Characterization and Optimization of Lattice-Matched InGaAs TPV Cell for Waste Heat Harvesting

Abstract

In0.53Ga0.47As III–V semiconductor material has attracted significant attention from thermophotovoltaic research community due to its excellent optical and electrical properties. Furthermore, a high crystal In0.53Ga0.47 As structure can be grown on a lattice-matched InP substrate, making it a suitable candidate for large-scale production. However, the predominant drawback of the cell is low conversion efficiency, and there is a lack of detailed analysis of the effect of waste heat temperatures on the cell performance. Therefore, this work aims to conduct a comprehensive analysis via optimizing the active junction and characterizing the In0.53Ga0.47 As TPV structure under different waste heat temperatures ranging from 800 to 2000 K. TCAD Silvaco software was used to simulate the output performance of the TPV cell. The simulation results were validated with the reported experimental results. Results show that the variation of base layer thicknesses significantly affect the cell performance, with a significant increase in efficiency from 6.98 to 18.2% at a radiation temperature of 1000 K, as the base thickness increased from 1 to 13 μm. For radiation's temperatures from 800 K to 2000 K, the efficiencies of the optimized TPV cells increased by more than 10% as compared to the reference structure. The results obtained from this study contribute to the understanding of the effects of various waste heat temperatures on the performance of In0.53Ga0.47 As TPV cell, as well as to provide useful guidelines to fabricate high-performance In0.53Ga0.47As TPV cell for various waste heat temperatures.