title: Graphene-based photovoltaic cells for near-field thermal energy conversion.
abstract: Thermophotovoltaic devices are energy-conversion systems generating an electric current from the thermal photons radiated by a hot body. While their efficiency is limited in far field by the Schockley-Queisser limit, in near field the heat flux transferred to a photovoltaic cell can be largely enhanced because of the contribution of evanescent photons, in particular for a source supporting a surface mode. Unfortunately, in the infrared where these systems operate, the mismatch between the surface-mode frequency and the semiconductor gap reduces drastically the potential of this technology. In this paper we propose a modified thermophotovoltaic device in which the cell is covered by a graphene sheet. By discussing the transmission coefficient and the spectral properties of the flux, we show that both the cell efficiency and the produced current can be enhanced, paving the way to promising developments for the production of electricity from waste heat.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Charles Fabry, UMR 8501, Institut d'Optique, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud 11, 2, Avenue Augustin Fresnel, 91127 Palaiseau Cedex, France. riccardo.messina@institutoptique.fr
authors.forename: Riccardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Messina
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ben-Abdallah
mesh_terms: D001896:Boron Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D004560:Electricity; D006108:Graphite / Q000737:chemistry*; D012993:Solar Energy; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D001896:Boron Compounds; C017282:boron nitride; D006108:Graphite