Renewable Energy Physics
New! NSF Renewable Energy Center (pdf brochure)Joe Beach
Solar photovoltaic electricity generation. He currently is working on ways to improve the efficiency of thin film CdTe cells.
Reuben T. Collins
Condensed matter physics semiconductor science; electronic and optical properties; photovoltaic materials and devices.
Tim Coutts
Is a Research Fellow at NREL where he studies how to improve the transmittance and conductivity of n-type transparent
conducting oxides. This involves novel characterization methods as well as theoretical studies. Also works on the development of p-ZnO by various deposition techniques. Involved in modeling and development of tandem thin-film solar cells.
Timothy R. Ohno
Surface physics; thin film epitaxial growth; interfacial properties; photovoltaic
materials; catalysis.
Fred Seymour fseymour@mines.edu
Electrical and optical characterization as well as the fabrication of polycrystalline
thin film CdTe PV solar cell devices. This is a low cost PV technology and it is
already enjoying substantial commercial success. It has the potential to become a
leading technology if the energy conversion efficiency can be increased while
maintaining low manufacturing costs. Because of the polycrystalline thin film nature
of these devices, high concentrations of electronic defects occur deep in the band
gap. These defects can act as Shockley-Read-Hall recombination centers and degrade
performance, but they can also increase the space charge density and enhance
performance. He has developed admittance spectroscopy as well as capacitance
transient techniques for their detection and characterization. Unraveling the cause
and effect interactions of these defects relevant to device performance is a complex
and challenging problem. Fred hopes that the simultaneous study and control of
fabrication processes and characterization techniques will lead to insights that help
to significantly increase the energy conversion efficiencyof these PV devices.
Craig Taylor
Optical, electronic and structural properties of crystalline and amorphous
semiconductors; localized electronic states in amorphous semiconductors; electronic
instabilities in films of hydrogenated amorphous silicon and related alloys;
electronic properties of III-V semiconducting nanostructures; ordering in ternary
III-V alloys.