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Nature Nanotechnology (18 September 2009) | doi:10.1038/nnano.2009.299

Nanophotonics: Multiple choice

Peter Rodgers

The conversion of light into electricity by a semiconductor is a central process in photovoltaic devices and many photodetectors. For these devices to work the photon must have enough energy to excite an electron from the valence band to the conduction band, leaving a hole behind in the lower band.