Professor of Northumbria University
I have joined Northumbria University in 2015 as a Senior Lecturer within the Department of Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering. I obtained my PhD funded by Thales Optics at the University of Wales, Bangor in 2002, developing a "laser-fibre system for in-situ stress monitoring of thin films".
Over the last 20 years, I worked on photonic structures and devices, with special focus on photovoltaic devices. My research has led to the development of key layers in thin film photovoltaic structures for doped thin film CdTe solar cells achieving conversion efficiency ~15%, fabricated using an innovative patented all-MOCVD dry process. With the company partner Scanwel Ltd, the transfer of process was demonstrated, developing a patented high throughput inline chamberless design based on chemical vapour deposition. I was an active member of the Low Carbon Research Institute (LCRI), where multi-disciplinary research effort with university and industrial partners led to studying the feasibility of implementing renewable energy sources at residential and commercial scales (e.g. DC supply/storage/demand demonstration).
In this presentation, challenges and opportunities of both established inorganic chalcogenides such as CdTe and the upcoming alternatives such as CZTS or Sb2Se3 will be reviewed. The importance of interface engineering and structure designs will be corroborated with current research activities at Northumbria Universities and as part of the North East Centre for Energy Materials (NECEM). Finally, other research interests related to PV will be introduced, along with wider research initiatives for the uptake of renewable energy, i.e. the recently funded centre for doctoral training: ReNU (Renewable Energy NorthEast Universities led by Northumbria University).
Professor of Northumbria University