Luminescent Solar Concentrators

Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) consist of transparent slabs embedding a luminescent species serving the function of light absorption and luminescence re-emission. When used with the specific aim of electrical power production they are typically coupled with solar cells at the lateral sides of the device. Their performance is intrinsically affected by the selected host matrix and luminophore, as well as the device architecture. In recent years, the development of a wide portfolio of new highly performing host matrices, novel optically active nanomaterials simultaneously characterized by high photoluminescence quantum yield and large Stokes shift, innovative surface nanostructuring strategies allowing to reduce escape cone and scattering losses, and new photonic interactions at the nanoscale capable of improving the absorption and emission efficiencies, has led to a renewed appreciation of the role of LSCs in the solar energy conversion device realm. Within this framework, this chapter summarizes and discusses some of the most recent approaches based on nanotechnology to efficiently harvest and make use of light in LSCs. This chapter describes the state of the art in luminescent solar concentrators. The authors take a system-level approach to the analysis of luminescent solar concentrator (LSC) construction and performance.