Development of Nanostructured Antireflection Coatings for EO/IR Sensor and Solar Cell Applications

Ashok K. Sood, Adam W. Sood, Roger E. Welser, Gopal G. Pethuraja, Yash R. Puri, Xing Yan, David J. Poxson, Jaehee Cho, E. Fred Schubert, Nibir K. Dhar, Dennis L. Polla, Pradeep Haldar, Jennifer L. Harvey

College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, Albany, USA.
Department of Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering and Physics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, USA.
Magnolia Solar Inc., Albany, USA.
Microsystems Technology Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, USA.
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, Albany, USA..

DOI: 10.4236/msa.2012.39092                

Abstract

Electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors and photovoltaic power sources are being developed for a variety of defense and commercial applications. One of the critical technologies that will enhance both EO/IR sensor and photovoltaic module performance is the development of high quality nanostructure-based antireflection coatings. In this paper, we review our work on advanced antireflection structures that have been designed by using a genetic algorithm and fabricated by using oblique angle deposition. The antireflection coatings are designed for the wavelength range of 250 nm to 2500 nm and an incidence angle between 0⁰ and 40⁰. These nanostructured antireflection coatings are shown to enhance the optical transmission through transparent windows over a wide band of interest and minimize broadband reflection losses to less than one percent, a substantial improvement over conventional thin-film antireflection coating technologies.

Keywords

Antireflection Coating; Nanostructured Layer; Oblique Angle Deposition; Silicon Dioxide; Broadband; Omni-Directional

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

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