Breakthrough Carbon Nanotube–Silicon Heterojunction Solar Cells

The latest advances in carbon nanotube–silicon heterojunction solar cells are combined with a new doping protocol based on the outstanding electron withdrawing properties and excellent silicon surface passivation ability of sulfonated polytetrafluoroethylene (Nafion). Using this new dopant for carbon nanotube–silicon solar cells, advanced substrate design, and an optimized antireflective texture fast etch with organic base, breakthrough performance is obtained from research grade devices with active areas of 1 and 5 cm2, which yield power conversion efficiencies of 17.2 and 15.5%, respectively. A new simultaneous dopant, antireflection, and surface passivation scheme based on sulfonated polytetrafluoroethylene (Nafion) is combined with the state of the art in research grade carbon nanotube–silicon heterojunction solar cell design to yield large area devices (1–5 cm2) with unparalleled performance (up to 17.2%), and with relevance to many applications which rely on nanocarbon–silicon interfaces.