SBIR Phase II: An Omni-Directional Antireflective Coating from Solutions

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II seeks to develop a surface texturing technique that will significantly improve sunlight coupling into various types of solar cells. Surface textures are mandatory to record efficiencies in solar cells. The Omni-Directional Antireflective Coating (Omni-AR) solution showed a reduction in reflection in a large range of incident angles (omni-directional) over a broad spectral range (400-1200 nm). Improved solar cell efficiency of over 10% was demonstrated (experimentally). The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be a low-cost, broad-spectrum, omni-directional and substrate-independent surface texture antireflective coating. It is expected to have a significant impact on current and future solar cell technologies. The ability to provide near ideal performance of antireflective coatings to solar cells without a vacuum process is a major step in reducing the cost of solar electricity. This solution-based deposition technique makes it possible to provide a single coating technology that should work with all types of solar cell materials and structures. This project will significantly improve the conversion efficiency in both current and future solar cells (~10%) with a minimum cost increase (~4%). This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).