news digest ♦ Solar $2 million could improve Ge-
on-Si solar cell efficiency IQE and Silex will unite in a $2m Australian Solar Institute programme to improve III-V multiple-junction solar cells using novel Germanium-on-Silicon technology
IQE has been selected as a key wafer supplier by Australian CPV company Silex Systems as part of a $2 million programme.
Together, the firms will develop high efficiency multi-junction solar cells on low-cost large-area Silicon substrates.
Silex Systems received the $2 million grant from the Australian Solar Institute to support the company’s development of solar cell technology which could reduce energy production costs by up to 20 %.
The aim of the programme is to develop, fabricate, and test novel next-generation multiple-junction solar cells used in the evolving utility scale CPV solar power station industry.
The key differentiator is the development of a new virtual ‘Germanium’ substrate wafer-based substrate where a thin layer of Ge is deposited on a Silicon wafer. This will reduce the cost and potentially improve the efficiency of the multiple- junction cells in CPV applications. The new substrates and resulting CPV cell structures will be fully characterised and analysed in the lab and then tested in on-sun in field equipment.
The grant from the Australian Solar Institute (ASI) which was established by the Australian Government in 2009 is for the development of high efficiency multi-junction solar cells on low cost large area Silicon substrates. The programme, by Silex’s wholly owned subsidiary Solar Systems, has the potential to reduce the cost of energy production from CPV technologies by up to 20%.
Solar Systems will supplement the $2 million grant by providing about $3 million in project funding, with $2 million of in-kind support and $1 million in cash contributions over the three year project duration.
Project partner and Silex subsidiary Translucent will provide large area silicon substrate technology for the project, allowing for commercialisation of the technology to be fast tracked.
Andrew Johnson, IQE’s CPV Technology Director says, “Silex Systems’ selection of IQE as a partner for this programme clearly demonstrates that we are recognised as a key global player in CPV wafer products for advanced, high efficiency solar energy generation. This programme builds on our advanced capabilities in germanium on silicon for CPV applications that we launched in 2010 and compliments the range of CPV technologies in which we are active.”
Other key CPV partners in the programme include Boeing- owned Spectrolab and Emcore Corporation for multi-junction cell production facilities.
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These partnerships will allow for volume production of the solar cells, which will be incorporated into Solar Systems’ dense array system to characterise the performance of the new CPV modules at the Bridgewater Test Facility in central Victoria.
Stion to ship CIGS panels commercially from Mississippi plant
The fully certified high-efficiency thin-film solar modules from the 100 MW line have begun shipping, with commercial shipments from the factory starting later this month
Stion has received both Underwriters’ Laboratories (UL) and International Electrotechnical Commissions (IEC) certifications to ship modules produced at its Hattiesburg, Mississippi factory.
Stion modules with nominal power of up to 140 W are now available, with commercial shipments from the factory commencing later this month. The first phase of the 500 MW factory has 100 MW of annual production capacity, which is the equivalent of approximately 25,000 residential solar electric systems.
“Beginning shipments from Hattiesburg less than one year after starting construction represents a tremendous accomplishment by our team,” says Chet Farris, CEO of Stion. “We are excited to strengthen our position as a leading U.S.-based manufacturers of solar modules, and bring thin film to a broad range of applications and markets globally.”
The company’s modules have a robust, simple monolithic circuit design, and are manufactured using proven industry standard production tools. They are specifically designed for use in all major market segments; residential, commercial, municipal and utility.
Stion’s modules have a form factor of 65 cm x 165 cm that enables streamlined installation. The PTC / STC ratio - a measurement of the module’s field performance versus standard test conditions – is higher than those for 95 percent of the products listed for use by the California Solar Initiative.
Stion will continue expansion of both its Hattiesburg factory and its San Jose headquarters. As part of its $130 million funding round in December 2011, Stion is establishing a subsidiary in Korea with strategic partner Avaco to build a factory that will help serve the Asian and European markets.
“Early in 2011, the Mississippi Development Authority was pleased to work with Stion officials to announce the company’s new manufacturing location in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and it has been gratifying to see how quickly production has gotten under way at the plant,” says Jim Barksdale, interim Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority. “I commend Stion officials on reaching this latest milestone, with commercial shipments of the company’s Mississippi-made solar modules beginning later this month.”
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