CD-Laboratory for Nanocomposite Solar Cells

The research topics of Christian Doppler Pilotlaboratory for Nanocomposite Solar Cells are focused on the preparation of nanocomposite materials with controlled morphology for photovoltaic applications. The laboratory consists of three scientific research institutes, the Institute for Chemistry and Technology of Materials as leading institution, the Institute for Electron Microscopy and Fine Structure Research, both at the Graz University of Technology, NanoTecCenter Weiz Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, and ISOVOLTA AG as industrial partner. The basic research program will focus on the formation processes and the investigation of the morphology of nanocomposite layers, consisting of inorganic and organic semiconductor phases. In photovoltaic nanocomposites, a compromise has to be found between a homogenous distribution of the inorganic and organic phases to obtain a large interface for efficient charge separation and a certain phase separation to guarantee efficient charge transport to the electrodes. In this context a certain degree of anisotropy of the structure and at the end a well defined and highly ordered nanocomposite layer is desired. The research program is devoted to develop strategies and materials for nanocomposites with enhanced photovoltaic activity. The basic research program will tackle materials synthesis, investigations of nanomorphology formation, kinetic investigations and the preparation of designed nanostructures for photovoltaic applications. A combination of chemical synthesis with a thorough characterization of the morphology, and the optical as well as the electrical properties is envisaged to improve the understanding of this interesting class of materials. The final goal is to implement the developed materials into real devices using standardized processing technologies as performed in the research modules. On the basis of the obtained results, the industrial partner, together with the research institutes, will develop processing technologies and devices.