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Impact of Semiconductor Band Tails and Band Filling on Photovoltaic Efficiency Limits

The theoretical maximum efficiency of a solar cell is typically characterized by a detailed balance of optical absorption and emission for a semiconductor in the limit of unity radiative efficiency and an ideal step-function response for the density of states and absorbance at the semiconductor band edges, known as the Shockley-Queisser limit. However, real materials have non-abrupt band edges, which are typically characterized by an exponential distribution of states, known as an Urbach tail. We develop here a modified detailed balance limit of solar cells with imperfect band edges, using optoelectronic reciprocity relations. We find that for semiconductors whose band edges are broader than the thermal energy, kT, there is an effective renormalized bandgap given by the quasi-Fermi level splitting within the solar cell. This renormalized bandgap creates a Stokes shift between the onset of the absorption and photoluminescence emission energies, which significantly reduces the maximum achievable efficiency. The abruptness of the band edge density of states therefore has important implications for the maximum achievable photovoltaic efficiency.