Architectures of Photoelectrodes and Thin Film Solar Cells

Speaker: Bernhard Reinhold

Affiliation: Helmholtz-Center Berlin for Materials and Energy

Time: Wednesday 26/03/2014 from 16:00 to 17:00

Venue: Access Grid UWS. Presented from Campbelltown (26.1.50), accessible from Parramatta (EB.1.32) and Penrith (Y239).

Abstract:

Each chemical reaction and each physical effect needs a momentum to start and to execute work. This rule acts likewise for processes in nature and technology. Whereas simply, mostly unspecific processes typically take part in single step reactions, more complex proceedings, like the Photosynthesis in the plants cells, stereoselective chemical reactions or modern computational programs, needs multistep processes to be successful and to run selective and efficient with the given resources.

The combination of photoelectrochemically active materials with photovoltaic devices can be one prospective solution to promote the technological solar hydrogen generation by using the advantages of multistage reaction mechanism. The obvious option to interconnect both monolithically bears great advantages to adapt recent improvements and cost advances in the thin film solar cell technology easily. Experimental results of a photoelectrochemically active, double pn-heterojunction prototype device based on doped and undoped TiO2 as photocatalyst and Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin film solar cells will be presented and related to other technological setups and material combinations. Several techniques will be demonstrated, how the structure of photoelectrodes and therefore their chemical and photoelectrochemical properties can be constructed and modified in micro- and nanometer dimensions.

Biography: Bernhard has graduated as PhD at the Free University Berlin in 2007. At present he is a senior scientist at the Helmholtz-Center Berlin for Materials and Energy. He is involved in R&D on micro-concentrator photovoltaic solar cells. His research interest also includes photoelectrochemical cells for the generation of solar hydrogen fuel. Bernhard has an extensive industrial experience. While in industry (SOLTECTURE GmbH) he has been involved in the development of solar modules based on Cu-In-Ga-Se and TiO2 systems. He also has been involved in teaching at the Beuth University of Applied Science lecturing on the topics related materials and devices for solar energy conversion.