Electromagnetic wave propagation is first analyzed in a composite material mde of chiral nano-inclusions embedded in a dielectric, with the help of Maxwell-Garnett formula for permittivity and permeability and its rec...Electromagnetic wave propagation is first analyzed in a composite material mde of chiral nano-inclusions embedded in a dielectric, with the help of Maxwell-Garnett formula for permittivity and permeability and its reciprocal for chirality. Then, this composite material appears as an homo-geneous isotropic chiral medium which may be described by the Post constitutive relations. We analyze the propagation of an harmonic plane wave in such a medium and we show that two different modes can propagate. We also discuss harmonic plane wave scattering on a semi-infinite chiral composite medium. Then, still in the frame of Maxwell-Garnett theory, the propagation of TE and TM fields is investigated in a periodic material made of nano dots immersed in a dielectric. The periodic fields are solutions of a Mathieu equation and such a material behaves as a diffraction grating.展开更多
Optical absorption in thin-film solar cells can be improved by using surface plasmons for guiding and confining the light on the nanoscale.We report theoretical and simulation studies of a-Si thin-film solar cells wit...Optical absorption in thin-film solar cells can be improved by using surface plasmons for guiding and confining the light on the nanoscale.We report theoretical and simulation studies of a-Si thin-film solar cells with silver nanocylinders on the surface.We found that surface plasmons increased the cells' spectral response over almost the entire studied solar spectrum.In the ultraviolet range and at wavelengths close to the Si band gap we observed a significant enhancement of the absorption for both thin-film and wafer-based structures.We also performed optimization studies of particle size,inter-particle distance,and dielectric environment,for obtaining maximal absorption within the substrate.A blue-shift of the resonance wavelength with increasing inter-particle distance was observed in the visible range.Cell performance improved at optimal spacing,which strongly depended on the nanoparticle size.Increasing the nanocylinder size was accompanied by the widening of the plasmon resonance band and a red-shift of the plasmon resonance peaks.A weak red-shift and plasmon peak enhancement were observed in the reflectance curve with increasing refractive index of the dielectric spacer.展开更多
文摘Electromagnetic wave propagation is first analyzed in a composite material mde of chiral nano-inclusions embedded in a dielectric, with the help of Maxwell-Garnett formula for permittivity and permeability and its reciprocal for chirality. Then, this composite material appears as an homo-geneous isotropic chiral medium which may be described by the Post constitutive relations. We analyze the propagation of an harmonic plane wave in such a medium and we show that two different modes can propagate. We also discuss harmonic plane wave scattering on a semi-infinite chiral composite medium. Then, still in the frame of Maxwell-Garnett theory, the propagation of TE and TM fields is investigated in a periodic material made of nano dots immersed in a dielectric. The periodic fields are solutions of a Mathieu equation and such a material behaves as a diffraction grating.
文摘Optical absorption in thin-film solar cells can be improved by using surface plasmons for guiding and confining the light on the nanoscale.We report theoretical and simulation studies of a-Si thin-film solar cells with silver nanocylinders on the surface.We found that surface plasmons increased the cells' spectral response over almost the entire studied solar spectrum.In the ultraviolet range and at wavelengths close to the Si band gap we observed a significant enhancement of the absorption for both thin-film and wafer-based structures.We also performed optimization studies of particle size,inter-particle distance,and dielectric environment,for obtaining maximal absorption within the substrate.A blue-shift of the resonance wavelength with increasing inter-particle distance was observed in the visible range.Cell performance improved at optimal spacing,which strongly depended on the nanoparticle size.Increasing the nanocylinder size was accompanied by the widening of the plasmon resonance band and a red-shift of the plasmon resonance peaks.A weak red-shift and plasmon peak enhancement were observed in the reflectance curve with increasing refractive index of the dielectric spacer.