Abstract

Novelty of the present work is to investigate the efficiency of the antireflection property of green mediated synthesized plasmonic nanoparticle coated monocrystalline silicon (Si) solar cell. Green mediated synthesis of plasmonic silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) was carried out using three different leaves extracts (Eucalyptus glopus, Azadirachta indica and Coriandrum sativum) and reported for the first time. The face centred cubic structure, crystalline nature and purity of the synthesized material were confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction studies. Fourier transform infrared spectrum shows the presence of various functional groups in the resultant material. The maximum absorbance observed around 400-460 nm reveal the characteristic absorbance of Ag NPs. The surface morphology of the synthesized Ag NPs was analyzed using atomic force microscopy. Ag NPs were coated as antireflective material on the monocrystalline Si solar cell surface and its performance was evaluated from the corresponding JV characteristics. The obtained photovoltaic performance was compared with bare Si for comparison purpose and it is observed that there is an enhanced performance in the photo-conversion efficiency of the Si solar cells.