All-metal-oxide p-n photovoltaic junctions fabricated using materials abundant in the Martian regolith

We propose fabricating all-metal-oxide photovoltaic devices using materials that are abundant in the Martian regolith. The long-range goal of this investigation is to develop a method for fabricating photovoltaic devices using minimally-processed in-situ resources available on Mars and fabrication techniques amenable to the Martian environment to support NASA’s mission goals. To achieve our long-range goal, we are fabricating and characterizing p-n homojunction photovoltaic devices using hematite (α-Fe₂O₃) as the n-type semiconductor substrate and a recently discovered Fe_0.84Cr_1.0Al_0.16O₃ metal-oxide alloy as the p-type semiconductor substrate.  Hematite and the elements Fe, Cr, and Al are all abundant in the Martian regolith and will serve as the light-absorbing layers in the p-n homojunction photovoltaic devices. 

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