Ultra-Pure nanowire heterostructures and energy CONversion

Objective

This proposal is devoted to the synthesis of ultra-pure semiconductor nanowire heterostructures for energy conversion applications in the photovoltaic domain. Nanowires are filamentary crystals with a very high ratio of length to diameter, the latter being in the nanometer range. Nanowires are of significant interest owing to their large surface-to-volume ratio and low-dimensional properties, as well as attractive building blocks of novel devices, including for novel energy conversion applications. The most widely employed nanowire growth method relies on the use of gold, which is known to be an impurity limiting mobility and carrier lifetime in semiconductors. It is generally realized that nanowires with higher purity could enable significant advances in both fundamental studies and technological applications. This proposal combines two complementary and essential aspects of semiconductor nanowires: (i) synthesis in extremely clean conditions and (ii) their application to new concepts of photovoltaic devices. The first part involves the use of Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) system for the synthesis of III-V semiconductor nanowires and heterostructures. Special emphasis will be given in the synthesis of new heterostructure designs, i.e. across the nanowire radius and along the growth axis. The fabrication of ordered arrays of nanowires on large areas and on silicon substrates will also be investigated. In the second part, nanowire based solar cells will be designed, fabricated and characterized. Particular emphasis will be given toward understanding the role of geometry and interfaces in the energy conversion efficiency of the novel nanowire-based solar cells. Here, the high cleanliness and precise heteroepitaxial growth of MBE nanowires will allow us to perform fundamental studies, generating ground-breaking knowledge on the microscopic processes in energy conversion. This project will foster the use of nanotechnology in the energy challenges of the XXI century.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

• engineering and technology nanotechnology
• natural sciences physical sciences electromagnetism and electronics semiconductivity
• natural sciences mathematics pure mathematics geometry
• natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry metalloids
• engineering and technology environmental engineering energy and fuels energy conversion

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

• III-V semiconductors
• energy conversion
• epitaxy
• heterostructures
• nanowires
• photovoltaics

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

• FP7-IDEAS-ERC - Specific programme: "Ideas" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013)

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

• ERC-SG-PE5 - ERC Starting Grant - Materials and Synthesis

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

ERC-2009-StG
See other projects for this call

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

ERC-SG - ERC Starting Grant

Host institution

Beneficiaries (1)