Copper oxide was one of the first materials used in solar cells, but fell by the wayside due to issues with efficiency. It may make a return.
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have been making headway in using the abundant and non-toxic material to make efficient solar cells. Amit Goyal, who leads the team, said if they are successful it would be a “game changer” for the industry.
The researchers have already developed a working p-type layer that displays the properties required to make copper oxide cells viable. The next hurdle is the n-layer, then the p-n junction; which is the crucial interface between the two layers of semiconductor material.
“We have a template that we can use and we have a way to make the copper oxide layer work well, but you cannot underscore the need to come up with the n-type layer and make the junction properties work,” Goyal said. “That work is significant and I don’t want to undermine the work that is left to do.”
Copper oxide was used in experimental solar cells in the early 1900’s before silicon became the golden child.
In other recent solar-related news from ORNL, the Center for Computational Sciences is using supercomputers to simulate the use of alternative materials for solar cells with a goal of identifying combinations that would result in better and cheaper solar panels.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed for the U.S Department of Energy by UT-Battelle, LLC. ORNL was originally established under the name of Clinton Laboratories in 1943. Its initial task was far less benign – the pilot-scale production and separation of plutonium for the World War II Manhattan Project; which culminated in the development of the world’s first atomic bombs.
Nowadays one of its major focus areas is to deliver scientific discoveries and technical breakthroughs that will accelerate the development and deployment of solutions in clean energy.
