Enhanced Optical Absorption of Amorphous Silicon Films by Ag Nanostructures

The optical absorption of amorphous silicon (α-Si) films is enhanced by silver (Ag) nanostructures deposited on the films. The reflection at the long wavelength side of localized plasmon polaritons (LPPs) resonance originated from Ag nanostructures is significantly decreased, i.e. the optical absorption is enhanced. The results show that the average reflection value of the amorphous silicon films in the wavelength range of 900-1200 nm could be decreased by 11.4%. Moreover, the reduction of the reflection is found to be mainly dependent on the size of the Ag nanostructures, which is related to the island sizes, i.e. the LPP's resonance peak position.