An analysis of quantum coherent solar photovoltaic cells

A new hypothesis (Scully et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 108 (2011) 15097) suggests that it is possible to break the statistical physics-based detailed balance-limiting power conversion efficiency and increase the power output of a solar photovoltaic cell by using “noise-induced quantum coherence” to increase the current. The fundamental errors of this hypothesis are explained here. As part of this analysis, we show that the maximum photogenerated current density for a practical solar cell is a function of the incident spectrum, sunlight concentration factor, and solar cell energy bandgap and thus the presence of quantum coherence is irrelevant as it is unable to lead to increased current output from a solar cell.     

Inhibiting radiative recombination rate to enhance quantum yields in a quantum photocell

Inhibiting the radiative radiation is an efficient approach to enhance quantum yields in a solar sell. This work carries out the inhibition of radiative recombination rate(RRR) in a quantum photocell with two coupled donors. We perform explicit calculations of the transition rates, energy gaps and the absorbed solar wavelength-dependent RRR, and find that two different regimes play the crucial roles in inhibiting RRR. One is the quantum coherence generated from two different transition channels, the other includes the absorbed photon wavelength and gaps between the donor and acceptor in this proposed photocell model. The results imply that there may be some efficient ways to enhance the photoelectron conversion compared to the classic solar cell.     

Quantum Coherence in Non-Markovian Quantum Channels

We numerically simulate quantum coherence in a system of two qubits interacting with a reservoir for non-Markovian channels. The explicit form of the master equation is taken in terms of density-operator elements and is solved according to the initial conditions. In particular, we consider the effect of an Ohmic reservoir (OR) with Lorentz–Drude regularization (LDR) on the extent of coherence during dynamics. We describe the dynamical behavior of the coherence for low, intermediate, and high-temperature reservoirs. We explain the effect of the ratio of the cutoff frequency (CF) to the quantum system frequency and the effect of temperature on the quantum coherence. We show that a decreasing ratio enhances coherence, while an increasing temperature decreases it.

     

Prevention of coherence collapse in diode lasers by dynamic targeting

We numerically show that a laser that would suffer from coherence collapse if precautions were not taken can be made to operate with a small linewidth and a stable maximum output power by application of a new dynamic targeting technique.     

Slow light beam splitter

We demonstrate a slow light beam splitter using rapid coherence transport in a wall-coated atomic vapor cell. We show that particles undergoing random and undirected classical motion can mediate coherent interactions between two or more optical modes. Coherence, written into atoms via electromagnetically induced transparency using an input optical signal at one transverse position, spreads out via ballistic atomic motion, is preserved by an antirelaxation wall coating, and is then retrieved in outgoing slow light signals in both the input channel and a spatially-separated second channel. The splitting ratio between the two output channels can be tuned by adjusting the laser power. The slow light beam splitter may improve quantum repeater performance and be useful as an all-optical dynamically reconfigurable router.     

Impact of gain compression on modulation response and dynamic properties of three state lasing InGaAs/GaAs quantum dot lasers

In this paper, we have theoretically studied dynamics of a semiconductor quantum dot (QD) laser for enhancing its small signal and large signal modulation as a function of compression gain. We have considered InGaAs/GaAs QD laser rate equations and solved this equation system numerically. We have revealed that a diminution in compression gain leads to an improvement in frequency bandwidth for this three state lasing system. We also have calculated turn on delay and output power that obviously indicates the effect of compression gain on relaxation oscillations.     

基于GaAs/InAs-GaAs/ZnSe量子点太阳电池结构的优化

基于GaAs/InAs-GaAs/ZnSe的P-i-N量子点太阳电池结构, 根据光学原理和扩散理论建立了光生电流密度与膜层厚度相关的数学模型, 定量分析了量子点层厚度等参数对太阳电池性能的影响,以期达到提高量子 点太阳电池转换效率的目的.理论模拟表明:在i层厚度取3000 nm时,优化后P(GaAs)型、N(ZnSe)型层 薄膜的最佳膜厚为1541 nm, 78 nm, 并在单一波长下太阳电池转换效率为20.1%;同时量子 点体积和温度对于量子点太阳电池I-V特性也会产生影响, 当量子点体积和温度逐渐增大时, 开路电压呈现减小趋势,使得转换效率降低.     

Finite-temperature scaling of quantum coherence near criticality in a spin chain

We explore quantum coherence, inherited from Wigner-Yanase skew information, to analyzequantum criticality in the anisotropic XY chain model at finite temperature. Based on theexact solutions of the Hamiltonian, the quantum coherence contained in a nearest-neighborspin pairs reduced density matrix ρ is obtained. The first-order derivative of thequantum coherence is non-analytic around the critical point at sufficient low temperature.The finite-temperature scaling behavior and the universality are verified numerically. Inparticular, the quantum coherence can also detect the factorization transition in such amodel at sufficient low temperature. We also show that quantum coherence contained indistant spin pairs can characterize quantum criticality and factorization phenomena atfinite temperature. Our results imply that quantum coherence can serve as an efficientindicator of quantum criticality in such a model and shed considerable light on therelationships between quantum phase transitions and quantum information theory at finitetemperature.     

Coherence evolution in two-qubit system going through amplitude damping channel

In this paper, we analyze the evolution of quantum coherence in a two-qubit system going through the amplitude damping channel. After they have gone through this channel many times, we analyze the systems with respect to the coherence of their output states. When only one subsystem goes through the channel, frozen coherence occurs if and only if this subsystem is incoherent and an auxiliary condition is satisfied for the other subsystem. When two subsystems go through this quantum channel, quantum coherence can be frozen if and only if the two subsystems are both incoherent. We also investigate the evolution of coherence for maximally incoherent-coherent states and derive an equation for the output states after one or two subsystems have gone through the amplitude damping channel.     

Improved efficiency droop characteristics in an InGaN/GaN light-emitting diode with a novel designed last barrier structure

<正>In this study,the characteristics of nitride-based light-emitting diodes with different last barrier structures are analysed numerically.The energy band diagrams,electrostatic field near the last quantum barrier,carrier concentration in the quantum well,internal quantum efficiency,and light output power are systematically investigated.The simulation results show that the efficiency droop is markedly improved and the output power is greatly enhanced when the conventional GaN last barrier is replaced by an AlGaN barrier with Al composition graded linearly from 0 to 15% in the growth direction.These improvements are attributed to enhanced efficiencies of electron confinement and hole injection caused by the lower polarization effect at the last-barrier/electron blocking layer interface when the graded Al composition last barrier is used.     

量子相干

量子相干不仅是量子力学中的一个基本概念,同时也是重要的量子信息处理的物理资源.随着基于资源理论框架的量子相干度量方案的提出,量子相干度的量化研究成为近年来人们关注的一个热点问题.量子相干作为一种物理资源也十分脆弱,极容易受到环境噪声的影响而产生退相干,因此开放系统中的量子相干演化和保持也是人们广泛关注的课题.另外,量子相干在量子多体系统、量子热动力学、量子生物学等领域也有着潜在的应用价值.本文介绍量子相干度量的资源理论框架和基于该框架定义的相对熵相干性、l1范数相干性、基于量子纠缠的相干性、基于凸顶结构的相干性和相干鲁棒性等量子相干度量函数,概述开放系统中量子相干演化的动力学行为、典型信道的量子相干产生和破坏能力以及量子相干的冻结等现象,同时例举量子相干在Deutsch-Jozsa算法、Grover算法以及量子多体系统相变问题研究等方面的重要应用.量子相干研究仍处于快速发展之中,期望本综述能为该领域的发展带来启示.     

Nanoscale solid-state single photon router

A novel scheme for a solid-state single-photon router based on a single quantum dot (QD) coupled to a nanomechanical resonator (NR) is proposed and analyzed theoretically. It relies on the coherent coupling between the quantum dot and the NR. We demonstrate that when a single-photon signal is tuned on resonance with the exciton in the QD, one can use a strong pump field to choose to what output port of this signal field is delivered, which is based on the analogue of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) effect which we refer it as phonon induced transparency (PIT) in this coupled system. The path between the reflection output port and the transmission output port can be achieved by simply turning off and on the pump field. The numerical results also indicate that this router can operate efficiently in the optical regime and at ultralow pump power as well as short switching time (～ns). This nanoscale router presented here will offer potential applications in scalable solid-state quantum networks and quantum information.     

锥形太赫兹量子级联激光器输出功率与光束特性研究

针对锥形太赫兹量子级联激光器, 利用有限差分波束传播法和速率方程法, 建立了准三维的太赫兹有源器件仿真模型, 能够对具有轴向非线性波导结构的激光器进行模拟. 利用此模型, 研究了锥角大小对激光器输出光功率及光束质量的影响. 仿真结果表明, 考虑到器件之间的光耦合效率, 为了达到最大的有效输出光功率, 锥形太赫兹量子级联激光器的锥角存在一个最优值.     

Improvement of performance characteristics of deep violet InGaN DQW lasers using a strip DQW active region

The effect of the laser ridge width on the performance characteristics of deep violet In_0.082Ga_0.918N/GaN double quantum well (DQW) laser diodes (LDs) has been numerically investigated. Simulation results indicated that threshold current of LDs is decreased and slope efficiency and differential quantum efficiency (DQE) are increased by decreasing ridge width, whereas output power is decreased. The results also showed that a decrease of more than 1 μm in the ridge width reduces the threshold current, whereas the slope efficiency, output power, and DQE are decreased. A new DQW LD structure with a strip active region has been proposed to obtain a lower current threshold and higher output power, slope efficiency, and DQE. The results showed the InGaN DQW LD with a strip DQW active region has the highest output power, slope efficiency, and DQE; it also has a lower threshold current compared with that of the original LD. The comparative study conducted for the LDs with output emission wavelengths of 390, 414 and 436 nm has also confirmed the enhancement in LD performance using the strip DQW active region structure.     

Effectiveness of full spectrum light soaking on solar cell degradation analysis

This study examined the effect of UV-spectrum light soaking on solar cell degradation tests. An indoor light soaking test was evaluated over three different spectral ranges: “UV only”, “UV blocked” and “Full spectrum”. a-Si:H and poly-crystalline silicon solar cell technologies were studied by light soaking tests with the same optical filter configurations.The I–V measurement results demonstrated that “UV only” irradiated solar cells exhibited the smallest output power degradation, which was only half of a percent variation compared with the full spectrum light soaking case. Using a filter that excluded the effect of the UV spectral range on light soaking, the “UV blocked” case also exhibited a significant output power degradation of the solar cells. A comparative analysis of the solar cell response, based on the I–V characteristics and the diode ideality factor under these different light soaking spectra, demonstrated the importance of the full spectrum light soaking test in the evaluation of the long-term performance of solar cells.     

聚光光强对光伏电池阵列输出性能的影响

基于槽式聚光热电联供系统,深入分析晶硅电池阵列和砷化镓电池阵列在高倍聚光下的输出特性及输出功率的影响因素.研究结果表明,聚光光强下砷化镓电池阵列输出性能优于晶硅电池阵列,高光强会导致光伏电池禁带宽度变窄,短路电流成倍增加,增加输出功率,但同时耗尽层复合率变大,开路电压降低,制约阵列的输出功率;高光强还引起电池温度升高,电池阵列串联内阻增加.分析表明聚光作用下电池阵列串联内阻对输出功率影响巨大,串联内阻从0 Ω增加1 Ω,四种电池阵列输出功率分别损失67.78%,74.93%,77.30%和58.01%. 关键词： 热电联供 太阳电池阵列 串联内阻 输出功率     

Production of photocurrent due to intermediate-to-conduction-band transitions: a demonstration of a key operating principle of the intermediate-band solar cell

We present intermediate-band solar cells manufactured using quantum dot technology that show for the first time the production of photocurrent when two sub-band-gap energy photons are absorbed simultaneously. One photon produces an optical transition from the intermediate-band to the conduction band while the second pumps an electron from the valence band to the intermediate-band. The detection of this two-photon absorption process is essential to verify the principles of operation of the intermediate-band solar cell. The phenomenon is the cornerstone physical principle that ultimately allows the production of photocurrent in a solar cell by below band gap photon absorption, without degradation of its output voltage.     

Enhanced performance of InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well solar cells with double indium content

The performance of a multiple quantum well （MQW） InGaN solar cell with double indium content is investigated. It is found that the adoption of a double indium structure can effectively broaden the spectral response of the external quantum efficiencies and optimize the overall performance of the solar cell. Under AM1.5G illumination, the short-circuit current density （Jsc） and conversion efficiency of the solar cell are enhanced by 65% and 13% compared with those of a normal single-indium-content MQW solar cell. These improvements are mainly attributed to the expansion of the absorption spectrum and better extraction efficiency of the photon-generated carriers induced by higher polarization.     

平顶光端面抽运DPL中热效应对输出功率的影响

用平顶光束描述由多根光纤紧密排列耦合并经透镜整形后的抽运光分布，给出了平顶光束的光强分布，对晶体热效应引起的热致衍射损耗随抽运功率和抽运光束半径的变化规律进行了数值计算，讨论了晶体热效应引起的热致衍射损耗对基横模高斯光束输出功率的影响，并实验验证了基横模高斯光束输出功率随抽运功率的变化规律．结果表明：热致衍射损耗使基横模高斯光束输出功率明显降低．随着抽运光束半径的增大，热致衍射损耗减小，对基横模高斯光束输出功率的影响就减小；抽运功率越大，热致衍射损耗越大，对基横模高斯光束输出功率的影响就越大．