How do copper oxide solar cells work?

[askingask]

TL;DR Summary

Cuprous oxide - copper solar cells have not been doped, yet they work. What is going on, if no PN-junction exists here.

So basically, I‘ve always been told that solar cells work because of the PN-junction that exists between two doped materials. Then I‘d like to ask, how do solar cells work that use cuprous oxide - copper electrodes. The cuprous oxide acts as an semiconductor I guess? But It isn‘t doped, and the other electrode (copper) isn‘t even a semiconductor. I‘ve heard of Schottky diode solar cells, but even those require the semiconductor to be doped. So can someone please explain to me what exactly is going on here, and if there are other examples of this phenomenon.

 

[Tom.G]

The cuprous oxide is itself a semiconductor, one could say that the doping is the Oxygen.

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspa.1939.0066
(found with: https://www.google.com/search?&q=copper+oxide+photocell)

Cheers,
Tom
p.s. Google is often useful, you can often learn more from a search than asking us to search.

 

[askingask]

The cuprous oxide is itself a semiconductor, one could say that the doping is the Oxygen.

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspa.1939.0066
(found with: https://www.google.com/search?&q=copper+oxide+photocell)

Cheers,
Tom
p.s. Google is often useful, you can often learn more from a search than asking us to search.

Damn thank you. I had difficulties finding good explanations to the actual workings of copper solar cells.