APE2SOL: Anomalous Photovoltaic Effects for 2D Solar Cells

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The Silicon and New Concepts for Solar Cells (SyNC) group at the Instituto de Energía Solar (IES), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) is launching APE2SOL — “Anomalous photovoltaic effects for 2-dimensional solar cells” — a 24-month project awarded the III Premio Fundación Naturgy-CSIC a la Investigación e Innovación Tecnológica en el Ámbito Energético (2025), endowed with 100,000 €.

Project leadership: Elisa Antolín (PI, IES-UPM) and Simon Svatek (co-PI, IES-UPM), in close collaboration with the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM) team led by Juan José Palacios, which contributes first-principles modelling and numerical tools for anomalous photovoltaic effects.

Why APE2SOL?

Photovoltaics is expanding rapidly into new use cases—buildings, vehicles, wearables—where the available surface area is limited and the solar cell must often be lightweight, flexible, durable, and sometimes semi-transparent. APE2SOL explores a path to meet these demands by combining:

  • Atomically thin semiconductors (2D materials) that enable ultrathin, lightweight device architectures, and
  • A working principle largely absent from mainstream PV engineering: the Anomalous Photovoltaic Effect (APE), which can generate a photovoltaic response in a homogeneous material (without relying on conventional junction asymmetries).

The project was recognized by the jury for its unconventional and promising approach—applying APE in 2D materials as a basis for future solar-cell generations—and for its potential to advance technology maturity during the two-year project.

What is the Anomalous Photovoltaic Effect (APE) in one paragraph?

In conventional solar cells, a junction (p–n, Schottky, etc.) creates an internal asymmetry that separates electrons and holes. In contrast, the APE is a second-order nonlinear effect that can produce a DC photocurrent or photovoltage in a single, homogeneous crystalline region—provided the crystal lacks inversion symmetry. In principle, APE can produce photovoltages exceeding the bandgap, offering a route to go beyond conventional single-junction constraints.

Work plan at a glance

APE2SOL is organized around two complementary work packages:

WP1 — Ultrafast-thin 2D solar cells as a high-performance platform

We will design and fabricate p–n or Schottky 2D solar cells, integrating multilayer TMD absorbers into optimized 1D optical cavities to maximize absorption while pushing absorber thickness down toward the ~10 nm regime. This WP focuses on:

  • cavity-enhanced optical design,
  • controlled absorber thickness and scalable deposition routes,
  • contact engineering and carrier-collection optimization,
  • standard PV characterization (I-V, EQE, stability).

WP2 — APE-enabled solar cells

Building on WP1’s device platform, WP2 targets APE-based photocurrent generation in non-centrosymmetric 2D materials by:

  • precision control of crystalline orientation,
  • polarization/helicity-resolved optoelectronic measurements,
  • geometry and doping strategies to maximize extraction of APE-generated currents,
  • first-principles modelling to guide materials/device choices.

Related Links

2D Material Solar Cells
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