Solar concentrators with light redirection

A solar concentrator for receiving sunlight and for communicating light of lower energy than the sunlight to an optically coupled solar cell, the solar concentrator comprising:

• a substrate;
• a chromophore disposed on or in the substrate, the chromophore operable to receive at least some optical radiation, the chromophore further effective to absorb at least one wavelength of at least some of the optical radiation, the chromophore luminescent in a spectral band that is absorbed by the solar cell;
• an optical waveguide for confining and directing light emitted by the chromophore to an optical communication region, the waveguide comprising the substrate and at least one lower refractive index medium adjacent the front and rear surfaces of the substrate, such that light is preferably refracted at an interface between the waveguide and at least one adjacent medium of lower refractive index;
• and
• a light turning structure positioned between the waveguide and the sun, the light turning structure having substantially non-parallel front and rear surfaces, the light turning structure spaced from the waveguide by a region of lower refractive index than the light turning layer.