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Wang S, Cui H, Jin S, Pi X, He H, Shou C, Yang D, Wang L. Anti-reflection effect of high refractive index polyurethane with different light trapping structures on solar cells. Heliyon 2023; 9:e20264. [PMID: 37810064 PMCID: PMC10560017 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The textured surfaces to reduce light reflectivity by using acid-alkali chemical etching and SiNx films are generally necessary for commercial crystalline silicon solar cells. However, this etching process requires a large amount of environmentally harmful acid-alkali solution and has limited options for texture and size. To overcome these disadvantages, a new anti-reflection strategy is proposed in this study, which is using soft nanoimprint lithography to prepare the textured structures on the outside of the SiNx films. The polyurethane with a high refractive index of 1.64 is selected as the texture material, and different templates are selected to prepare it into different light trapping structures, including positive-inverted pyramids, inverted lace cones, and positive-inverted moth-eye nanostructures allowing for easy customization of the textured structures. The finite element simulation and experiments demonstrate that these light trapping structures have a wide spectrum anti-reflection performance in visible and near-infrared bands. With the back surface of the commercial passivated emitter rear contact (PERC) bi-facial solar cells as the imprint substrates, some light trapping structures can reduce the surface weighted average light reflectivity (Rw) at the band of 300-1200 nm from 18.31% to less than 10% and the optimal structures can reduce Rw to 8.71%. This anti-reflection strategy can also be applied to thin-film solar cells and crystalline silicon solar cells of other structures, such as HIT, Topcon, Perovskite/c-Si tandem, and so forth, which shows great development potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shengxuan Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
| | - Hao Cui
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
| | - Sijia Jin
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
| | - Xiaodong Pi
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
- Institute of Advanced Semiconductors and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Power Semiconductor Materials and Devices, Hangzhou Innovation Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 311200, China
| | - Haiyan He
- Zhejiang Baima Lake Laboratory Co., Ltd., Hangzhou Zhejiang 310000, China
| | - Chunhui Shou
- Zhejiang Baima Lake Laboratory Co., Ltd., Hangzhou Zhejiang 310000, China
| | - Deren Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
| | - Lei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
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Lin Y, Jiang Y, Liu R, Chen J, Lu L, Zhu W, Zhang ST, Li D. Multi-scale optical simulation of crystalline silicon solar cells by combining ray and wave optics. APPLIED OPTICS 2023; 62:4236-4244. [PMID: 37706911 DOI: 10.1364/ao.488752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2023] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
Optical simulations allow the evaluation of the absorption, reflection, and transmission of each functional layer of solar cells and, therefore, are of great importance for the design of high-efficiency crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells. Here, a multi-scale simulation method (MSM) based on ray and wave optics is proposed to investigate the optical characteristics of c-Si solar cells. The ray and wave optical methods are first independently employed on inverted pyramid glass sheets, where the latter one can describe the size-dependent interfacial scattering characteristics more accurately. Then the optical properties of a c-Si solar cell with a tunnel oxide passivated carrier-selective contact configuration are studied by employing the MSM, where scattering at the interfaces is acquired by a finite-difference time-domain method (wave optics). Since the MSM can accurately simulate optical modes such as the Rayleigh anomaly, Bloch mode, and Mie resonances, the reflection and transmission spectra of the whole device are in good agreement with the measured data. The proposed MSM has proven to be accurate for structures with functional thin films, which can be extended to hybrid tandem devices with top-level cells consisting of stacks of layers with similar dimensions.
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Atinafu DG, Yun BY, Kim YU, Kim S. Nanopolyhybrids: Materials, Engineering Designs, and Advances in Thermal Management. SMALL METHODS 2023; 7:e2201515. [PMID: 36855164 DOI: 10.1002/smtd.202201515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The fundamental requirements for thermal comfort along with the unbalanced growth in the energy demand and consumption worldwide have triggered the development and innovation of advanced materials for high thermal-management capabilities. However, continuous development remains a significant challenge in designing thermally robust materials for the efficient thermal management of industrial devices and manufacturing technologies. The notable achievements thus far in nanopolyhybrid design technologies include multiresponsive energy harvesting/conversion (e.g., light, magnetic, and electric), thermoregulation (including microclimate), energy saving in construction, as well as the miniaturization, integration, and intelligentization of electronic systems. These are achieved by integrating nanomaterials and polymers with desired engineering strategies. Herein, fundamental design approaches that consider diverse nanomaterials and the properties of nanopolyhybrids are introduced, and the emerging applications of hybrid composites such as personal and electronic thermal management and advanced medical applications are highlighted. Finally, current challenges and outlook for future trends and prospects are summarized to develop nanopolyhybrid materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimberu G Atinafu
- Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Beom Yeol Yun
- Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Uk Kim
- Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Sumin Kim
- Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, 03722, Republic of Korea
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4
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Sayed H, Al-Dossari M, Ismail MA, Abd El-Gawaad NS, Aly AH. Theoretical Analysis of Optical Properties for Amorphous Silicon Solar Cells with Adding Anti-Reflective Coating Photonic Crystals. PHOTONICS 2022; 9:813. [DOI: 10.3390/photonics9110813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/02/2023]
Abstract
In the current study, we aim to limit the power dissipation in amorphous silicon solar cells by enhancing the cell absorbance at different incident angles. The current improvement is justified by adding the single-period of ternary 1D photonic crystal with texturing on the top surface, which acts as an anti-reflecting coating. The texturing shape gives the photons at least two chances to localize inside the active area of the cell. Therefore, it increases the absorbance of the cell. Moreover, we add binary one-dimensional photonic crystals with the features of a photonic band gap, which acts as a back mirror to return the photons that were transmitted inside the cell’s active region. The considered structure is demonstrated by the well-defined finite element method (FEM) by using COMSOL multiphysics.
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Xu K, Hu J, Wang M, Cheng GJ, Xu S. Armored Nanocones Engraved by Selective Laser Doping Enhanced Plasma Etching for Robust Supertransmissivity. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2022; 14:47237-47245. [PMID: 36200938 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c13033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Optical antireflection surfaces equipped with subwavelength nanocone arrays are commonly used to reach broadband supertransmissivity but are limited by the lack of wear resistance. We design and manufacture a structured surface with robust antireflection structures (R-ARS) composed of substrate-engraved nanocone arrays with micro-grid-shaped walls as protective armor. An ultrafast laser beam is used to selectively ablate and dope the metal from the deposited film into the subsurface of optical substrates to strengthen self-assembled nanoparticles formed during plasma etching as masks for nanocones. The untreated microscale metal grids serve as etching masks for the remaining protective armor. The geometrical features of nanocones and spatial distribution of protective armor with a proper duty cycle are theoretically optimized for improvement in both transmissivity and mechanical robustness. We demonstrate armored dense engraved nanocone arrays (with tip diameters of ∼50 nm and heights of ∼0.8 μm) on visible fused silica and infrared semi-insulating SiC with protective micro-square-grid armor. The average transmittances are improved from 93% to over 97% (on 0.4-1.2 μm) for double-face-structured fused silica, and from 60 to 65% (on 3-5 μm) for single-face-structured SiC, with few reductions of fused silica after 150 cycles of severe abrasion (under a pressure of 5.34 MPa) proving the excellent mechanical robust performance of R-ARS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kang Xu
- Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Jin Hu
- Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Min Wang
- School of Microelectronics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Gary J Cheng
- School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Shaolin Xu
- Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
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Lin Y, Xu H, Shi R, Lu L, Zhang ST, Li D. Enhanced diffraction efficiency with angular selectivity by inserting an optical interlayer into a diffractive waveguide for augmented reality displays. OPTICS EXPRESS 2022; 30:31244-31255. [PMID: 36242211 DOI: 10.1364/oe.469126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The overall efficiency and image uniformity are important criteria for augmented reality display. The conventional in-coupling grating design intending to improve only the first-order diffraction efficiency without considering the multiple interactions with diffracted light in the waveguide is insufficient. In this work, the back-coupling loss (BCL) on the in-coupling surface relief grating, and the power of light arriving at the out-coupling grating over that of incident light (denoted as optical efficiency in waveguide, OEW) are introduced for the design of in-coupling grating. A simple and effective method to increase diffraction efficiency with unique angular selectivity is demonstrated by inserting an interlayer between the waveguide and grating. The optimized average OEW and its uniformity under a field of view of 40° are increased from 8.02% and 24.83% to 8.34% and 35.02% by introducing a region-selective MgF2 interlayer.
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Sakamoto M, Saitow KI. Fast, Economical, and Reproducible Sensing from a 2D Si Wire Array: Accurate Characterization by Single Wire Spectroscopy. Anal Chem 2022; 94:6672-6680. [PMID: 35475623 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.1c05001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Silicon (Si) is promising as a field enhancement material because of its high abundance, low toxicity, and high refractive index. The field enhancement effect intensifies light-matter interactions, which improves photocatalysis, solar cell performance, and sensor sensitivity. To manufacture field enhancement materials on a production scale, the fabrication technique must be simple, cost-effective, fast, and highly reproducible and must produce a high enhancement factor (EF). Herein, we report on an economical and efficient fabrication method for a field enhancement substrate consisting of a two-dimensional Si wire array (2D-SiWA). This substrate was demonstrated as a fluorescence sensor with high sensitivity (EF > 200) and composed of a large area (6.0 mm2). In addition, single wire spectroscopy was used to identify very high reproducibility of the sensor sensitivity in regular regions (97%) and a mixture of regular and irregular regions (87%) of the 2D-SiWA. The large-area Si fluorescence sensor fabrication was cost-effective and rapid and was 50× less expensive, 20×faster, and 60,000×larger than the typical electron beam lithography method.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masanori Sakamoto
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan
| | - Ken-Ichi Saitow
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan.,Department of Materials Science, Natural Science Center for Basic Research and Development (N-BARD), Hiroshima University, 1-3-1 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan.,Graduate School of Advanced Science and Engineering, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan
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8
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The Design and Optimization of an Anti-Reflection Coating and an Intermediate Reflective Layer to Enhance Tandem Solar Cell Photons Capture. CRYSTALS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/cryst12010057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
We have theoretically demonstrated an efficient way to improve the optical properties of an anti-reflection coating (ARC) and an intermediate reflective layer (IRL) to enhance tandem solar cell efficiency by localizing the incident photons’ energy on a suitable sub-cell. The optimum designed ARC from a one-dimensional ternary photonic crystal, consisting of a layer of silicon oxynitride (SiON), was immersed between two layers of (SiO2); thicknesses were chosen to be 98 nm, 48 nm, and 8 nm, respectively. The numerical results show the interesting transmission properties of the anti-reflection coating on the viable and near IR spectrum. The IRL was designed from one-dimensional binary photonic crystals and the constituent materials are Bi4Ge3O12 and μc-SiOx: H with refractive indexes was 2.05, and 2.8, respectively. The numbers of periods were set to 10. Thicknesses: d1 = 62 nm and d2 = 40 nm created a photonic bandgap (PBG) in the range of [420 nm: 540 nm]. By increasing the second material thickness to 55 nm, and 73 nm, the PBG shifted to longer wavelengths: [520 nm: 630 nm], and [620 nm: 730 nm], respectively. Thus, by stacking the three remaining structures, the PBG widened and extended from 400 nm to 730 nm. The current theoretical and simulation methods are based on the fundamentals of the transfer matrix method and finite difference time domain method.
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Liu S, Tian J, Zhang W. Fabrication and application of nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide: a review. NANOTECHNOLOGY 2021; 32:222001. [PMID: 0 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6528/abe25f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
Due to the unique optical and electrochemical properties, large surface area, tunable properties, and high thermal stability, nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) has become one of the most popular materials with a large potential to develop emerging applications in numerous areas, including biosensors, desalination, high-risk pollutants detection, capacitors, solar cell devices, photonic crystals, template-assisted fabrication of nanostructures, and so on. This review covers the mechanism of AAO formation, manufacturing technology, the relationship between the properties of AAO and fabrication conditions, and applications of AAO. Properties of AAO, like pore diameter, interpore distance, wall thickness, and anodized aluminum layer thickness, can be fully controlled by fabrication conditions, including electrolyte, applied voltage, anodizing and widening time. Generally speaking, the pore diameter of AAO will affect its specific application to a large extent. Moreover, manufacturing technology like one/two/multi step anodization, nanoimprint lithography anodization, and pulse/cyclic anodization also have a major impact on overall array arrangement. The review aims to provide a perspective overview of the relationship between applications and their corresponding AAO pore sizes, systematically. And the review also focuses on the strategies by which the structures and functions of AAO can be utilized.
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10
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Bangera AE, Appaiah K. Three-Dimensional Grids of Optimized Ti-Compounds on Si for Ultra-Wideband Optical Absorption. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2020; 12:39826-39833. [PMID: 32805874 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c10091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Typically, the optical applications of silicon (Si) are limited to wavelengths below ∼1100 nm. However, there is significant research on Si surface modification, which tries to extend the optical properties of Si further into the infrared (IR) region. In this work, we present an ultra-wideband complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)-biocompatible Si-based optical absorber with a hydrophobic surface. It consists of patterned three-dimensional grid-like structures of optimized compounds of titanium (Ti) on n-type Si (n-Si). Here, the Ti-compounds on Si were formed by subsequent deposition of patterned Ti and annealing. Moreover, we have shown that there are two possible Ti-compounds formed on Si, depending on the thickness of Ti deposited and the annealing time. The composition and the corresponding absorbance spectra for the two possibilities of Ti-compounds on n-Si, that is, Ti-O/Ti-O-Si/Ti-Si/n-Si (type 1) and Ti-O/Ti-O-Si/n-Si (type 2), were confirmed using an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy depth profiler and ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared spectrometer. We also illustrate how type 1 improves the absorption of radiation in the IR region. Further, we experimentally demonstrate that our fabricated absorber has an average reflectance (R) of <25% and an average absorbance of approximately 60% for wavelengths ranging from 200 to 3300 nm. The average % R for wavelengths from 400 to 1500 nm is <10%. The surface hydrophobicity for the fabricated absorbers was confirmed using a water contact angle (WCA) measurement system with WCAs >100°, which makes the surface hydrophobic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankitha E Bangera
- Centre for Research in Nanotechnology and Science, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai 400076, India
| | - Kumar Appaiah
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai 400076, India
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Cao S, Yu D, Lin Y, Zhang C, Lu L, Yin M, Zhu X, Chen X, Li D. Light Propagation in Flexible Thin-Film Amorphous Silicon Solar Cells with Nanotextured Metal Back Reflectors. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2020; 12:26184-26192. [PMID: 32392028 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c05330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Nanostructured metal back reflectors (BRs) are playing an important role in thin-film solar cells, which facilitates an increased optical path length within a relatively thin absorbing layer. In this study, three nanotextured plasmonic metal (copper, gold, and silver) BRs underneath flexible thin-film amorphous silicon solar cells are systematically investigated. The solar cells with BRs demonstrate an excellent light harvesting capability in the long-wavelength region. With the combination of hybrid cavity resonances, horizontal modes, and surface plasmonic resonances, more incident light is coupled into the photoactive layer. Compared to the reference cells, the three devices with plasmonic BRs show lower parasitic absorptions with different individual absorption distributions. Both experimental and simulated results indicate that the silver BR cells delivered the best performance with a promising power conversion efficiency of 7.26%. These rational designs of light harvesting nanostructures provide guidelines for high-performance thin-film solar cells and other optoelectronic devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuangying Cao
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dongliang Yu
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
- Key Laboratory of Soft Chemistry and Functional Materials of Education Ministry, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, 200 Xiaolingwei Street, Nanjing 210094, China
| | - Yinyue Lin
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Chi Zhang
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
- Key Laboratory of Soft Chemistry and Functional Materials of Education Ministry, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, 200 Xiaolingwei Street, Nanjing 210094, China
| | - Linfeng Lu
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Min Yin
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Xufei Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Soft Chemistry and Functional Materials of Education Ministry, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, 200 Xiaolingwei Street, Nanjing 210094, China
| | - Xiaoyuan Chen
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dongdong Li
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Haike Road, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19 Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
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Abstract
The solar photovoltaic (PV) cell is a prominent energy harvesting device that reduces the strain in the conventional energy generation approach and endorses the prospectiveness of renewable energy. Thus, the exploration in this ever-green field is worth the effort. From the power conversion efficiency standpoint of view, PVs are consistently improving, and when analyzing the potential areas that can be advanced, more and more exciting challenges are encountered. One such crucial challenge is to increase the photon availability for PV conversion. This challenge is solved using two ways. First, by suppressing the reflection at the interface of the solar cell, and the other way is to enhance the optical pathlength inside the cell for adequate absorption of the photons. Our review addresses this challenge by emphasizing the various strategies that aid in trapping the light in the solar cells. These strategies include the usage of antireflection coatings (ARCs) and light-trapping structures. The primary focus of this study is to review the ARCs from a PV application perspective based on various materials, and it highlights the development of ARCs from more than the past three decades covering the structure, fabrication techniques, optical performance, features, and research potential of ARCs reported. More importantly, various ARCs researched with different classes of PV cells, and their impact on its efficiency is given a special attention. To enhance the optical pathlength, and thus the absorption in solar PV devices, an insight about the advanced light-trapping techniques that deals with the concept of plasmonics, spectral modification, and other prevailing innovative light-trapping structures approaching the Yablonovitch limit is discussed. An extensive collection of information is presented as tables under each core review section. Further, we take a step forward to brief the effects of ageing on ARCs and their influence on the device performance. Finally, we summarize the review of ARCs on the basis of structures, materials, optical performance, multifunctionality, stability, and cost-effectiveness along with a master table comparing the selected high-performance ARCs with perfect AR coatings. Also, from the discussed significant challenges faced by ARCs and future outlook; this work directs the researchers to identify the area of expertise where further research analysis is needed in near future.
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Zhang X, Zhang C, Li D, Cao S, Yin M, Wang P, Ding G, Yang L, Cheng J, Lu L. High Weight-Specific Power Density of Thin-Film Amorphous Silicon Solar Cells on Graphene Papers. NANOSCALE RESEARCH LETTERS 2019; 14:324. [PMID: 31620971 PMCID: PMC6795669 DOI: 10.1186/s11671-019-3132-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2019] [Accepted: 08/19/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Flexible thin-film solar cells with high weight-specific power density are highly desired in the emerging portable/wearable electronic devices, solar-powered vehicles, etc. The conventional flexible metallic or plastic substrates are encountered either overweight or thermal and mechanical mismatch with deposited films. In this work, we proposed a novel substrate for flexible solar cells based on graphene paper, which possesses the advantages of being lightweight and having a high-temperature tolerance and high mechanical flexibility. Thin-film amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) solar cells were constructed on such graphene paper, whose power density is 4.5 times higher than that on plastic polyimide substrates. In addition, the a-Si:H solar cells present notable flexibility whose power conversion efficiencies show little degradation when the solar cells are bent to a radius as small as 14 mm for more than 100 times. The application of this unique flexible substrate can be extended to CuInGaSe and CdTe solar cells and other thin-film devices requiring high-temperature processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Zhang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444, People's Republic of China
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Chi Zhang
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Dongdong Li
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Shuangying Cao
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Min Yin
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Peng Wang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444, People's Republic of China
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Guqiao Ding
- Center for Excellence in Superconducting Electronics (CENSE), State Key Laboratory of Functional Materials for Informatics, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology (SIMIT), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200050, People's Republic of China
| | - Liyou Yang
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China
| | - Jinrong Cheng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai University, Shanghai, 200444, People's Republic of China.
| | - Linfeng Lu
- CAS Key Lab of Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210, People's Republic of China.
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Banerjee S, Mandal S, Dhar S, Roy AB, Mukherjee N. Nanomirror-Embedded Back Reflector Layer (BRL) for Advanced Light Management in Thin Silicon Solar Cells. Ind Eng Chem Res 2019. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.iecr.9b01719] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sudarshana Banerjee
- Centre of Excellence for Green Energy and Sensor Systems, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103, West Bengal, India
| | - Sourav Mandal
- Centre of Excellence for Green Energy and Sensor Systems, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103, West Bengal, India
- Centre for Energy Studies, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi 110016, India
| | - Sukanta Dhar
- Centre of Excellence for Green Energy and Sensor Systems, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103, West Bengal, India
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, National Institute of Technology Sikkim, Ravangla, South Sikkim 737139, India
| | - Arijit Bardhan Roy
- Centre of Excellence for Green Energy and Sensor Systems, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103, West Bengal, India
| | - Nillohit Mukherjee
- Centre of Excellence for Green Energy and Sensor Systems, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah 711103, West Bengal, India
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Shi L, Liang Q, Wang W, Zhang Y, Li G, Ji T, Hao Y, Cui Y. Research Progress in Organic Photomultiplication Photodetectors. NANOMATERIALS 2018; 8:nano8090713. [PMID: 30208639 PMCID: PMC6165393 DOI: 10.3390/nano8090713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2018] [Revised: 08/28/2018] [Accepted: 08/31/2018] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Organic photomultiplication photodetectors have attracted considerable research interest due to their extremely high external quantum efficiency and corresponding high detectivity. Significant progress has been made in the aspects of their structural design and performance improvement in the past few years. There are two types of organic photomultiplication photodetectors, which are made of organic small molecular compounds and polymers. In this paper, the research progress in each type of organic photomultiplication photodetectors based on the trap assisted carrier tunneling effect is reviewed in detail. In addition, other mechanisms for the photomultiplication processes in organic devices are introduced. Finally, the paper is summarized and the prospects of future research into organic photomultiplication photodetectors are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linlin Shi
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Qiangbing Liang
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Wenyan Wang
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Ye Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Guohui Li
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Ting Ji
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Yuying Hao
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
- Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
| | - Yanxia Cui
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Transducers and Intelligent Control System of Ministry of Education, College of Physics and Optoelectronics, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
- Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
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Magdi S, El-Rifai J, Swillam MA. One step fabrication of Silicon nanocones with wide-angle enhanced light absorption. Sci Rep 2018; 8:4001. [PMID: 29507294 PMCID: PMC5838109 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-22100-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2017] [Accepted: 02/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
We report the fabrication of an array of random Silicon nanocones using a KrF excimer laser. A 370 nm thick amorphous Silicon layer deposited on a glass substrate was used in the process. The fabricated nanocones showed a large and broadband absorption enhancement over the entire visible wavelength range. An enhancement up to 350% is measured at λ = 650 nm. Additionally, the laser irradiation caused the nanocones to crystallize. The effect of changing the laser parameters (i.e. energy density, time, and frequency) on the morphology and the absorption is studied and compared. Wide-angle anti-reflective properties have been observed for the fabricated nanocones with less than 10% reflection for angles up to 60°. The major limitation of amorphous silicon thin film solar cells is the reduced absorption. This problem could be solved if light is trapped efficiently inside the thin film without the need of increasing the film thickness. The random array of nanocones presented in this work showed a substantial increase in absorption over a wide angle, were fabricated at a low cost and are easily scalable. This technique offers a fast approach which could significantly help in overcoming the absorption limitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Magdi
- Nanotechnology Program, American University in Cairo, AUC Avenue New Cairo, 11835, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Joumana El-Rifai
- Department of Physics, American University in Cairo, AUC Avenue New Cairo, 11835, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Mohamed A Swillam
- Nanotechnology Program, American University in Cairo, AUC Avenue New Cairo, 11835, Cairo, Egypt. .,Department of Physics, American University in Cairo, AUC Avenue New Cairo, 11835, Cairo, Egypt.
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17
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Photonic Structures for Light Trapping in Thin Film Silicon Solar Cells: Design and Experiment. COATINGS 2017. [DOI: 10.3390/coatings7120236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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Wang M, Ma P, Yin M, Lu L, Lin Y, Chen X, Jia W, Cao X, Chang P, Li D. Scalable Production of Mechanically Robust Antireflection Film for Omnidirectional Enhanced Flexible Thin Film Solar Cells. ADVANCED SCIENCE (WEINHEIM, BADEN-WURTTEMBERG, GERMANY) 2017; 4:1700079. [PMID: 28932667 PMCID: PMC5604369 DOI: 10.1002/advs.201700079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2017] [Revised: 03/23/2017] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
Antireflection (AR) at the interface between the air and incident window material is paramount to boost the performance of photovoltaic devices. 3D nanostructures have attracted tremendous interest to reduce reflection, while the structure is vulnerable to the harsh outdoor environment. Thus the AR film with improved mechanical property is desirable in an industrial application. Herein, a scalable production of flexible AR films is proposed with microsized structures by roll-to-roll imprinting process, which possesses hydrophobic property and much improved robustness. The AR films can be potentially used for a wide range of photovoltaic devices whether based on rigid or flexible substrates. As a demonstration, the AR films are integrated with commercial Si-based triple-junction thin film solar cells. The AR film works as an effective tool to control the light travel path and utilize the light inward more efficiently by exciting hybrid optical modes, which results in a broadband and omnidirectional enhanced performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Wang
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing100039China
| | - Pengsha Ma
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
| | - Min Yin
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
| | - Linfeng Lu
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
| | - Yinyue Lin
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
| | - Xiaoyuan Chen
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
| | - Wei Jia
- Xunlight (Kunshan) Company LimitedSuzhou215301China
| | - Xinmin Cao
- Xunlight (Kunshan) Company LimitedSuzhou215301China
| | - Paichun Chang
- Department of Creative IndustryKainan UniversityNo. 1, Kainan RoadLuchuTaoyuan County338Taiwan
| | - Dongdong Li
- Shanghai Advanced Research InstituteChinese Academy of Sciences99 Haike RoadZhangjiang Hi‐Tech Park, PudongShanghai201210China
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Li Y, Hao Y, Huang C, Chen X, Chen X, Cui Y, Yuan C, Qiu K, Ge H, Chen Y. Wafer Scale Fabrication of Dense and High Aspect Ratio Sub-50 nm Nanopillars from Phase Separation of Cross-Linkable Polysiloxane/Polystyrene Blend. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2017; 9:13685-13693. [PMID: 28361542 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.7b00106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
We demonstrated a simple and effective approach to fabricate dense and high aspect ratio sub-50 nm pillars based on phase separation of a polymer blend composed of a cross-linkable polysiloxane and polystyrene (PS). In order to obtain the phase-separated domains with nanoscale size, a liquid prepolymer of cross-linkable polysiloxane was employed as one moiety for increasing the miscibility of the polymer blend. After phase separation via spin-coating, the dispersed domains of liquid polysiloxane with sub-50 nm size could be solidified by UV exposure. The solidified polysiloxane domains took the role of etching mask for formation of high aspect ratio nanopillars by O2 reactive ion etching (RIE). The aspect ratio of the nanopillars could be further amplified by introduction of a polymer transfer layer underneath the polymer blend film. The effects of spin speeds, the weight ratio of the polysiloxane/PS blend, and the concentration of polysiloxane/PS blend in toluene on the characters of the nanopillars were investigated. The gold-coated nanopillar arrays exhibited a high Raman scattering enhancement factor in the range of 108-109 with high uniformity across over the wafer scale sample. A superhydrophobic surface could be realized by coating a self-assembled monolayers (SAM) of fluoroalkyltrichlorosilane on the nanopillar arrays. Sub-50 nm silicon nanowires (SiNWs) with high aspect ratio of about 1000 were achieved by using the nanopillars as etching mask through a metal-assisted chemical etching process. They showed an ultralow reflectance of approximately 0.1% for wavelengths ranging from 200 to 800 nm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Li
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Yuli Hao
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Chunyu Huang
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Xingyao Chen
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Xinyu Chen
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Yushuang Cui
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Changsheng Yuan
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Kai Qiu
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Haixiong Ge
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Yanfeng Chen
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing 210093, China
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Tian L, Luo X, Yin M, Li D, Xue X, Wang H. Enhanced CMOS image sensor by flexible 3D nanocone anti-reflection film. Sci Bull (Beijing) 2017; 62:130-135. [PMID: 36659484 DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2016.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2016] [Revised: 12/07/2016] [Accepted: 12/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors (CIS) are being widely used in digital video cameras, web cameras, digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR), smart phones and so on, owing to their high level of integration, random accessibility, and low-power operation. It needs to be installed with the cover glass in practical applications to protect the sensor from damage, mechanical issues, and environmental conditions, which, however, limits the accuracy and usability of the sensor due to the reflection in the optical path from air-to-cover glass-to-air. In this work, the flexible 3D nanocone anti-reflection (AR) film with controlled aspect ratio was firstly employed to reduce the light reflection at air/cover glass/air interfaces by directly attaching onto the front and rear sides of the CIS cover glass. As both the front and rear sides of cover glass were coated by the AR film, the output image quality was found to be improved with external quantum efficiency increased by 7%, compared with that without AR film. The mean digital data value, root-mean-square contrast, and dynamic range are increased by 45.14%, 38.61% and 57, respectively, for the output image with AR films. These results provide a novel and facile pathway to improve the CIS performance and also could be extended to rational design of other image sensors and optoelectronic devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Tian
- Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Xiaolei Luo
- Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China; School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
| | - Min Yin
- Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China.
| | - Dongdong Li
- Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China.
| | - Xinzhong Xue
- Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Hui Wang
- Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201210, China
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