Graphene/silicon Schottky solar cells: Technical strategies for performance optimization

Owing to fascinating optical and electronic properties, graphene has attracted significant attention as an active component in energy harvesting. Steady advances have been achieved in last decade on the hybrid graphene/silicon Schottky solar cells that are based on an unconventional Schottky structured junction. In this brief review, we outlined the device physics and technical strategies devised to improve the power conversion efficiency of the hybrid graphene/silicon Schottky solar cells. The research results accumulated in the graphene/silicon prototype are expected to promote the low-cost solar cells.