Solar photovoltaic power generation constitutes an increasingly important element of global electricity generation through the absorption of light from the sun. It has recently been proposed that utilising the net emission, rather than absorption, of light can also be used to generate power in a class of radiative heat engines known as emissive energy harvesters (EEH). The symmetric counterpart to the pn junction photovoltaic solar cell is known as the thermoradiative diode (TRD) and has been proposed for applications in night-sky power generation, waste heat recovery, and to complement photovoltaics. The theoretical limits for night-sky power generation are extremely promising at upwards of 54.8W/m2 in the radiative limit, but further research is needed to design devices used realistic mid-infrared semiconductors that suffer from non-radiative losses. In this research stream we focus on:

• Designing, fabricating, characterising and modelling new thermoradiative diode concepts

• Developing new standardised test strategies for thermoradiative diodes

• Outdoor measurements of emissive energy harvesters

• Passive and active radiative cooling devices

Relavent papers:

• M. P. Nielsen, A. Pusch, P. M. Pearce, M. H. Sazzad, P. J. Reece, M. A. Green, N. J. Ekins-Daukes, “Semiconductor thermoradiative power conversion,” Nature Photonics 18, 1137–1146 (2024).

• J. A. Harrison, P. M. Pearce, F. Yang, M. P. Nielsen, H. E. Brindley, N. J. Ekins-Daukes, “Evaluating potential power output of terrestrial thermoradiative diodes with atmospheric modelling,“ iScience 27, 111346 (2024).

• M. P. Nielsen, A. Pusch, M. H. Sazzad, P. M. Pearce, P. J. Reece, and N. J. Ekins-Daukes, "Thermoradiative power conversion from HgCdTe photodiodes and their current–voltage characteristics," ACS Photonics 9, 1535-1540 (2022).

• M. P. Nielsen, A. Pusch, P. M. Pearce, M. H. Sazzad, P. J. Reece, M. A. Green, and N. J. Ekins-Daukes, "Semiconductor thermoradiative power conversion," Nature Photonics 18, 1137-1146 (2024).