Porous Nanomaterials for Ultrabroadband Omnidirectional Anti-Reflection Surfaces with Applications in High Concentration Photovoltaics

Materials for nanoporous coatings that exploit optimized chemistries and self-assembly processes offer capabilities to reach ≈98% transmission efficiency and negligible scattering losses over the broad wavelength range of the solar spectrum from 350 nm to 1.5 μm, on both flat and curved glass substrates. These nanomaterial anti-reflection coatings also offer wide acceptance angles, up to ±40°, for both s- and p-polarization states of incident light. Carefully controlled bilayer films have allowed for the fabrication of dual-sided, gradient index profiles on plano-convex lens elements. In concentration photovoltaics platforms, the resultant enhancements in the photovoltaics efficiencies are ≈8%, as defined by experimental measurements on systems that use microscale triple-junction solar cells. These materials and their applications in technologies that require control over interface reflections have the potential for broad utility in imaging systems, photolithography, light-emitting diodes, and display technologies.