Optical Modeling and Simulation of Thin-Film Photovoltaic Devices

This book provides a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of thin-film PV devices as well as practical direction on how to perform optical modeling and simulations of thin-film PV structures. The authors include numerous real examples of using simulations with developed models in order to study and design novel approaches to light management. The first part of the text presents fundamentals and optical modeling approaches. The second part focuses on simulations based on one- and two-dimensional optical models. The authors also explore advanced and novel optical concepts of PV devices.

Janez Krc, PhD, is an associate professor in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and a member of the Laboratory of Photovoltaics and Optoelectronics at the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia. He received his PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Ljubljana. His research and teaching activities cover photovoltaics, optoelectronics, and analog electronic circuits, including optical modeling and light management in thin-film solar cells.

Marko Topic, PhD, is a professor in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and head of the Laboratory of Photovoltaics and Optoelectronics at the University of Ljubljana. He is also an affiliate professor in the College of Natural Sciences at Colorado State University. Dr. Topic is the chair of the Slovenian Photovoltaic Technology Platform, a steering committee member of the European Photovoltaic Technology Platform, and a member of the Advisory Group on Energy in the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Commission. He received his PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Ljubljana. In 2008, he received Zoisova nagrada, the highest award in the Republic of Slovenia for scientific and research achievements. His research interests include photovoltaics, thin-film semiconductor materials, electron devices, optoelectronics, electronic circuits, and reliability engineering.