Silver alloying of Cu(In,Ga)Se-2 absorbers for thin film photovoltaics offers improvements in open-circuit voltage, especially when combined with optimal alkali-treatments and certain Ga concentrations. The relationship between alkali distribution in the absorber and Ag alloying is investigated here, combining experimental and theoretical studies. Atom probe tomography analysis is implemented to quantify the local composition in grain interiors and at grain boundaries. The Na concentration in the bulk increases up to similar to 60 ppm for [Ag]/([Ag] + [Cu]) = 0.2 compared to similar to 20 ppm for films without Ag and up to similar to 200 ppm for [Ag]/([Ag] + [Cu]) = 1.0. First-principles calculations were employed to evaluate the formation energies of alkali-on-group-I defects (where group-I refers to Ag and Cu) in (Ag,Cu)(In,Ga)Se-2 as a function of the Ag and Ga contents. The computational results demonstrate strong agreement with the nanoscale analysis results, revealing a clear trend of increased alkali bulk solubility with the Ag concentration. The present study, therefore, provides a more nuanced understanding of the role of Ag in the enhanced performance of the respective photovoltaic devices.
The electronic properties and the optical absorption of lead iodide (PbI2) have been investigated experimentally by means of optical absorption and spectroscopic ellipsometry, and theoretically by a full-potential linear muffin-tin-orbital method. PbI2 has been recognized as a very promising detector material with a large technological applicability. Its band-gap energy as a function of temperature has also been measured by optical absorption. The temperature dependence has been fitted by two different relations, and a discussion of these fittings is given.
The optical band gap energy and the dielectric functions of n-type 4H-SiC have been investigated experimentally by transmission spectroscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry and theoretically by an ab initio full-potential linear muffin-tin-orbital method. We present the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric functions, resolved into the transverse and longitudinal photon moment a, and we show that the anisotropy is small in 4H-SiC. The measurements and the calculations fall closely together in a wide range of energies.
The optical properties of Si1-xGex have been investigated theoretically using a full-potential linear muffin-tin-orbital method. We present the density-of-states as well as the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric function. The calculated dielectric function was found to be in good agreement with the spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements by J. Bahng , J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 13, 777 (2001), and we obtained a static dielectric constant of epsilon(0)=12.19+2.45x in the Si rich regime (xless than or equal to0.5).
The spin dependence of the conductance of an asymmetric double-barrier InGaAs device is studied within the multiband k(.)p and envelope function approximations. The spin-dependent transmission probability for electrons across the structure is obtained using transfer matrices and the low bias conductance per unit area is calculated as a function of the Fermi energy (or doping) in the contacts. The possibility to obtain spin polarized currents in such devices is demonstrated, however, the resulting degree of polarization is rather small (a few percent) in the specific InGaAs structures considered here.
The electrical resistivity of the Si-donor cubic GaN is investigated theoretically at low temperature. The critical impurity concentration, N-c, for the metal-nonmetal transition is estimated in three different ways: from using the generalized Drude approach (GDA) for the resistivity; from the vanishing of the chemical potential calculated using the dielectric function model with a Lorentz-Lorenz correction; from finding the crossing point between the energy in the insulating and metallic states. The bandgap narrowing (BGN) has been determined theoretically and experimentally above the MNM transition, The experimental data have been obtained with photoluminescence measurements. Theoretical and experimental results are in rough agreement in the range of impurity concentration of interest.
In this work we used photoacoustic and thermal lens spectroscopy to study four different semiconductor samples: PbI2, 4HSiC, NiCrO and NiO. The results showed that the combination of these two techniques provided the values of the band gap energies and the thermal diffusivities.
The optical transitions in a range of 1.5-5.2 eV of n-type 4H-SiC have been investigated experimentally by photoacoustic spectroscopy and theoretically by a full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method. From the absorption spectrum, we found the indirect optical bandgap at 3.2 eV and the direct transitions around 4.5 eV in very good agreement with what has been predicted by theoretical calculations.
In this work the authors used the photoacoustic spectroscopy under continuous light excitation to determine the optical band gap of semiconductors. The experiments were performed in lead iodide PbI2 and hexagonal silicon carbide 4H-SiC samples. The nonradiative relaxation processes are discussed in terms of the generated signal. A mechanism to describe the signal increase/decrease under the continuous excitation is presented. The results showed that the method was useful to locate the band gap directly from the optical absorption spectra.
We explore ZnTe:Y co-doped with Y = BN, AlN, GaN, and InN as potential intermediate band (IB) semiconductor for optoelectronic applications, employing the hybrid exchange-correlation functional within the density functional theory. The four nitride dopants behave fairly similar in ZnTe, and the main trend is that the lighter group-III cations yield valence and conduction bands with somewhat less dispersion. The theoretical analyses reveal that Ga‒N doping implies proper balance between localized inter-dopant interaction in resonance with host conduction band, creating a well-defined IB with the width Δw ≈ 0.1 eV and the band gap energies Eg ≈ 1.3/1.6 eV and Eg2 ≈ 0.9/0.6 eV. The cation Ga donor induces the IB, while the anion N acceptor regulates the Fermi level, and together they form GaN pairs and Ga2N complexes but avoid further clustering. The absorption coefficient α(ω) exhibits proper optical efficiency for IB solar energy applications. ZnTe:GaN with concentration ratio 1 ≤ [Ga]/[N] ≤ 2 can provide distinct absorption onset and also exhibit good absorption in the energy region 0.5 to 2.8 eV due to the IB, and one can optimize both the electronic and optical properties. Attractively, for ZnTe:GaN we find a spin-separated IBs with magnetic character that can be utilized for spin-polarized IB optoelectronics.
ZnO1-xYx with chalcogen element Y exhibits intriguing optoelectronic properties as the alloying strongly impacts the band-gap energy E-g(x). In this work, we analyze and compare the electronic structures and the dielectric responses of Zn(O,S) and Zn(O, Se) alloys by means of the density functional theory and the partially self-consistent GW approach. We model the crystalline stability from the total energies, and the results indicate that Zn(O, S) is more stable as alloy than Zn(O, Se). We demonstrate also that ion relaxation strongly affects total energies, and that the band-gap bowing depends primarily on local relaxation of the bonds. Moreover, we show that the composition dependent band-gap needs to be analyzed by the band anti-crossing model for small alloying concentration, while the alloying band-bowing model is accurate for strong alloying. We find that the Se-based alloys have a stronger change in the band-gap energy (for instance, Delta E-g(0.50) = E-g(ZnO) -(E)g(x = 0.50) approximate to 2.2 eV) compared with that of the S-based alloy (Delta E-g(0.50) = 1.2 eV), mainly due to a stronger relaxation of the Zn-anion bonds that affects the electronic structure near the band edges. The optical properties of the alloys are discussed in terms of the complex dielectric function epsilon(omega) = epsilon(1)(omega) + i epsilon(2)(omega) and the absorption coefficient alpha(omega). While the large band-gap bowing directly impacts the low-energy absorption spectra, the high-frequency dielectric constant epsilon(infinity) is correlated to the intensity of the dielectric response at energies above 4 eV. Therefore, the dielectric constant is only weakly affected by the non-linear band-gap variation. Despite strong structural relaxation, the high absorption coefficients of the alloys demonstrate that the alloys have well-behaved optoelectronic properties.
The possibility to obtain ferromagnetic (FM) phase from native defects in WO3 is investigated by theoretically analyzing six different crystalline structures. The local magnetic moment from vacancies is calculated using the projector augmented wave method in combination with the local spin density approximation including a Coulomb correction (LSDA + U) of the W d-states. We find that tungsten vacancies V-W can induce a magnetic phase of similar to 3.5 mu(B)/V-W with a local magnetic moment on the oxygen atoms of at most similar to 1 mu(B)/V-W, whereas corresponding oxygen vacancies V-O have no impact on the magnetic coupling. Intriguingly, although the six crystalline structures have very comparable bonds, the magnetic moment generated by the cation vacancies is different, showing higher local magnetic moments for WO3 structures with low crystalline symmetry. The results indicate that WO3:V-W cannot induce a hole-mediated FM phase, and instead V-W in WO3 induces a local magnetic moment on the unpaired states at surrounding O atoms.
Porous diamond-like-carbon (PDLC) thin films obtained on silicon substrate by DC low energy magnetron sputtering have been investigated by photoluminescence, transmission and reflection spectroscopy, photoacoustic and spectroscopic ellipsometry. The absorption features observed for these films show similarities with those of porous silicon (PS) as well as in the performed gradient structural pattern classification of the SFM porosity, by means of the computational GPA-flyby environment on PS and PDLC samples. The dielectric function is also calculated for the bulk diamond-like carbon using the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method within the framework of local density approximation to density functional theory. From the measurement a low real dielectric constant of about 4.5 at 0.8 eV was found whereas the calculated e(1)(0) for the bulk diamond has a value of 5.5.
Technological applications in opto-electronic devices have increased the interest in characterizing porous silicon structure patterns. Due to its physical properties, solutions from KPZ 2D are adopted to simulate the structure of porous material interface whose spatial characteristics are equivalent to those found in porous silicon samples. The analysis of the simulated and real scanning Force Microscopy (SFM) surfaces was done using the Gradient Pattern Analysis (GPA). We found that the KPZ 2D model presented asymmetry levels compatible with the irregular surfaces observed by means of SFM images of pi-Si.
We investigate the role of different mesoscopic interactions (Coulomb, charge regulation, and ion-dipole "surface patch" effects) on the binding of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and beta-lactoglobulin (BLG) to a cationic gold nanoparticle (TTMA+). The results demonstrate that the charge-regulation mechanism plays a vital role for selectivity of protein-nanoparticle complexation at low salt concentration. At slightly higher ionic strengths, charge-dipole effects are the dominating driving force. Thus, very small variations in salt concentration strongly influence the origin of complexation.
A full band Monte Carlo (MC) study of the high frequency performance of a 4H-SiC short channel vertical MESFET is presented. The MC model used is based on data from a full potential band structure calculation using the local density approximation to the density functional theory. The MC results have been compared with simulations using state of the art drift-diffusion and hydrodynamic transport models. Transport parameters such as mobility, saturation velocity and energy relaxation time are extracted from MC simulations.
Premelting of ice within pores in earth materials is shown to depend on the presence of vapor layers. For thick vapor layers between ice and pore surfaces, a nanosized water sheet can be formed due to repulsive Lifshitz forces. In the absence of vapor layers, ice is inhibited from melting near pore surfaces. In between these limits, we find an enhancement of the water film thickness in silica and alumina pores. In the presence of metallic surface patches in the pore, the Lifshitz forces can dramatically widen the water film thickness, with potential complete melting of the ice surface.
Context. Gas hydrates can be stabilised outside their window of thermodynamic stability by the formation of an ice layer - a phenomenon termed self-preservation. This can lead to a positive buoyancy for clathrate particles containing CO2 that would otherwise sink in the oceans of Enceladus, Pluto, and similar oceanic worlds.Aims. Here we investigate the implications of Lifshitz forces and low occupancy surface regions on type I clathrate structures for their self-preservation through ice layer formation, presenting a plausible model based on multi-layer interactions through dispersion forces.Methods. We used optical data and theoretical models for the dielectric response for water, ice, and gas hydrates with a different occupancy. Taking this together with the thermodynamic Lifshitz free energy, we modelled the energy minima essential for the formation of ice layers at the interface between gas hydrate and liquid water.Results. We predict the growth of an ice layer between 0.01 and 0.2 mu m thick on CO, CH4, and CO2 hydrate surfaces, depending on the presence of surface regions depleted in gas molecules. Effective hydrate particle density is estimated, delimiting a range of particle size and compositions that would be buoyant in different oceans. Over geological time, the deposition of floating hydrate particles could result in the accumulation of kilometre-thick gas hydrate layers above liquid water reservoirs and below the water ice crusts of their respective ocean worlds. On Enceladus, the destabilisation of near-surface hydrate deposits could lead to increased gas pressures that both drive plumes and entrain stabilised hydrate particles. Furthermore, on ocean worlds, such as Enceladus and particularly Pluto, the accumulation of thick CO2 or mixed gas hydrate deposits could insulate its ocean against freezing. In preventing freezing of liquid water reservoirs in ocean worlds, the presence of CO2-containing hydrate layers could enhance the habitability of ocean worlds in our Solar System and on the exoplanets and exomoons beyond.
At air-water interfaces, the Lifshitz interaction by itself does not promote ice growth. On the contrary, we find that the Lifshitz force promotes the growth of an ice film, up to 1-8 nm thickness, near silica-water interfaces at the triple point of water. This is achieved in a system where the combined effect of the retardation and the zero frequency mode influences the short-range interactions at low temperatures, contrary to common understanding. Cancellation between the positive and negative contributions in the Lifshitz spectral function is reversed in silica with high porosity. Our results provide a model for how water freezes on glass and other surfaces.
The Casimir-Lifshitz interaction, a long-range force that arises between solids and molecules due to quantum fluctuations in electromagnetic fields, has been widely studied in solid-state physics. The degree of polarization in this interaction is influenced by the dielectric properties of the materials involved, which in turn are determined by factors such as band-to-band transitions, free carrier contributions, phonon contributions, and exciton contributions. Gapped metals, a new class of materials with unique electronic structures, offer the potential to manipulate dielectric properties and, consequently, the Casimir-Lifshitz interaction. In this study, we theoretically investigate the finite temperature Casimir-Lifshitz interaction in La3Te4-based gapped metal systems with varying off-stoichiometry levels. We demonstrate that off-stoichiometric effects in gapped metals can be used to control the magnitude and, in some cases, even the sign of Casimir-Lifshitz interactions. We predict measurable corrections due to stoichiometry on the predicted Casimir force between a La3Te4 surface and a gold sphere, attached to an atomic force microscopy tip.
Thin films of ice and water on soil particles play crucial roles in environmental and technological processes. Understanding the fundamental physical mechanisms underlying their formation is essential for advancing scientific knowledge and engineering practices. Herein, we focus on the role of the Casimir-Lifshitz force, also referred to as dispersion force, in the formation and behavior of thin films of ice and water on soil particles at 273.16 K, arising from quantum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field and depending on the dielectric properties of interacting materials. We employ the first-principles density functional theory (DFT) to compute the dielectric functions for two model materials, CaCO3 and Al2O3, essential constituents in various soils. These dielectric functions are used with the Kramers-Kronig relationship and different extrapolations to calculate the frequency-dependent quantities required for determining forces and free energies. Moreover, we assess the accuracy of the optical data based on the DFT to model dispersion forces effectively, such as those between soil particles. Our findings reveal that moisture can accumulate into almost micron-sized water layers on the surface of calcite (soil) particles, significantly impacting the average dielectric properties of soil particles. This research highlights the relevance of DFT-based data for understanding thin film formation in soil particles and offers valuable insights for environmental and engineering applications.
The resonance interaction that takes place in planar nanochannels between pairs of excited-state atoms is explored. We consider interactions in channels of silica, zinc oxide, and gold. The nanosized channels induce a dramatically different interaction from that in free space. Illustrative calculations for two lithium and cesium atoms demonstrate that there is a short-range repulsion followed by long-range attraction. The binding energy is strongest near the surfaces. The size of the enlarged molecule is biggest at the center of the cavity and increases with channel width. Since the interaction is generic, we predict that enlarged molecules are formed in porous structures, and that the molecule size depends on the size of the nanochannels.
We consider theoretically the retarded van der Waals interaction of a small gas bubble in water with a porous SiO2 surface. We predict a possible transition from repulsion to attraction as the surface is made more porous. It highlights that bubbles will interact differently with surface regions with different porosity (i.e., with different optical properties).
Unwanted stiction in micro-and nanomechanical (NEMS/MEMS) systems due to dispersion (van der Waals, or Casimir) forces is a significant hurdle in the fabrication of systems with moving parts on these length scales. Introducing a suitably dielectric liquid in the interspace between bodies has previously been demonstrated to render dispersion forces repulsive, or even to switch sign as a function of separation. Making use of recently available permittivity data calculated by us we show that such a remarkable nonmonotonic Casimir force, changing from attractive to repulsive as separation increases, can in fact be observed in systems where constituent materials are in standard NEMS/MEMS use requiring no special or exotic materials. No such nonmonotonic behaviour has been measured to date. We calculate the force between a silica sphere and a flat surface of either zinc oxide or hafnia, two materials which are among the most prominent for practical microelectrical and microoptical devices. Our results explicate the need for highly accurate permittivity functions of the materials involved for frequencies from optical to far-infrared frequencies. A careful analysis of the Casimir interaction is presented, and we show how the change in the sign of the interaction can be understood as a result of multiple crossings of the dielectric functions of the three media involved in a given set-up.
We demonstrate a physical mechanism that enhances a splitting of diatomic Li-2 at cellulose surfaces. The origin of this splitting is a possible surface-induced diatomic-excited-state resonance repulsion. The atomic Li is then free to form either physical or chemical bonds with the cellulose surface and even diffuse into the cellulose layer structure. This allows for an enhanced storage capacity of atomic Li in nanoporous cellulose.
There is an attractive Casimir-Lifshitz force between two silica surfaces in a liquid (bromobenze or toluene). We demonstrate that adding an ultrathin (5-50 angstrom) metallic nanocoating to one of the surfaces results in repulsive Casimir-Lifshitz forces above a critical separation. The onset of such quantum levitation comes at decreasing separations as the film thickness decreases. Remarkably, the effect of retardation can turn attraction into repulsion. From that we explain how an ultrathin metallic coating may prevent nanoelectromechanical systems from crashing together.
We present the theory for retarded resonance interaction between two identical atoms at arbitrary positions near a metal surface. The dipole-dipole resonance interaction force that binds isotropically excited atom pairs together in free space may turn repulsive close to an ideal (totally reflecting) metal surface. On the other hand, close to an infinitely permeable surface it may turn more attractive. We illustrate numerically how the dipole-dipole resonance interaction between two oxygen atoms near a metal surface may provide a repulsive energy of the same order of magnitude as the ground-state binding energy of an oxygen molecule. As a complement we also present results from density-functional theory.
We present the theory for a retarded resonance interaction between two identical atoms near a dielectric surface. In free space the resonance interaction between isotropically excited atom pairs is attractive at all atom-atom separations. We illustrate numerically how this interaction between oxygen, sulphur, hydrogen, or nitrogen atom pairs may turn repulsive near water droplets. The results provide evidence of a mechanism causing excited state atom pair breakage to occur in the atmosphere near water droplets.
We have used density functional theory to calculate the anisotropic dielectric functions for ultrathin gold sheets (composed of 1, 3, 6, and 15 atomic layers). Such films are important components in nano-electromechanical systems. When using correct dielectric functions rather than bulk gold dielectric functions we predict an enhanced attractive Casimir-Lifshitz force (at most around 20%) between two atomically thin gold sheets. For thicker sheets the dielectric properties and the corresponding Casimir forces approach those of gold half-spaces. The magnitude of the corrections that we predict should, within the today's level of accuracy in Casimir force measurements, be clearly detectable.
We consider the interaction between a ZnO nanorod and a SiO2 nanorod in bromobenzene. Using optical data for the interacting objects and ambient we calculate the force (from short-range attractive van der Waals force to intermediate-range repulsive Casimir-Lifshitz force to long-range entropically driven attraction). The nonretarded van der Waals interaction is attractive at all separations. We demonstrate a retardation-driven repulsion at intermediate separations. At short separations (in the nonretarded limit) and at large separations (in the classical limit) the interaction is attractive. These effects can be understood from an analysis of multiple crossings of the dielectric functions of the three media as functions of imaginary frequencies.
The optical, electrical and structural properties of thin. film tin oxide (TO), F-doped tin oxide (FTO; n(F) approximate to 6 x 10(20) cm (3)) and highly F-doped tin oxide (hFTO; n(F) approximate to 10 x 10(20) cm (3)), grown by spray pyrolysis technique, are studied by atomic force microscopy, Hall effect, X-ray. fluorescence and transmission/reflection measurements. The resistivity (rho = 32 x 10 (4) Omega cm for intrinsic tin oxide) shows intriguing characteristics when F concentration n(F) is increased (rho = 6 x 10 (4) Omega cm for FTO but 25 x 10 (4) Omega cm for hFTO) whereas the carrier concentration is almost constant at high F concentration (n(c) approximate to 6 x 10(20) cm (3) for FTO and hFTO). Thus, F seems to act both as a donor and a compensating acceptor in hFTO. The high carrier concentration has a strong effect on the optical band-edge absorption. Whereas intrinsic TO has room-temperature band-gap energy of E-g approximate to 3.2 eV with an onset to absorption at about 3.8 eV, the highly doped FTO and hFTO samples show relatively strong absorption at 2-3 eV. Theoretical analysis based on density functional calculations of FTO reveals that this is not a defect state within the band-gap region, but instead a consequence of a hybridization of the F donor states with the host conduction band in combination with a band. filling of the lowest conduction band by the free carriers. This allows photon-assisted inter-conduction band transitions of the free electrons to energetically higher and empty conduction bands, producing the below-gap absorption peak.
The optical properties of intrinsic SnO2 (TO) and fluorine doped (FTO) are characterized in terms of the dielectric function epsilon(h omega) = epsilon(1) (h omega) + i epsilon(2)(h omega) by electronic structure calculations. The intrinsic TO shows intriguing absorption characteristics in the 3.0-8.0 eV region: (i) the low energy region of the fundamental band gap (3.2<h omega<3.9 eV), the optical transitions Gamma(+)(3) -> Gamma(+)(1) (valence-band maximum to conduction-band minimum) is symmetry forbidden, and the band-edge absorption is therefore extremely weak. (ii) In the higher energy region (3.9<h omega<5.1 eV) the Gamma(-)(5) -> Gamma(+)(1), transitions (from the second uppermost valence band) is strongly polarized perpendicular to the main c axis. (iii) Transitions with polarization axis parallel to c axis are generated from Gamma(-)(2) -> Gamma(+)(1) transitions (from the third uppermost valence bands), and dominates at high energies (5.1<h omega eV). Heavily F doped TO (FTO) with doping concentrations n(F) = 4 x 10(20) cm(-3) changes the absorption significantly: (iv) Substitutional F-O generates strong inter-conduction band absorption at 0.8, 2.2, and 3.8 eV which affects also the high frequency dielectric constant epsilon(infinity). (v) Interstitial F-i is inactive as a single dopant, but act as a compensating acceptor in highly n-type FTO. This explains the measured non-linear dependence of the resistivity with respect to F concentration.
ZnO nanopillars were successfully grown using both the vapor-liquid-solid and the aqueous chemical growth methods on different substrates, such as quartz, n-, and p-type non-porous Si wafer (flat) and microporous periodic Si structure (MPSiS). Scanning electron microscopy was employed to compare sample morphologies. The absorption was calculated employing the GW(0) method, based on the local density approximation, and with the projector augmented wave approach. Experiment and theory show a reasonable agreement when the shape of the optical absorption is considered. The measured absorption of ZnO nanopillars, on different substrates, is lower than that observed for ZnO films on quartz substrate, in the energy gap spectral range. A strong effect of MPSiS substrates on ZnO nanopillar properties is observed. The photoluminescence technique was also employed as an optical characterization.
Iron-oxide-filled carbon nanotubes have an intriguing charge bipolarization behaviour which allows the material to be applied in resistive memory devices. Raman analysis conducted with an electric field applied in situ shows the Kohn anomalies and a strong modification of the electronic properties related with the applied voltage intensity. As well as, the ID/IG ratio indicated the reversibility of this process. The electric characterization indicated an electronic transport governed by two main kind of charge hopping, one between the filling and nanotube and other between the nanotube shells.
Antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic configurations of hematite alpha-Fe2O3 structures have been investigated by first-principles methods, which have been used to theoretically analyze the local structural and magnetic effects due to the presence of interstitial atoms such as hydrogen and oxygen. This study is based on the projector-augmented wave method within the local spin density approximation (LSDA) in addition to an on-site Coulomb correction of the Fe d orbitals (i.e., the LSDA + U-SIC method). The results demonstrate that this correction potential is important in achieving an accurate description of both the structural and the magnetic properties of alpha-Fe2O3. The ground state of alpha-Fe2O3 is the antiferromagnetic phase. The presence of oxygen vacancies, interstitial oxygen, and an interstitial hydrogen decreases the local Fe magnetic moment vertical bar M-s(Fe)vertical bar in both the ferro- and antiferromagnetic phases, although the hydrogen has a rather modest effect. The density of states calculations demonstrate that the presence of interstitial atoms and defects yields a small reduction in the material's electronic gap.
In this work, the electronic structure and dielectric function of chalcopyrite CuInSe2 are presented. The results are based on the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FPLAPW) method using the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) plus an onsite Coulomb interaction U of the Cu d states. The dielectric constant, absorption coefficient and refractive index are explored by means of optical response. The spin-orbit coupling effect is considered for the calculations of electronic structure and optical properties. We find that the results based on our calculation method have good agreement compared with experimental and other earlier simulations results.
The electronic structures of chalcopyrite CuIn1-xGaxSe2 have recently been reported to have strongly anisotropic and non-parabolic valence bands (VBs) even close to the Gamma-point VB maximum. Also, the lowest conduction band (CB) is non-parabolic for energies 50-100 meV above the CB minimum. The details in the band-edge dispersion govern the material's electrical properties. In this study, we, therefore, analyze the electronic structure of the three uppermost VBs and the lowest CB in CuIn1-xGaxSe2 (x = 0, 0.5, and 1). The parameterized band dispersions are explored, and the density-of-states (DOS) as well as the constant energy surfaces are calculated and analyzed. The carrier concentration and the Fermi energy E-F in the intrinsic alloys as functions of the temperature is determined from the DOS. The carrier concentration in p-type materials is modeled by assuming the presence of Cu vacancies as the acceptor type defect. We demonstrate that the non-parabolicity of the energy bands strongly affects the total DOS. Therefore, it is important to take into account full band dispersion of the VBs and CB when analyzing the free carrier concentration, like for instance, in studies of electronic transport and/or measurements that involve strong excitation conditions.
Reducing or controlling cation disorder in Cu2ZnSnS4 is a major challenge, mainly due to low formation energies of the anti-site pair (Cu Zn - + Zn Cu +) and the compensated Cu vacancy (V Cu - + Zn Cu +). We study the electronic and optical properties of Cu2XSnS4 (CXTS, with X = Be, Mg, Ca, Mn, Fe, and Ni) and the impact of defect pairs, by employing the first-principles method within the density functional theory. The calculations indicate that these compounds can be grown in either the kesterite or stannite tetragonal phase, except Cu2CaSnS4 which seems to be unstable also in its trigonal phase. In the tetragonal phase, all six compounds have rather similar electronic band structures, suitable band-gap energies Eg for photovoltaic applications, as well as good absorption coefficients α(ω). However, the formation of the defect pairs (C u X + X Cu) and (V Cu + X Cu) is an issue for these compounds, especially considering the anti-site pair which has formation energy in the order of ∼0.3 eV. The (C u X + X Cu) pair narrows the energy gap by typically ΔEg ≈ 0.1-0.3 eV, but for Cu2NiSnS4, the complex yields localized in-gap states. Due to the low formation energy of (C u X + X Cu), we conclude that it is difficult to avoid disordering from the high concentration of anti-site pairs. The defect concentration in Cu2BeSnS4 is however expected to be significantly lower (as much as ∼104 times at typical device operating temperature) compared to the other compounds, which is partly explained by larger relaxation effects in Cu2BeSnS4 as the two anti-site atoms have different sizes. The disadvantage is that the stronger relaxation has a stronger impact on the band-gap narrowing. Therefore, instead of trying to reduce the anti-site pairs, we suggest that one shall try to compensate (C u X + X Cu) with (V Cu + X Cu) or other defects in order to stabilize the gap energy.
To accelerate environmental friendly thin-film photovoltaic technologies, earth-abundant, non-toxic, and low-cost materials are demanded. We study the compounds of Cu2Sn1−xGexS3 and Cu2Sn1−xSixS3 (x = 0, 0.5, and 1) employing first-principles method within the density functional theory. The compounds have comparable band dispersions. The band-gap energies Eg can be tailored by cation alloying the Sn atoms with Ge or Si. The gap energies of Cu2Sn1−xGexS3 and Cu2Sn1−xSixS3, with x = 0, 0.5, and 1, vary almost linearly from 0.83 to 1.43 eV and 2.60 eV, respectively. However, the gap energy of Cu2SiS3 does not follow the linear relation for x > 0.8. The effective electron masses at the Γ-point of the lowest conduction band are almost isotropic for all materials, which are between 0.15m0 and 0.25m0. On the other hand, the effective hole masses of the topmost valence band show very strong anisotropy for all compounds. In the (010) direction, the hole masses are estimated to be between 1.01m0 and 1.85m0, while between 0.11m0 and 0.41m0 in the (001) direction. Calculations reveal that all compounds have high absorption coefficients that are comparable with that of Cu2ZnSnS4. The absorptions in the energy region from Eg + 0.5 eV to Eg + 1.0 eV are even higher for Ge- and Si-alloying of Cu2SnS3, compared with Cu2ZnSnS4. The high-frequency dielectric constants of the compounds are between 6.8 and 8.9. Cu2Sn1−xGexS3 and Cu2Sn1−xSixS3 can be considered as potential candidates for absorber materials in thin-film solar cells.
We demonstrate that the band-gap energies Eg of CuSb(Se,Te)2 and CuBi(S,Se)2 can be optimized for high energy conversion in very thin photovoltaic devices, and that the alloys then exhibit excellent optical properties, especially for tellurium rich CuSb(Se1−xTex)2. This is explained by multi-valley band structure with flat energy dispersions, mainly due to the localized character of the Sb/Bi p-like conduction band states. Still the effective electron mass is reasonable small: mc ≈ 0.25m0 for CuSbTe2. The absorption coefficient α(ω) for CuSb(Se1−xTex)2 is at ħω = Eg + 1 eV as much as 5–7 times larger than α(ω) for traditional thin-film absorber materials. Auger recombination does limit the efficiency if the carrier concentration becomes too high, and this effect needs to be suppressed. However with high absorptivity, the alloys can be utilized for extremely thin inorganic solar cells with the maximum efficiency ηmax ≈ 25% even for film thicknesses d ≈ 50–150 nm, and the efficiency increases to ~30%if the Auger effect is diminished.
Parameterization of the electronic band structure of CuIn(1-x)Ga(x)Se(2) (x=0, 0.5, and 1) demonstrates that the energy dispersions of the three uppermost valence bands [E(j)(k); j=v1, v2, and v3] are strongly anisotropic and non-parabolic even very close to the Gamma-point valence-band maximum E,(0). Also the lowest conduction band E(c1) (k) is anisotropic and non-parabolic for energies similar to 0.05 eV above the band-gap energy. Since the electrical conductivity depends directly on the energy dispersion, future electron and hole transport simulations of CuIn(1-x)Ga(x)Se(2) need to go beyond the parabolic approximation of the bands. We therefore present a parameterization of the energy bands, the k-dependency of the effective electron and hole masses m(f)(k), and also an average energy-dependent approximation of the masses m(j)(E).
Based on ab initio calculations of both the ABC- and AB-stacked graphites, interlayer potentials (i.e., graphene-graphene interaction) are obtained as a function of the interlayer spacing using a modified Mobius inversion method, and are used to calculate basic physical properties of graphite. Excellent consistency is observed between the calculated and experimental phonon dispersions of AB-stacked graphite, showing the validity of the interlayer potentials. More importantly, layer-related properties for nonideal structures (e.g., the exfoliation energy, cleave energy, stacking fault energy, surface energy, etc.) can be easily predicted from the interlayer potentials, which promise to be extremely efficient and helpful in studying van der Waals structures.
The positions of the semicore Ga d levels in GaX semiconductors (X = N, P, and As) are underestimated in density functional calculations using either the local density approximation LIDA or the generalized gradient approximation GGA for the exchange functional. Correcting for this inaccuracy within LDA + U calculations with an on-site Coulumb interaction U on the semicore d-states results in a modest enhancement of the band gap. We show that this modest enhancement of the band-gap energy comes from the movement of the valence-band maximum alone, thus not affecting the conduction-band states. Further, the localization of the charge on Ga d states with U leads to a regulation of charge on Ga. This yields a shift of 1-2 eV of the core levels on the Ga atom while the anion core levels remain unchanged.
Mn doping in dilute III-V alloys has been examined as a route to enhance ferromagnetic stability. Strong valence-band bowing is expected at the dilute limit, implying a strong modification of the ferromagnetic stability upon alloying with even an increase in some cases. Using first-principles electronic structure calculations we show that while codoping with a group V anion enhances the ferromagnetic stability in some cases when the effects of relaxation of the lattice are not considered, strong impurity scattering in the relaxed structure result in a reduction in the ferromagnetic stability.
We report ellipsometrically determined dielectric function ε spectra for CuIn0.7Ga0.3Se2 thin film at 40 and 300 K. The data exhibit numerous spectral features associated with interband critical points (CPs) in the spectral range from 0.74 to 6.43 eV. The second-energy-derivatives of ε further reveal a total of twelve above-bandgap CP features, whose energies are obtained accurately by a standard lineshape analysis. The ε spectra determined by ellipsometry show a good agreement with the results of full-potential linearized augmented plane wave calculations. Probable electronic origins of the CP features observed are discussed.
We present dielectric function epsilon=epsilon(1) + i epsilon(2) spectra and critical-point energies of Cu2ZnSnSe4 determined by spectroscopic ellipsometry from 0.5 to 9.0 eV. We reduce artifacts from surface overlayers to the maximum extent possible by performing chemical-mechanical polishing and wet-chemical etching of the surface of a Cu2ZnSnSe4 thin film. Ellipsometric data are analyzed by the multilayer model and the epsilon spectra are extracted. The data exhibit numerous spectral features associated with critical points, whose energies are obtained by fitting standard lineshapes to second energy derivatives of the data. The experimental results are in good agreement with the a spectra calculated within the GW quasi-particle approximation, and possible origins of the pronounced critical-point structures are identified.
In this work, we determine experimentally the dielectric function of monoclinic Cu2SnS3 (CTS) by spectroscopic ellipsometry from 0.7 to 5.9 eV. An experimental approach is proposed to overcome the challenges of extracting the dielectric function of Cu2SnS3 when grown on a glass/Mo substrate, as relevant for photovoltaic applications. The ellipsometry measurement reveals a double absorption onset at 0.91 eV and 0.99 eV. Importantly, we demonstrate that calculation within the density functional theory (DFT) confirms this double onset only when a very dense k-mesh is used to reveal fine details in the electronic structure, and this can explain why it has not been reported in earlier calculated spectra. We can now show that the double onset originates from optical transitions at the Gamma-point from three energetically close-lying valence bands to a single conduction band. Thus, structural imperfection, like secondary phases, is not needed to explain such an absorption spectrum. Finally, we show that the absorption coefficient of CTS is particularly large in the near-band gap spectral region when compared to similar photovoltaic materials. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
The band gap shift (BGS) of Si-doped wurtzite GaN for impurity concentrations spanning the insulating to the metallic regimes has been investigated at low temperature. The critical impurity concentration for the metal-non-metal transition is estimated from the generalized Drude approach for the resistivity to be about 1.0 x 10(18) cm(-3). The calculations for the BGS were carried out within a framework of the random phase approximation, taking into account the electron-electron, electron-optical phonon, and electron-ion interactions. In the wake of very recent photoluminescence measurements, we have shown and discussed the possible transitions involved in the experimental results.
Si1-xGex is a good candidate as a substitute material for Si in a low-power and high-speed semiconductor device technologies. Optical devices, such as heterojunction bipolar transistors, are already in industrial production. The samples are grown on Si(001) with both n-and p-type impurities and with different Ge concentrations. The linear optical response of Si 1-x Gex is investigated theoretically using a full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method with respect to composition x. The calculated real and imaginary parts of the dielectric function ε e(ω) = ε1(ω) + iε 2(ω) were found to be in good agreement with recent spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements performed by Bahng et al., J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 13, 777 (2001). We also perform absorption measurements for different type of samples showing the variation of energy gaps as a function of Ge concentrations.