The Arkansas Space Grant Consortium at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock has received a $750,000 NASA EPSCoR grant to fund research by scientists at three University of Arkansas System universities to develop the next generation of photovoltaic devices used in space missions.

Keith Hudson, director of the UALR Arkansas Space Consortium, is the principle investigator for the project. Shui-Qing “Fisher” Yu, University of Arkansas associate professor of electrical engineering, is the principal scientific investigator.

Scientists at UA, UALR, and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff will comprise the research team.

“The new class of photovoltaic semiconductor being investigated has the potential to not only provide our space program with an advanced device for spacecraft use, but also to give us devices that have much better efficiency for use here on Earth,” said Hudson. “Current devices don’t provide very much electricity per amount of solar energy shining upon them. These new devices could change this dramatically.”

Hudson said the award will help build scientific infrastructure in the area of space application semiconductors in Arkansas. Discoveries from this work could result in spin-off companies designing and/or producing such devices for aerospace and even regular commercial use in the future, he said.

“The NASA EPSCoR program helps states like Arkansas to build science and engineering infrastructure to allow our institutions to conduct cutting-edge research,” Hudson said. “While this research is focused on NASA’s aerospace mission, the technology produced and spin-offs can potentially have great impact upon our everyday lives.”

EPSCoR, which stands for Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, is a funding program in certain states that in the past have not consistently participated in competitive aerospace-related research activities.

In addition to Yu, a leading expert worldwide in GeSn and SiGeSn alloys for optoelectronic applications such as solar cells and photodetectors, the scientists include Mansour Mortazavi, physics professor at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff; Allan Thomas, UALR physics professor; and Hameed Naseem, UA professor of electrical engineering.

For the NASA project, researchers will use their extensive expertise of silicon-germanium-tin to develop photovoltaic devices that can be integrated into existing cells to achieve a more efficient, optimal energy yield. Currently, “triple junction” photovoltaic technology used by NASA has reached its efficiency limit. The new material will boost performance, helping NASA achieve its 15-year, 45-percent efficiency goal for solar devices, and lower the cost of manufacturing and make the devices more radiation tolerant.

The research plan includes device design and simulation, material growth and characterization, optical characterization of silicon-germanium-tin materials, and development of silicon-germanium-tin photoconductors.

In addition to the research activities, the project will include intensive interactions among Arkansas researchers, NASA experts, and industry partners. Post-doctoral students at the universities will also work on the research. The project aims not only to develop long-term partnerships with NASA research centers to contribute to NASA missions but also to promote state economic growth and workforce development through technology transfer to industry.

The team will work closely with the Arkansas Space Grant Consortium to seamlessly integrate the research with a large variety of education and outreach activities. The Arkansas Space Grant Consortium has been continuously funded since the new EPSCoR program began in 2007. Since 2007, the consortium has had seven $750,000 awards funded, each for three years. The awards total more than $5.25 million.