High-efficiency solar cells based on semiconductor nanostructures

Thin film solar cells are promising for large-scale commercial applications due to their low manufacturing costs. However, a major problem with thin film technology is material nonuniformity associated with the fabrication of large area films. We are developing a technology for fabricating high-efficiency solar cells based on semiconductor nanostructures that will eliminate the problem of spatial nonuniformity while retaining the low-cost advantage of thin film manufacturing. The technology is based on electrochemical synthesis of semiconductor nanostructures on a preformed template and is flexible in the choice of semiconductor and substrate materials.