American scientists find way for efficiently conversion of photons by silicon

• A scientific group from two U.S.-based universities has discovered how to transfer the energy between the molecules of silicon and organic material. So far, this phenomenon was only theoretical. The discovery has vast prospects for medical, solar power, and quantum computing applications.

Silicon is among the most widespread materials on earth. It is used in every sphere of life ranging from photovoltaic cells to semiconductors for computer powering. At the same time, despite all of the element’s advantages, there are definite issues related to its sunlight-to-electricity conversion properties. 

Silicon is good at converting photons of red light. However, when it comes to blue light photons, most of the energy is wasted in the form of heat. Note that the amount of energy transferred by blue photons is double as much as that carried by red photons. 

Thanks to the invention by American scientists, conversion efficiency of silicon can be significantly increased. This can be achieved by connecting Si with carbon-based material. The latter is meant to turn photons of blue light to red light particles suitable for efficient use by silicon. The carbon-based material paired with silicon is anthracene, which is actually carbon ash.

Such silicon-carbon materials may be adjusted for reverse conversion. This means they could turn red photons into blue ones. This property can be used in quantum computing and medical fields. 

The scientists have applied a special chemical method for pairing silicon with anthracene. The method creates molecular power line for energy transfer between the molecules of two substances. This allows adjusting the hybrid substance for the required reaction to light waves of different lengths. For example, 2 red photons may be turned into a single blue photon, or vice versa – a single photon of blue light can be converted into 2 red light photons.