Development of monolithically integrated high performance hybrid PV/a-SiC devices for photoelectrochemical water splitting

In this paper, we present results on fabrication of the hybrid photovoltaic/photoelectrochemical device consisting of an amorphous silicon carbide photoelectrode and silicon solar cells. Driven by the solar cells, a photocurrent density of nearly 5 mA/cm² was achieved in a mechanical stack fashion, equivalent to a solar-to-hydrgoen (STH) coversion efficiency up to 6.1%. An even higher STH efficiency is expected in a monolithic hybrid device by eliminating varous optical and electrical losses occurring in the mechanical stack.