Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “interlayers”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2024

Double Perovskite Interlayer Stabilized Highly Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Metal halide perovskite solar cell (PSC) technology has an impressive power conversion efficiency (PCE) exceeding 26.1% and demonstrates cost-effective manufacturing. However, the stability of these PSCs poses a significant challenge, hindering their widespread manufacturing and commercialization. To tackle the degradation issue inherent in PSCs, surface passivation techniques, particularly employing a thin layer of two-dimensional (2D) perovskites, create a 2D/3D heterostructure. Beyond this, the exploration of metal halide double perovskites adds a new dimension to the chemical and band gap phase space of materials for optoelectronic applications. In this study, we leverage a wide band gap double perovskite interlayer to enhance the stability of 3D metal halide perovskite. Specifically, the double perovskite nanoparticle Cs 2 AgBiBr 6 , with its substantial band gap of 2.2 eV and exceptional air stability, is utilized. Through optimization, a Cs 2 AgBiBr 6 -treated PSC achieves an open-circuit voltage of 1.12 V and an impressive PCE of 19.52%. Additionally, the Cs 2 AgBiBr 6 passivation layer proves to be effective in bolstering the stability of PSCs. This work demonstrates an additional strategy and design motif to simultaneously increase the PCE of PSCs along with achieving improved stability.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Abnormal Transient Liquid Phase Bondability of High-Volume Fraction SiC Particle-Reinforced A356 Composite for Cu Interlayer and the Interlayer Improvement Routes

Features of transient liquid phase (TLP) bondability of high-volume fraction (70 vol.%) SiC particle-reinforced A356 composite for popular Cu interlayer were investigated. Although Cu foil was melted, molten Cu was completely expulsed, indicating that the numerous SiC particles significantly deteriorated wettability not only at particle/braze metal (P/M) interface, but also at the matrix/braze metal (M/M) interface. For the reason of poor wettability at P/M interface, a model showing there is a “window period” for actual wetting reaction (allowing liquid phase to be in contact with surficial SiC particles) much shorter than nominal isothermal solidification time during TLP bonding of the composite containing sintered ceramic preform was proposed. For the poor wettability at M/M interface, both size effect of too small matrix unit (2 ~ 20 μm) and restraint effect of the rigid porous ceramic preform on suppressing oxide film crack on the small matrix unit surface were proposed. Thus, chemical route to disrupt oxide film on the small matrix unit surface should be preferred in braze composition design. For example, Al-27Cu-5Si-2Mg-1Ti braze was developed by co-addition of Mg and Ti to improve wettability and to in situ reinforce bond seam, respectively; Ti also could remedy Mg loss for improving wettability.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Molecular simulation of structure and diffusion at smectite-water interfaces: Using expanded clay interlayers as model nanopores

In geologic settings relevant to a number of extraction and potential sequestration processes, nanopores bounded by clay mineral surfaces play a critical role in the transport of aqueous species. Solution structure and dynamics at clay–water interfaces are quite different from their bulk values, and the spatial extent of this disruption remains a topic of current interest. We have used molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the structure and diffusion of aqueous solutions in clay nanopores approximately 6 nm thick, comparing the effect of clay composition with model Na-hectorite and Na-montmorillonite surfaces. In addition to structural properties at the interface, water and ion diffusion coefficients were calculated within each aqueous layer at the interface, as well as in the central bulk-like region of the nanopore. The results show similar solution structure and diffusion properties at each surface, with subtle differences in sodium adsorption complexes and water structure in the first adsorbed layer due to different arrangements of layer hydroxyl groups in the two clay models. Interestingly, the extent of surface disruption on bulk-like solution structure and diffusion extends to only a few water layers. Additionally, a comparison of sodium ion residence times confirms similar behavior of inner-sphere and outer-sphere surface complexes at each clay surface, but ~1% of sodium ions adsorb in ditrigonal cavities on the hectorite surface. Thus, the presence of these anhydrous ions is consistent with highly immobile anhydrous ions seen in previous nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic measurements of hectorite pastes.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

The impact of ultra-thin titania interlayers on open circuit voltage and carrier lifetime in thin film solar cells

We study the effects of modifying indium tin oxide electrodes with ultrathin titania (TiO 2 ) layers grown via plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD). We find an optimal thickness of PE-ALD-grown titania by tracking performance, which initially increases, peaks, and eventually decreases with increasing TiO 2 thickness. We use scanning Kelvin probe microscopy (SKPM) to measure both the local work function and its distribution as a function of TiO 2 thickness. We find that the variance in contact potential difference across the surface of the film is related to either the amorphous or anatase TiO 2 form. Finally, we use local SKPM recombination rate experiments, supported by bulk transient photovoltage and charge extraction measurements. Here, we show that the optimum TiO 2 thickness is the one for which the carrier lifetime is the longest and the charge carrier density is the highest, when the TiO 2 is amorphous, in agreement with the device measurements.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2016

Interstitial and interlayer ion diffusion geometry extraction in graphitic nanosphere battery materials

Large-scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are commonly used for simulating the synthesis and ion diffusion of battery materials. A good battery anode material is determined by its capacity to store ion or other diffusers. However, modeling of ion diffusion dynamics and transport properties at large length and long time scales would be impossible with current MD codes. To analyze the fundamental properties of these materials, therefore, we turn to geometric and topological analysis of their structure. In this paper, we apply a novel technique inspired by discrete Morse theory to the Delaunay triangulation of the simulated geometry of a thermally annealed carbon nanosphere. We utilize our computed structures to drive further geometric analysis to extract the interstitial diffusion structure as a single mesh. Lastly, our results provide a new approach to analyze the geometry of the simulated carbon nanosphere, and new insights into the role of carbon defect size and distribution in determining the charge capacity and charge dynamics of these carbon based battery materials.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗