We investigate the structural, vibrational, morphological, and electronic properties of Nb substituted orthovanadate LaV$_{1-x}$Nb$_x$O$_4$ samples prepared by the solid-state reaction method. The x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis reveals the presence of three crystal structures [monoclinic monazite ($m-m$) type for the $x=$ 0, two-phase equilibrium of monoclinic monazite ($m-m$) and tetragonal scheelite ($t-s$) type for the 0.2$\leq$$x$$\leq$0.8, and monoclinic fergusonite ($m-f$) type for the $x=$ 1 samples] with an increase in Nb$^{5+}$ concentration. The Raman spectroscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were employed to study the vibrational and electronic properties of all the samples, respectively. In order to choose an excitation wavelength that does not cause undesirable fluorescence and has observable intensities of all the vibrational modes, the Raman spectra are collected using 532 nm, 633 nm, and 785 nm laser lines. With increasing the Nb$^{5+}$ concentration, new Raman modes associated with Nb-bonds are clearly visible and the intensity of V-bonds assigned modes is decreasing. The XPS analysis shows the unchanged 3+ oxidation state of La ion where the intensity of the V 2$p$ core-level decreases while the Nb 3$d$ core-level increases with $x$. The equal spin-orbit energy splitting of the states is confirmed by the average energy difference (across La core-level spectra for all the samples) for state I as well as bonding and anti-bonding of state II. Interesting, the relative intensity of La 3$d$ state I and state II show systematic change with Nb doping altering the metal ligand overlap. We discuss and provide insight into the evolution of the structural, morphological, and chemical features with Nb substitution in LaV$_{1-x}$Nb$_x$O$_4$ samples.
We enhance the efficiency of heterojunction organic solar cells by introducing a thin interfacial layer between the acceptor and donor layers. The interfacial layer energy levels are chosen to provide a gradient for charges crossing the interface, approximating a conventional p-n junction with three organic semiconductors. Devices with interfacial layers exhibit increased open circuit voltage (VOC) and increased short circuit current (JSC). The increase in VOC is due to a reduction in dark current and charge recombination. The increase in JSC is correlated with an increase in the conversion efficiency of excitons originating in the donor or acceptor layers. The interfacial layer destabilizes charge transfer states at the donor-acceptor interface, yielding reduced exciton recombination. The introduction of thin interfacial layers may prove to be an important probe of the physics of exciton separation in organic photovoltaic cells.
The dielectric characteristics of tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5) nanostructures, synthesized by hydrothermal process, have been investigated in the temperature range of 80 K to 400 K and frequency range of 20 Hz to 2 MHz. X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirms the formation of highly crystalline and orthorhombic phase of the nanostructures sintered at 950 ºC. The electron microscope images reveal that the synthesized nanostructures change their morphology to nanoplatelets upon increasing the sintering temperature. Further, UV-visible absorbance, FTIR and Raman spectra of the synthesized nanostructures were obtained to investigate their optical properties. The experimentally obtained dielectric results indicate that both the dielectric constant (ε) and dielectric loss (D) values increase with increasing operating temperature. Also, the dielectric constant increases while the dielectric loss decreases on increasing the sintering temperature. At 300 K and 1kHz, the value of ε becomes almost twice that of as-synthesized nanostructures on increasing the sintering temperature to 950 ºC. The enhancement in dielectric constant can be justified by the thermally activated orientational and interfacial polarization associated with the increase in the grain size of the Ta2O5 nanoplatelets at higher sintering temperatures. Furthermore, the frequency dependence of ε indicates the high effect of the distribution of relaxation time in the Ta2O5 nanoplatelets at lower frequencies. Overall, this study provides a better understanding of the structural and dielectric behaviour of Ta2O5 nanostructures with sintering temperature. The results suggest that the orthorhombic Ta2O5 nanoplatelets have potential applications as alternative dielectric materials in various electronic and optoelectronic devices.
Amid a wide-ranging search for materials that can aid the optimization of solar photovoltaic performances, propelled by the ever increasing demand for clean and renewable energy in the 21st century society, Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) offer an excellent avenue for progress. While multiple papers have reviewed and reported on their unique properties and individual applications, studies highlighting the role of CNTs in various solar cell architectures in a compiled form are relatively sporadic and harder to find. This article presents overviews of the development surrounding the incorporation of CNTs in different types of photovoltaic devices, namely organic photovoltaics, perovskite solar cells, dye sensitized solar cells, silicon-based photovoltaics, and Thin film solar cells, along with the important drawbacks that need to be addressed in order to ensure high efficiency, stable, and commercially viable photovoltaic cells. Based on the performance-cost tradeoff, future outlook regarding the prominence of CNT in the commercial solar cell market is also discussed.
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