Qualification: Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering (PhD)

Start date: 6th October 2025

Application deadline: Apply today! Deadline 09 December 2024

Funding for: 3.5 years

Supervisors: Dr Sophie Pain, Dr Nicholas Grant and Professor John Murphy

Project Description:

The capacity of photovoltaic installations now exceeds 1.5 TW_peak worldwide, and this is almost entirely due to the success of silicon-based solar cell technologies, which account for >95% of production. Advances in silicon-based cells and modules will have a real-world impact on climate change mitigation and improving energy supply security. Silicon-based cell designs have continued to evolve, with current tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) cells becoming the industrial standard. Record-breaking cells have efficiencies >26%, with advances in cell technologies rapidly driving efficiency towards the theoretical maximum of ~29%.

A step change in cell efficiency progression can be achieved by successfully implementing a tandem configuration, whereby a wider bandgap semiconductor is combined with a base cell, enabling more of the solar spectrum to be captured. To be implemented into mass production, it is highly likely that the base cell will be silicon, given its maturity and manufacturing dominance. Potential top cells include thin-film solar absorbers with a perovskite structure. To produce a tandem solar cell, it is necessary to engineer the interface between the two semiconductors. Specifically, a nanoscale interfacial layer which is both transparent to light and sufficiently conductive for charge carriers is required. The interfacial layer also needs to be compatible with the sensitivity limitations of potential top-cell materials.

The objective of this PhD project is to develop an interfacial layer between the silicon device and a wider bandgap absorber, which is configured with appropriate hole and electron transport layers. The interfacial layer will be a transparent conducting electrode (TCE) deposited using atomic layer deposition (ALD). ALD, widely adopted across the photovoltaics industry, allows for the deposition of uniform, conformal films with atomic layer control over film properties. This project will explore the ALD parameter space, including precursor and co-reactant selection, process conditions and doped/multilayer structures to develop films with the desired optical and conductivity properties. The objective will be to develop a fundamental understanding of material properties at the atomic scale and how these processes can be manipulated to develop transparent conductive materials. The student will gain experience with cleanroom processing, silicon-specific analytical techniques (including minority carrier lifetime measurements and photoluminescence imaging) and materials characterisation, including spectroscopy and advanced microscopy.

Central to the project are the two atomic layer deposition (ALD) facilities at the University of Warwick, including a £400k plasma-enhanced ALD tool within the Nano Fabrication RTP, and a thermal ALD system in the Electronic Materials and Interfaces Laboratory.

Scholarship:

The award will cover the full payment of tuition fees, plus a maintenance stipend paid at the prevailing UKRI rate for 3.5 years of full-time study. A research, Training and Supporting Grant (RTSG) of £5,000.

Eligibility:

• Apply for a PhD at the University of Warwick to begin in October 2025;
• Be assessed as 'overseas' for fees purposes. There are no other nationality criteria;

This PhD project equires prior knowledge and an interest in semiconductor materials. It would ideally suit a candidate with an undergraduate degree in physics, chemistry, materials science, or materials engineering. The project will provide opportunities for collaboration with industrial and international academic partners.

How to apply:

We strongly advise preparing applications well in advance, noting that it is not usually possible to complete and submit an application in less than 36 hours.

Course application support: warwick.ac.uk/pgrengineering 

Scholarship application details: warwick.ac.uk/services/dc/schols_fund/scholarships_and_funding/cis 

If you have any questions or would like more information about this project, please contact sophie.l.pain@warwick.ac.uk.

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The University of Warwick provides an inclusive working and learning environment, recognising and respecting every individual’s differences. We welcome applications from individuals who identify with any of the protected characteristics defined by the Equality Act 2010.

• How to apply

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