Determining bandgap from simulated absorbance: The Tauc approach

Material designs that exploit unique properties of nanostructures for various applications in energy, electronics, optics, and optoelectronics are becoming more complex than ever before. These complexities are causing growing challenges in determining bandgaps, especially for photovoltaic application. Currently, several methods exist in determining the bandgap energy. However, the Tauc plot method has become the most preferred approach. We have developed a versatile and user-friendly software capable of accurately deriving bandgap values from either measured or simulated absorbance using the Tauc plot method. The program is validated using absorbance data of conventional bulk semiconductors—silicon, germanium, gallium phosphide, gallium arsenide, indium arsenide, and indium phosphide—simulated with COMSOL Multiphysics. The estimated bandgaps are in excellent agreement within three significant figures compared to accepted literature values. This thus validates the efficacy of the program and suggesting the potential extension to novel, complex, and exotic materials and geometries. Graphical abstract: (Figure presented.)