Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 January 2016
Improved solar spectrum optical absorption in multilayered nanostructuresconsisting of metal, semiconductor and dielectric layers increase theirpotential for efficient photon to electron conversion. In this work, we analyzethe influence of different nanostructure shapes and dimensions on the opticalabsorption in the vacuum wavelength range of 400 nm to 1500 nm based on FiniteDomain Time Difference (FDTD) method. A periodic metallic photonic crystalcomposed of nanorods of gold, titanium oxide, and alumina is proposed byoptimizing thickness of Au and TiO2, aspect ratio, sidewall angle,and geometry of the elemental shape. A high aspect ratio structure consisting ofelliptical nose cone elements with optimized dimensions is seen to absorb morethan 90% of the solar spectrum in the range considered.