Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology

Contact Radius And Insulator-Metal Transition In Films Comprised Of Touching Semiconductor Nanocrystals, Deanna M. Lanigan Aug 2016

Contact Radius And Insulator-Metal Transition In Films Comprised Of Touching Semiconductor Nanocrystals, Deanna M. Lanigan

McKelvey School of Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Nanocrystal assemblies are being explored for a number of optoelectronic applications such as transparent conductors, photovoltaic solar cells, and electrochromic windows. Majority carrier transport is important for these applications, yet it remains relatively poorly understood in films comprised of touching nanocrystals. Specifically, the underlying structural parameters expected to determine the transport mechanism have not been fully elucidated. In this report, we demonstrate experimentally that the contact radius, between touching heavily doped ZnO nanocrystals, controls the electron transport mechanism. Spherical nanocrystals are considered, which are connected by a circular area. The radius of this circular area is the contact radius. For …


Nanosphere Lithography And Its Application In Rapid And Economic Fabrication Of Plasmonic Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Photovoltaic Devices, Chenlong Zhang Jan 2016

Nanosphere Lithography And Its Application In Rapid And Economic Fabrication Of Plasmonic Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Photovoltaic Devices, Chenlong Zhang

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Solar photovoltaic (PV) devices harvest energy from solar radiation and convert it to electricity. PV technologies, as an alternative to traditional fossil fuels, use clean and renewable energy while minimizing pollution. For decades researchers have been developing thin film solar cells as an important alternatives to the relatively expensive bulk crystal solar cell technology. Among those, hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) solar cells prevails for good efficiency, non-toxic and materially abundant nature. However, a-Si:H thickness must be minimized to prevent light induced degradation, so optical enhancement is necessary. Light manipulation has to be applied and carefully engineered to trap light within …