Related papers: Blackbody-cavity Ideal Solar Absorbers
Recent success in synthesizing thermally stable nanofluids at low costs is a significant breakthrough in the evolution of volumetric absorption based solar thermal systems. However, we have yet not been able to clearly identify the range of…
We theoretically demonstrate the fundamental limit in volume for given materials (e.g. Si, a-Si, CdTe) to fully absorb the solar radiation above bandgap, which we refer as solar superabsorption limit. We also point out the general…
This work experimentally studies silicon-cored tungsten nanowire selective metamaterial absorber to enhance solar-thermal energy harvesting, simply fabricated by conformally coating a thin tungsten layer onto a commercial silicon nanowire…
This article presents a closed form analytical solution to estimate solar receiver surface and fluid temperatures. An approximation and its domain of validity (in term of the value of a small parameter) are also proposed. These simple…
An infrared perfect absorber based on gold nanowire metamaterial cavities array on a gold ground plane is designed. The metamaterial made of gold nanowires embedded in alumina host exhibits an effective permittivity with strong anisotropy,…
We propose a solar thermal energy conversion system consisting of a solar absorber, a thermoradiative cell or negative illumination photodiode, and a photovoltaic cell. Because it is a heat engine, this system can also be paired with…
A galvanic displacement reaction-based, room-temperature "dip-and-dry" technique is demonstrated for fabricating selectively solar-absorbing plasmonic nanostructure-coated foils (PNFs). The technique, which allows for facile tuning of the…
Solar arrays are the primary energy source of the satellite. In this paper, a metamaterial absorber for solar arrays with simultaneous high optical transparency and broadband microwave absorption is presented. By tailoring the reflection…
Solar cells have generated a lot of interest as a potential source of clean renewable energy for the future. However a big bottleneck in wide scale deployment of these energy sources remain the low efficiency of these conversion devices.…
Enabling perfect light absorption in ultrathin materials promises the development of exotic photonic devices. Here we demonstrate new strategies that can provide capabilities to rationally design ultrathin (thickness <…
The realization of a semiconductor near-unity absorber in the infrared will provide new capabilities to transform applications in sensing, health, imaging, and quantum information science, especially where portability is required.…
For commercial one-sun solar modules, up to 80% of the incoming sunlight may be dissipated as heat, potentially raising the temperature 20 C - 30 C higher than the ambient. In the long term, extreme self-heating erodes efficiency and…
Inhibiting ice accumulation on surfaces is an energy-intensive task and is of significant importance in nature and technology where it has found applications in windshields, automobiles, aviation, renewable energy generation, and…
Solar parabolic trough collector technology has received significant attention among researchers for its economic potential to meet electrical and thermal energy demands. Furthermore, parabolic trough collector power plants can be…
Indoor heating during winters accounts for a significant portion of energy consumed by buildings in regions of cold climate. Development of transparent coatings for windows that efficiently harvest solar energy can play a major role in…
Hot carrier solar cell is proposed where charge carriers are cooled adiabatically in the charge transport layers adjoining the absorber. The device resembles an ideal thermoelectric converter where thermopower, and therefore also carrier…
Passive solar desalination is an emerging low-cost technology for fresh water production. State of the art desalinators typically evaporate water using wicking structures to achieve high solar-to-vapor efficiency by minimizing heat loss.…
Organic solar cells (OSCs) are uniquely suited for semitransparent applications due to their adjustable absorption spectrum. However, most high-performance semitransparent cells reported to date are based on materials that have shown high…
Terrestrial radiative cooling is an intriguing way to mitigate the accelerating cooling demands in the residential and commercial sectors by offering zero-energy cooling. However, the ultra-white or mirror-like appearance of radiative…
Recent technical and commercial successes of existing thin film solar cell technologies motivates exploration of next-generation photovoltaic (PV) absorber materials. Of particular scientific interest are compounds like CuSbSe$_2$, which do…