Characterized plasmonic effects of various metallic nanoparticles on silicon solar cells using the same anodic aluminum oxide mask for film deposition

In this paper, we experimentally demonstrate the performance of plasmonic silicon (Si) solar cells fabricated using silver (Ag), indium (In), and aluminum (Al) nanoparticles (NPs) of specific dimensions. The nanoparticles were produced using an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template as a deposition mask. AAO masks with a thickness of 700 nm and pore diameter of 100–110 nm were fabricated using a single-step anodization and pore widening process aimed at controlling the dimensions and coverage of the metallic NPs with a high degree of precision. Our ultimate objective was to facilitate a comparison of plasmonic effects induced by the various metallic NPs in Si solar cells. Scanning electron microscopy was used to examine the thickness, pore dimensions, and pore size distribution of the AAO template as well as the dimensions and coverage of the deposited metallic NPs. Measurements of optical reflectance and external quantum efficiency were used to characterize the plasmonic effects of the various metallic NPs. Measurements of photovoltaic current density-voltage under AM 1.5G simulation were used to confirm the enhancements in performance resulting from the plasmonic effects induced by the metallic NPs. Ag NPs increased the short-circuit current density (ΔJ_sc) of the Si solar cells by 10.58% (from 29.49 to 32.61 mA/cm²), In NPs increased ΔJ_sc by 7.81% (from 29.31 to 31.60 mA/cm²), and Al NPs increased ΔJ_sc by 3.27% (from 28.73 to 29.67 mA/cm²). When using metallic nanoparticles (average size of 106 nm and average coverage of 32.67%), the plasmonic effects in cells with Ag NPs exceeded the effects observed in cells fabricated using In-NPs or Al-NPs. - Highlights: • Plasmonic effects of various metallic nanoparticles (NPs) are demonstrated. • Anodic aluminum oxide templates used to control the profile of the metallic NPs. • The plasmonic effects of Silver NPs exceeded that of Indium NPs or Aluminum NPs.