The Role of Nanotechnology on Photovoltaic Cells

Advances in the field of Nanotechnology has shown great promise to enhance the photoconversion of photovoltaic cells and hence improved electrical output. This breakthrough in terms of efficiency seems meager when compared to the crystalline silicon solar cells. However, Quantum dots Nanocrystals has the potential to achieve higher efficiency because their bandgap can be tuned to absorb a wider range of the electromagnetic spectrum, and also, they can generate multiple excitons through impact ionization process. This Review paper discusses the basic principles of Photovoltaic effects, efficiency and Shockley-Queisser limit, the major drawbacks of silicon-based PV cells, the function of Quantum dots Nanocrystals to improve efficiency and finally the advantages of Quantum dots.