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We investigated light absorption in various Si thin film solar absorbers and designed efficient input couplers using finite-difference time-domain simulation. In the simulation, a dielectric coating on Si thin film led to enhanced light absorption at near-ultraviolet to blue wavelengths, while the absorption peaks at longer wavelengths were nearly preserved. In a 300-nm-thick Si film with a 60-nm-thick Si(3)N(4) top-coated layer, current density was augmented by ~35% compared to a bare Si film. For broadband absorption, we introduced two-dimensional square-lattice periodic patterns consisting of low-index dielectric materials, SiO(2) or Si(3)N(4), or high-index material, Si. The periodic pattern exhibited tunable and pronounced absorption peaks that are identified as horizontally-propagating waveguide modes. The high absorption peaks were significantly amplified with increasing refractive index of the dielectric pattern. For a Si-patterned structure with a pitch size of 400 nm and a pattern depth of 80 nm, current density was achieved up to 17.0 mA/cm(2), which is enhanced by a factor of 2.1 compared to the current density of bare Si film. Deep understanding of the light absorption in optical cavities with wavelength-scale thickness will be useful in the design of efficient thin film solar absorbers as well as novel nanophotonic elements.

Design of input couplers for efficient silicon thin film solar absorbers