NEWS REVIEW
Hanergy completes acquisition of GaAs solar fi rm Alta Devices
BEIJING–BASED Hanergy Holding Group, which makes thin-fi lm solar devices, has completed the acquisition of Alta Devices, whose thin fi lm gallium arsenide solar technology has a conversion effi ciency of 30.8 percent, the highest among the solar energy technologies currently available.
Both companies’ R&D teams will join forces to develop Alta Devices’ technology. Hanergy plans to actively expand the application of Alta Devices’ products in mobile and wearable power application areas, ranging from emergency charging of mobile phones, to the automotive sector and the Internet of Things.
Alta Devices’ use of GaAs allows its dual- and single-junction solar cells to produce record-breaking conversion effi ciencies of 30.8 percent and 28.8 percent respectively, as certifi ed by the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). On a same surface area basis, its cells produce a power output two to three times higher than standard fl exible thin-fi lm cells, 8 percent higher than mass-produced monocrystalline silicon cells, and 10 percent higher than multicrystalline silicon cells.
Chairman and CEO of Hanergy Li Hejun said: “Alta Devices’ thin fi lm solar
technology allows more energy to be produced in lower light conditions than any other type of solar cell, giving it greater potential to power a wide r ange of mobile devices and equipment from phones to cars. It has the potential to change the way solar energy is used.
This acquisition advances Hanergy’s goal to become the world leader in the solar technology of the future.” Chris Norris, president and CEO of Alta Devices, said: “This successful acquisition is built upon Alta Devices’ and Hanergy’s shared belief that fl exible, thin-fi lm solar technology represents the future of the solar industry.
The combination of our world-class solar cell R&D capability and Hanergy’s technology, research and capital resources will help us further improve the performance of our technology, increase production capacity and expand applications.”
Alta Devices’ single-junction GaAs thin- fi lm solar cells are already in production. Following the acquisition, Alta Devices will continue to operate independently as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hanergy. Hanergy will also work with Alta Devices to develop international markets and enhance its cooperation with key strategic customers.
LED lamp price down on July 2013
THE JULY 2014 release of the IHS Technology LED lamp Retail Price Tracker has found that the global average retail price of LED lamps was $22.31, indicating a fall of 1.6 percent in July 2014 from the prior month, and down 9.6 percent compared to the same time a year earlier in July 2013.
Over the past 12 months, the lumens-per- dollar ratio of LED lamps has increased by 17.6 percent to 34.3 lumens per dollar. IHS has been tracking LED lamp retail pricing trends for more than two and half years.
Chinese lab makes step towards ‘solar’ fabric
SCIENTISTS at the State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, at Fudan University, Shanghai have made perovskite (a calcium titanium oxide mineral) solar cells with a fl exible fi bre structure, opening up the possibility of weaving them into textiles.
The technique, detailed in the journal Angewandte Chemie, involved continuously winding an aligned multiwalled carbon nanotube sheet electrode onto a fi bre electrode. Photoactive perovskite materials were incorporated inbetween them through a solution process.
The fi bre-shaped perovskite solar cell exhibits an energy conversion effi ciency of 3.3 percent, which remained stable on bending.
The perovskite solar cell fi bres may be woven into electronic textiles for large-scale application by well- developed textile technologies, according to the researchers, making them potentially useable in wearable and portable electronic devices.
Each month IHS analyst’s sample of 2,600 individual LED lamps sold in retailers across 15 countries globally.
Full details can be found in the paper ‘Integrating Perovskite Solar Cells into a Flexible Fiber’ by L. Qiu et al (2014), Angew. Chem. Int. Ed.. doi: 10.1002/anie.201404973
Copyright Compound Semiconductor Issue VI 2014
www.compoundsemiconductor.net 7
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