ZnO宽的可见发射背景上,观测到了 Er3 的激发态4S3／2(5-49 nm)、 2H11／2(522 nm)和4F5／2(456 nm)的特征发射, ZnO:Er3 的紫外近带边发射与未掺杂的纳米晶ZnO的近带边发射比较,强度明显减弱,绿光深能级发射略有增强。分析了稀土Er3 的4S3／2、2H11／2和4F5／2激发态发射,证实了纳米ZnO基质与稀土Er3 离子之间存在能量传递。     

Enhancement of ZnO ultraviolet emission by surface plasmon coupling using a rough NiSi_2 layer synthesized by ion implantation

The calculation results of the surface plasmon(SP) energy and Purcell factor of ZnO/NiSi_2 demonstrate the possibility of using NiSi_2 to enhance the UV emission of ZnO by SP coupling.Experimentally,ZnO films were deposited on NiSi_2 layers synthesized by ion implantation,and the roughness of the NiSi_2 layers spans a large range from 3 to 38 nm,providing favorable conditions for investigating SP-mediated emission.An 11-fold emission enhancement from the ZnO film on the roughest NiSi_2 layer was obtained...     

Characterization and ellipsometric investigation of high-quality ZnO and ZnO(Ga2O3) thin alloys by reactive electron-beam co-evaporation technique

High-quality ZnO(Ga₂O₃) thin films have been co-evaporated by reactive electron-beam evaporation in an oxygen environment. The effect of Ga₂O₃ on the structural and optical properties has been investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements have shown that the ZnO(Ga₂O₃) alloys are c-axis-oriented. The alloy containing 28% of Ga₂O₃ showed the best crystallinity. Photoluminescence on ZnO(28%Ga₂O₃) reveals an enhancement of the ultraviolet near band edge emission at 380 nm while the intensity of the deep-level emissions weakens. A reduction of the oxygen vacancies as well as the reduction of the zinc interstitials with gallium may explain this effect. Thus, the possibility of transitions of electron in the conduction band to a deep acceptor level due to zinc interstitials may decrease. Finally, ellipsometric measurements show that the optimum weight concentration of gallium oxide in the alloys is 28%, thus correlating with the XRD and photoluminescence measurements.     

Electrical characteristics of thin Ni2Si,NiSi, and NiSi2 layers grown on silicon

We have determined the resistivity, carrier concentration, and Hall mobility as a function of thickness (700–3000 Å) of Ni₂Si, NiSi, and NiSi₂ layers formed by vacuum annealing at 270÷v300°C, ≈ 400°C, and ≈ 800°C, respectively, of nickel films vacuum-deposited on a silicon substrate (111 n-type and 100 p-type Si ρ ≈ 1KΩ). The layer thicknesses were measured by 2 MeV⁴He⁺ backscattering spectrometry. The silicide phase was confirmed by x-ray measurements. The electrical measurements were carried out using van der Pauw configuration. We found the electrical transport parameters to be independent of the film thickness within the experimental uncertainty. The Hall factors were assumed to be unity. The majority carriers are electrons in NiSi and holes in Ni₂Si and NiSi₂. The resistivity values are 24±2, 14±1, and 34±2 μΩcm, the electron concentrations are 9±3, 10 and 7±1, and ≈ 2 × 10²² cm^?3, and the Hall mobilities are 3±1, ≈ 4.5 and 6, and ≈ 9 cm²/Vs for Ni₂Si, NiSi (〈100〉 and 〈111〉), and NiSi₂, respectively. The systematic error in the measured values caused by currents in the high resistivity substrate is estimated to be less than 6% for the Hall coefficient. The results show that Ni₂Si, NiSi, and NiSi₂ layers formed by a thin film reaction are electrically metallic conductors, a result which concurs with those reported previously (1) for refractory metal silicides. The Hall mobility increases with the Si content in the silicide. The electron concentration is lowest for NiSi₂ leading to the highest resistivity for the epitaxial phase of NiSi₂.     

Nickel silicide contacts formed by excimer laser annealing for high efficiency solar cells

Driven by the relatively high cost of silver (Ag), interest has grown in the photovoltaic (PV) industry to substitute conventional screen printed (SP) Ag front contacts with copper (Cu) plated contacts. The approach chosen here applies selective laser ablation of the front anti‐reflection coating (ARC), then forming self‐aligned nickel silicides (NiSi_x) contacts, and thickening the lines by Cu plating to achieve the desired line conductivity. A successful implementation of this scheme requires annealing to form NiSi_x with low contact resistance. However, it has been shown that industrial shallow emitters can be damaged severely upon conventional annealing of nickel. In this paper, we show that by using large area excimer laser annealing (ELA), NiSi_x contacts can be formed on industrial shallow emitters without the associated junction degradation. On the basis of sheet resistance, transmission electron microscopy, and lifetime measurements, we demonstrate that NiSi_x formation by ELA can be achieved in narrow contact openings without damaging the passivation and reflectance properties of the neighboring ARC. In addition, the thresholds for NiSi_x formation for different Ni thicknesses are quantified by rigorous finite element simulations and compared with experimental data. Finally, high efficiency passivated emitter and rear cell type solar cells featuring a shallow 85 Ω/sq emitter have been processed on large area CZ–Si using laser ablation of the ARC and subsequent NiSi_x formation by ELA. These cells show an average efficiency gain of 0.4%_abs compared with cells processed with reference SP contacts. In this work, the best performing cell with the ELA process reached 20.0% energy conversion efficiency. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Improved Gettering Efficiency of Ni from Nickel-Mediated Crystallization Silicon Using Phosphorus-Doped Amorphous Silicon

Ni-metal-induced lateral crystallization (NILC) has been utilized to fabricate polycrystalline silicon thin-film transistors. However, the NILC process often leads to Ni and NiSi₂ precipitates being trapped. In this study, two kinds of films were used as gettering layers: (1) amorphous Si and (2) phosphorus-doped amorphous Si. After annealing at 550°C for 12 h, it was found that phosphorous dopant did improve the gettering efficiency of amorphous Si.     

Cathodoluminescence of ZnO/GaN/α-Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> heteroepitaxial structures grown by chemical vapor deposition

The cathodoluminescent properties of ZnO films in ZnO/GaN/α-Al₂O₃ and ZnO/α-Al₂O₃ heteroepitaxial structures grown by chemical vapor deposition in a low-pressure flowing-gas reactor were studied and compared. A superlinear dependence of the excitonic-band intensity in the cathodoluminescence spectrum of the ZnO/GaN/α-Al₂O₃ structures on the electron-beam current is ascertained, which indicates that the emission is stimulated for relatively low thresholds of the excitation intensity. It is shown that the ZnO films grown on the GaN substrates exhibit a much more effective cathodoluminescence compared to the cathodoluminescence in the films grown on α-Al₂O₃. It was observed that the luminescent properties of ZnO layers in the ZnO/GaN/α-Al₂O₃ structures subjected to long-term heat treatment at 750°C in an oxygen atmosphere exhibit a high thermal stability.     

High-resolution transmission electron microscopy of silicide formation and morphology development of Ni/Si and Ni/Si<Subscript>1−x</Subscript>Ge<Subscript>x</Subscript>

Nickel-silicide phase formation in the Ni/Si and Ni/Si_1−xGe_x (x=0.20) systems and its correlation with variations in sheet resistance have been studied using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and related techniques. Following a 500°C anneal, uniform and low-resistivity NiSi and NiSi_1−xGe_x (x<0.20) crystalline films were formed in the respective systems. Annealed at 900°C, NiSi₂, in the form of pyramidal or trapezoidal islands, is found to replace the NiSi in the Ni/Si system. After a 700°C anneal, threading dislocations were observed for the first time in the Ni/Si_1−xGe_x system to serve as heterogeneous nucleation sites for rapid lateral NiSi_1−xGe_x growth.     

Crystallization investigation of NiSi2 thin films

Recrystallizations of ion-irradiated single crystalline and polycrystalline NiSi₂ films are investigated. In the single crystalline case, the irradiated surface portion of the NiSi₂ film reorders epitaxially in a layer-by-layer manner, initiating from the remaining undamaged single crystalline NiSi₂ seed near the NiSi₂/Si interface. The irradiated polycrystal-line NiSi₂ layer recrystallizes via growth from a fixed number of existing nuclei in the layer. In both cases, the recrystallization occurs with a relatively high velocity at very low temperatures (~ 100°C) and the activation energy of the growth rate is similar (1.2 to 1.4 eV). These results reflect the metallic bonding nature of NiSi₂ and the fact that nucleation and mass transport are not required for growth from an amorphous mixture with a stoichiometric atomic composition and existing nuclei.     

Strategies to Improve Field Emission Performance of Nanostructural ZnO

Nanostructural ZnO is a good candidate for field emission (FE) because of its high aspect ratio, controllable electrical conductivity, and good thermal and chemical stability. In order to improve the FE performance, ZnO nanopins, gallium-doped nanofibers, periodic nanorod arrays, and aligned nanotubes were designed and fabricated by a vapor-phase transport method using ZnO + C and ZnO + C + Ga₂O₃ powder mixtures, electrochemical deposition, and hydrothermal decomposition, respectively. The FE behaviors including threshold of electric field, emission current density, field enhancement factor, and stability are reviewed in this paper based on our previous works. Some strategies to improve the performance of the nanostructural ZnO field emitters are demonstrated.     

ZnO and related materials: Plasma-Assisted molecular beam epitaxial growth, characterization and application

This paper will address features of plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxial growth of ZnO and related materials and their characteristics. Two-dimensional, layer-by-layer growth is achieved both on c-plane sampphire by employing MgO buffer layer growth and on (0001) GaN/Al₂O₃ template by predepositing a low-temperature buffer layer followed by high-temperature annealing. Such two-dimensional growth results in the growth of high-quality heteroepitaxial ZnO epilayers. Biexciton emission is obtained from such high quality epilayers The polarity of heteroepitaxial ZnO epilayers is controlled by engineering the heterointerfaces. We achieved selective growth of Zn-polar and O-polar ZnO heteroepitaxial layers. The origin of different polarities can be successfully explained by an interface bonding sequence model. N-type conductivity in Gadoped ZnO epilayers is successfully controlled. High conductivity, enough to be applicable to devices, is achieved. Mg_xZn_1-xO/ZnO heterostructures are grown and emission from a ZnO quantum well is observed. Mg incorporation in a MgZnO alloy is determined by in-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction intensity oscillations, which enables precise control of the composition. Homoepitaxy on commericial ZnO substrates has been examined. Reflection high-energy electron diffraction intensity oscillations during homoepitaxy growth are observed.