Improved Photobleaching for (1,10-phenanthroline)tris[4,4,4-trifluoro-1-(2-thienyl)-1,3-butanedionato]europium(III) Particle Embedded in Sol-Gel Derived Glass Film

In this research, we investigated improved photobleaching characteristics of (1,10-phenanthroline)tris[4,4,4-trifluoro-1-(2-thienyl)-1,3-butanedionato]europium(III) by forming nano-particles embedded into a sol-gel derived silica glass film by a conventional sol-gel process. The relative photoluminescence intensities after the UV irradiation for 90 min were 88, 76, and 67% for nano-particles in the sol-gel derived glass film, powders in the sol-gel derived glass film, and raw powders, respectively. This result indicates that the phtobleaching of this Eu-complex can improved by forming nano-partcile structures by a reprecipitation method and embedding in the sol-gel derived silica glass.     

Measurement of Flexo-coefficients for Nematic LCs without the Influence of the Impurity Ions by Using the Chromatographic Isolation Method

The sum of the flexo-coefficients (e₁₁+e₃₃) was measured by the capacitance characteristic depending on the applied dc voltage in the HAN cell. The voltage for the minimum value of the capacitance was shifted by the influence of flexoelectric effect. One of the important problems for the evaluation for the flexo effect was the influence of impurity ions. Then, the chromatographic isolation phenomenon was used to separate impurity ions when the LC material was injected into the empty cell by the capillary action. The coefficient (e₁₁+e₃₃) of ZLI-4792 was measured, and a value of 26.0 pC/m was obtained.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Ag8(Ge1−x,Snx)(S6−y,Sey) Colloidal Nanocrystals

A facile colloidal approach to synthesize Ag₈(Ge_1?x,Sn_x)(S_6?y,Se_y) nanocrystals (NCs) in a highly controlled way across the entire compositional ranges (0≤x≤1, 0≤y≤6) has been developed. The NCs exhibit a uniform size distribution, highly crystalline structure, over 1 g scalable synthesis, and tunable band gaps in the range of 0.88–1.45 eV by varying their chemical compositions. The Ag₈GeS₆ NCs with a band gap of approximately 1.45 eV were employed as a model light harvester to assess their applicability in solar cells by a full solution‐processing device, yielding an efficiency of 0.28 % under AM1.5 illumination, demonstrating their application potential in solar energy utilization.     

Bright White‐Light Emission from a Single Organic Compound in the Solid State

White‐light‐emitting materials and devices have attracted enormous interest because of their great potential for various lighting applications. We herein describe the light‐emitting properties of a series of new difunctional organic molecules of remarkably simple structure consisting of two terminal 4‐pyridone push–pull subunits separated by a polymethylene chain. They were found to emit almost “pure” white light as a single organic compound in the solid state, as well as when incorporated in a polymer film. To the best of our knowledge, they are the simplest white‐light‐emitting organic molecules reported to date.     

Learning curve analysis of concentrated photovoltaic systems

Price declines and volume growth of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) systems are analysed using the learning curve methodology and compared with other forms of solar electricity generation. Logarithmic regression analysis determines a learning rate of 18% for CPV systems with 90% confidence of that rate being between 14 and 22%, which is higher than the learning rates of other solar generation systems (11% for CSP and 12 to 14% for PV). Current CPV system prices are competitive with PV and CSP, which, when combined with the higher learning rate, indicates that CPV is likely to further improve its marketability. A target price of 1 $/W in 2020 could be achieved with a compound growth rate of 67% for the total deployed volume between 2014 and 2020, which would realize a cumulative deployed volume of 7900 MW. Other projections of deployment volumes from commercial sources are converted using the learning rate into future price scenarios, resulting in predicted prices in the range of 1.1 to 1.3 $/W in 2020. © 2014 The Authors. Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Modeling photon transport in fluorescent solar concentrators

Fluorescent solar concentrators (FSC) can concentrate light onto solar cells by trapping fluorescence through total internal reflection. In an ideal FSC, the major obstacle to efficient photon transport is the re‐absorption of the fluorescence emitted. In order to decompose the contribution of different photon flux streams within a FSC, the angular dependent re‐absorption probability is introduced and modeled in this paper. This is used to analyze the performance of different FSC configurations and is also compared with experimental results. To illustrate the application of the modeling, the collection efficiency of ideal devices has also been calculated from the re‐absorption probability and is shown to be useful for estimating non‐ideal losses such as those due to scattering or reflection from mirrors. The results also indicate that among the FSCs studied, the performance of those surrounded by four edge solar cells is close to ideal. The rapid optimization of FSCs has also been presented as another practical application of the models presented in this paper. © 2014 The Authors. Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optimization of CdTe thin‐film solar cell efficiency using a sputtered,oxygenated CdS window layer

A major source of loss in cadmium sulfide/cadmium telluride (CdS/CdTe) solar cells results from light absorbed in the CdS window layer, which is not converted to electrical current. This film can be made more transparent by oxygen incorporation during sputter deposition at ambient temperature. Prior to this work, this material has not produced high‐efficiency devices on tin oxide‐coated soda‐lime‐glass substrates used industrially. Numerous devices were fabricated over a variety of process conditions to produce an optimized device. Although the material does not show a consistent increase in band gap with oxygenation, absorption in this layer can be virtually eliminated over the relevant spectrum, leading to an increase in short‐circuit current. Meanwhile, fill factor is maintained, and open‐circuit voltage increases relative to baseline devices with sublimated CdS. The trend of device parameters with oxygenation and thickness is consistent with an increasing conduction band offset at the window/CdTe interface. Optimization considering both initial efficiency and stability resulted in a National Renewable Energy Laboratory verified 15.2%‐efficient cell on 3.2‐mm soda‐lime glass. This window material was shown to be compatible with SnO₂‐based transparent conducting oxide and high resistance transparent coated substrates using in‐line compatible processes. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd     

Impact of oxygen concentration during the deposition of window layers on lowering the metastability effects in Cu(In,Ga)Se2/CBD Zn(S,O) based solar cell

The purpose of the present paper is to focus on the impact of oxygen gas partial pressure during the sputtering of i‐ZnO and ZnMgO on the transient behavior of Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGSe) based solar cells parameters when a CBD‐Zn(S,O) buffer layer is used. Based on electrical characterization of cells, it is observed that the effect of light soaking is different on J–V characteristics depending on whether oxygen is or is not present during the first deposition time of the i‐ZnO or ZnMgO layers. In fact, when cells are prepared with standard i‐ZnO, the efficiencies are very low and a pronounced transient behavior is observed. However, when the first 10 nm of i‐ZnO or ZnMgO is formed by sputtered layer without adding oxygen during the process, depending on the thickness of the buffer layer, the transient effects strongly decreases. It is then possible to get stable cells reaching efficiencies quite similar to the CdS reference cells, especially with ZnMgO, without any post‐treatments. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Performance enhancement of multicrystalline silicon solar cells and modules using double‐layered SiNx:H antireflection coatings

Silicon nitride coating deposited by the plasma‐enhanced chemical vapor deposition method is the most widely used antireflection coating for crystalline silicon solar cells. In this work, we employed double‐layered silicon nitride coating consisting of a top layer with a lower refractive index and a bottom layer (contacting the silicon wafer) with a higher refractive index for multicrystalline silicon solar cells. An optimization procedure was presented for maximizing the photovoltaic performance of the encapsulated solar cells or modules. The dependence of their photovoltaic properties on the thickness of silicon nitride coatings was carefully analyzed. Desirable thicknesses of the individual silicon nitride layers for the double‐layered coatings were calculated. In order to get statistical conclusions, we fabricated a large number of multicrystalline silicon solar cells using the standard production line for both the double‐layered and single‐layered antireflection coating types. On the cell level, the double‐layered silicon nitride antireflection coating resulted in an increase of 0.21%, absolute for the average conversion efficiency, and 1.8 mV and 0.11 mA/cm² for the average open‐circuit voltage and short‐circuit current density, respectively. On the module level, the cell to module power transfer factor was analyzed, and it was demonstrated that the double‐layered silicon nitride antireflection coating provided a consistent enhancement in the photovoltaic performance for multicrystalline silicon solar cell modules than the single‐layered silicon nitride coating. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Biomimetic Nanoparticle to “Lure and Kill” Phospholipase A2

Inhibition of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) has long been considered for treating various diseases associated with an elevated PLA2 activity. However, safe and effective PLA2 inhibitors remain unavailable. Herein, we report a biomimetic nanoparticle design that enables a “lure and kill” mechanism designed for PLA2 inhibition (denoted “L&K-NP”). The L&K-NPs are made of polymeric cores wrapped with modified red blood cell membrane with two inserted key components: melittin and oleyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (OOPC). Melittin acts as a PLA2 attractant that works together with the membrane lipids to “lure” in-coming PLA2 for attack. Meanwhile, OOPC acts as inhibitor that “kills” PLA2 upon enzymatic attack. Both compounds are integrated into the L&K-NP structure, which voids toxicity associated with free molecules. In the study, L&K-NPs effectively inhibit PLA2-induced hemolysis. In mice administered with a lethal dose of venomous PLA2, L&K-NPs also inhibit hemolysis and confer a significant survival benefit. Furthermore, L&K-NPs show no obvious toxicity in mice. and the design provides a platform technology for a safe and effective anti-PLA2 approach.