Events

Seminar - Challenges and Opportunities of Functional Complex Oxides for Energy Applications, Mariona Coll, Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus UAB, Barcelona (Spain)

Seminar - Challenges and Opportunities of Functional Complex Oxides for Energy Applications, Mariona Coll, Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus UAB, Barcelona (Spain)

Date: Wednesday 5 April 2023 15:00 - 16:00

Location: Bancroft 1.02.6A

Current photovoltaic technologies (PV) have led to important performance improvement and price reduction but they are still subjected to fundamental limitations such as a maximum power conversion efficiency, complex engineered multilayer architectures, materials instability and high energy payback time. Ferroelectric oxide perovskites show an unconventional bulk PV mechanism which could result in power conversion efficiencies beyond the traditional solar cells. Here we will present our progress on the understanding of how compositional tuning and interface engineering can impact the performance of the ferroelectric oxide-based device. We will present a thorough characterization by means of x-ray diffraction, photoresponse, x-ray absorption analysis and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy [1]. Another relevant aspect in epitaxial ferroelectrics for PV is the difficulty to be fabricated in flexible and lightweight modules as these substrates do not meet the requirements for epitaxial growth and cannot stand high temperature treatments. We have developed a facile chemical route based on the use of Sr3Al2O6 sacrificial layer to prepare freestanding membranes of various compositions (CoFe2O4, La1-xSrxMnO3, BiFeO3) that can be transferred to flexible and rigid substrates.[2] Therefore, from this work it is envisaged many new opportunities to prepare artificial oxide heterostructures and devices offering a whole new dimension for photovoltaics and beyond.

[1] P. Machado, M.Coll et al. Chemistry of Materials 2019, 31, 947–954; J. Materials Chemistry C, 2021, 9, 330-339

[2] P. Sallés, M. Coll et al. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 2021, 8, 2001643

Arranged by:Joe Briscoe
People:
Research Centre: