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New Nanodevice Generates 3× More Voltage than Classic Nanoantennas

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A nanodevice for harvesting solar energy, called an evolutive dipole nanoantenna (EDN), has demonstrated the ability to generate a thermoelectric voltage up to 3× larger than a classic dipole nanoantenna (CDN). The EDN could be used in applications — ranging from energy harvesting to aerospace, photodetector, and sensor technologies — where high thermoelectric efficiency is needed.

A team from Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosí and Tecnologico Nacional de Mexico compared 9 × 9 arrays of bimetallic (nickel and platinum) nanoantennas for a classic and evolutive dipole configuration. The researchers fabricated the nanoantennas using e-beam lithography and characterized them using a solar simulator to analyze the I-V curves. Using these curves, they were able to observe thermoelectric voltage dependence associated with both classic and evolutive dipole configurations.

According to the team, the evolutive configuration was 1.3× more efficient than its classical counterpart. The results were corroborated by absorbance of these nanoantennas in the 20 to 36 THz range, where EDN was found to be 40% more efficient than CDN. In the range of 36.1 to 90 THz, EDN was found to be 30% more efficient. The experimental results matched the thermoelectric behavior obtained using numerical simulations, suggesting that EDN arrays could be good candidates for the harvesting of waste heat energy. 

Thermoelectric nanoantenna design is more efficient. Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí.

I-V curves. CDN: Ni-Pt, current in function of voltage (black line) and the electrical potential in 225 function of voltage (blue line) (a). EDN: Ni-Pt, current in function of voltage (black line) and the electrical 226 potential in function of voltage (blue line) (b). Courtesy of Javier Mendez-Lozoya et al.

The researched was published in the Journal of Nanophotonics, a SPIE publication (https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JNP.13.026005).   
PI Physik Instrumente - Revolution In Photonics Align LW MR3/24

Published: May 2019
Glossary
optoelectronics
Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light and its interactions with different materials. The term "optoelectronics" is a combination of "optics" and "electronics," reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of this field. Optoelectronic devices convert electrical signals into optical signals or vice versa, making them crucial in various technologies. Some key components and applications of optoelectronics include: ...
nano
An SI prefix meaning one billionth (10-9). Nano can also be used to indicate the study of atoms, molecules and other structures and particles on the nanometer scale. Nano-optics (also referred to as nanophotonics), for example, is the study of how light and light-matter interactions behave on the nanometer scale. See nanophotonics.
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