Luminescent Solar Concentrators Employing Phycobilisomes

The phycobilisomes are cast in a solid-statematrix that preserves their internal Fo¨rster energy-transferpathways and large wavelength shift between absorption andemission. Casting is a simple fabrication technique that alsoeliminates any need for expensive high-index glass or plastic. Bycomparing the performance of intact and partly decoupledcomplexes, we establish that energy transfer within intactphycobilisomes reduces LSC self-absorption losses by approxi-mately(48 5)%.TheseresultssuggestthatphycobilisomesareamodelforanewgenerationofcastLSCswithimprovedefficiencyat high optical concentrations.LSCs are nontracking concentrators that redirect solarradiationintosimpleslabwaveguides(seeFig.1a).Lightincidenton an LSC is absorbed by dyes, re-emitted into a guided mode inthe slab, and finally collected by a PVcell mounted at the edge ofthe slab. The maximum optical concentration of an LSC istheoretically limited by the wavelength shift between absorptionand emission in the dye.