Photovoltaics International Papers

With the expected increase in annual photovoltaic production capacity beyond 1TWp/a (terrawatt-peak per year), the emphasis on novel, next-generation production technologies gains significance from the perspective of potentially lowering production costs as well as increasing sustainability by reducing the resources required in manufacturing. The focus of this work is to analyse the impact of high-throughput (HTP), next-generation silicon solar cell production technologies, as developed within the framework of the NextTec research and development project, on the required i) amount of equipment, ii) capital expenditure (CAPEX) and iii) labour, herein termed as key performance indicators (KPIs), for a solar cell production facility with an annual capacity of 10GWp.

In an emerging US solar market with an influx of foreign direct investment (FDI) and rapidly evolving technology, PV manufacturers who are looking to establish or expand a base of US operations may benefit from choosing a firm specialising in the design-build project delivery method. With faster speed to market and greater flexibility, design-build offers numerous advantages for solar companies seeking an immediate edge over the competition. Design-build’s shorter project timelines help manufacturers meet aggressive production targets, while its streamlined structure offers the adaptability to support manufacturers’ ongoing initiatives to improve products and processes.

The COVID-19 pandemic and a subsequent string of global political and economic crises have forced companies to reassess how they operate in the face of constantly shifting policy and supply chain dynamics. This article explores how the PV industry can make informed decisions on choosing the best locations to base manufacturing operations in a world characterised by unpredictability.

In this paper we discuss recent advances in the field, with a focus on potential device designs and manufacturing processes.

Technological improvements contribute to enhancing the already high attractiveness of SHJ shingle technology, and to close the gap with industrial, economic and sustainability requirements usually considered for large-scale deployment of such panels.

Our EpiNex™ wafers enable higher efficiencies, lower costs and reduced carbon emissions in wafer manufacturing by more than 70% when compared with the conventional Czochralski process in regions that rely on coal-based electricity. NexWafe’s innovative and unique technology creates the opportunity to profitably manufacture ultra-low-carbon green solar wafers.

We develop a novel manufacturing process sequence for polysilicon on oxide (POLO) IBC solar cells by applying a local PECVD SiOxNy/na- Si deposition through a glass shadow mask to form the structured carrier-selective n-poly-Si emitter in a single process step.

In this paper, three generations of silicon heterojunction (HJT) solar cell technical routes in China are reviewed. We define the structure of HJT cells with an amorphous silicon thin film on two surfaces of a monocrystalline-silicon (c-Si) wafer as HJT 1.0, which is the first generation of HJT.

This paper reviews the idea and methodologies of the passivation-liquid-based compensating technology for the separation loss of silicon cells, which provides future perspective for the photovoltaic industry and potentially helps to promote industry upgrades.

Two-terminal tandem solar cells based on perovskite/silicon (PK/ Si) technology represent one of the most exciting pathways towards pushing solar cell efficiencies beyond the thermodynamic limit of single-junction crystalline silicon devices. While laboratory efficiencies of these tandem cells have risen to very impressive levels, many important innovations towards enabling their eventual manufacturability have also been made in this rapidly evolving field. In this paper, a number of these processing innovations are highlighted in order to give a more complete view as to the viability of scaling up the processing of these devices. Specifically, the focus is placed on how today’s crystalline silicon process flows could be adapted in order to allow existing cell lines to produce PK/Si cells.