Ultra light-trapping filters with broadband reflection holograms

Significant optical absorption enhancement can be achieved by incorporating optical diffusers in the thin-film silicon photovoltaic (PV) cells. Absorption can be increased further by angular and spectral selective filters. In this work the properties of volume reflection holograms are examined for realizing ultra light-trapping filters for thin film silicon photovoltaic cell applications. The filter properties of reflection volume hologram are evaluated for this application. It is found that variation in the refractive index profile as a function of depth is an important factor. The optimized design is implemented in dichromated gelatin holograms and found to be in good agreement with predicted performance. The enhancement to the conversion efficiency of silicon PV cells are predicted with the PC-1D simulation tool and is found to be similar to that with an optimized Rugate filter. The simulated short circuit current density enhancement was found to be 8.2% for a 50 μm thick silicon PV cell and 15.8% for a 10 μm thick silicon PV cell.