The Future of Photovoltaics: Organic, Perovskites, CIGS, Tandem

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In this talk, we will list the performances that CEA achieved in Apolo European project with flexible cells and modules. As compared to cells, module fabrication requests specific steps like large deposition uniformity or laser scribing. We will also highlight the importance of the stability and the challenges related to encapsulation

Dr Stéphane CROS has a PhD in the field of nanocomposite organic/inorganic materials (ESPCI, Paris, 2002 He joined the CEA in 2004, where he is in charge of stability/lifetime in the CEA-LCT laboratory (INES institute) making Perovskite and tandem Silicon/Perovskite solar cells. Senior Expert.

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Organic photovoltaics (OPV) and organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite photovoltaics (PePV) are promising PV technologies that can be manufactured using industrial roll-to-roll (R2R) printing which is a widely used mass-production technique for low-cost products. These emerging PV technologies have been making exciting progress toward commercial applications and the efficiencies of the laboratory cells (19.2 % for OPV and 25.7 % for PePV) are already high enough to enter the PV market. However, the efficiency of R2R-produced PV still lags behind those achieved for champion laboratory cells. This is attributed to the materials, processes and device configurations developed for research purposes not being readily translatable to R2R printing, with significant material and process optimisation required to achieve compatibility with scalable R2R processes. The time-consuming optimisation process has delayed the translation of these technologies to the marketplace, necessitating a new revolutionary research method.
Here we present an automated R2R research platform to accelerate the progress of R2R-fabricated solar cell technologies. A bespoke R2R coater was developed to optimise formulations and fabrication parameters including deposition conditions, coating speed, and annealing temperature. An in-situ formulation technique was introduced to fabricate over 10,000 unique cells a day via unmanned operation, and an automated R2R PV measurement unit has also been developed to test this number of cells in a single day. This innovative approach has enabled the rapid progress of R2R-fabricated solar cells, resulting in vacuum-free R2R-fabricated PePV and OPV devices achieving PCEs of 17% and 10%, respectively, both of which are record PCEs in their class, and with the technology still improving rapidly. The optimised parameters have also been translated to the R2R fabrication of large-area modules. The recent progress on the upscaling will also be presented.

We will show equipment scaling, application methods from small width to big scale and the importance of Industry4.0.

Eliminate your need of disposable batteries with indoor light power

by Thomas Österberg | RnD Director, Epishine | thomas.osterberg@epishine.se

In the expanding IoT age more things are being connected, a lot of small devices are powered by batteries. Batteries that need to be replaced on a regular basis and then recycled. The manufacturing of these batteries has large impact on the environment, likewise the recycling process is expensive and energy consuming. The accelerating digital transformation requires new solutions such as energy harvesting to cut the maintenance cost of battery replacements and reduce the environmental impact by trillions of disposable batteries. Epishine has developed a solar cell optimized for indoor use. The light energy harvesting (LEH) modules are optimized to convert light from indoor lighting into energy enough to power small electronic devices.

High power conversion efficiency has never been as crucial as today, not only for accomplishing the global environmental targets but also for the survival itself of the PV industry. Concepts such as multijunc- tion and tandem solar cells have been part of the PV technology roadmap for a long time. Two sub-cells of inexpensive solar absorb- ers with different bandgaps are combined. Several challenges are evident in accomplishing this, and strategic decisions regarding pro- cessing seem unclear. An overview of the performance-size evolu- tion shows the multiple advantages of using slot-die coating. A clear path for scalability, potential short cycle times, and easy processing on non-flat substrates make slot-die coating a strategic choice for
moving the field forward.

The paper will discuss vacuum deposition technologies developed by Fraunhofer FEP for next generation organic, thin-film and tandem devices.

Focus is on large area deposition of barrier, electrode and active layers on rigid and flexible substrates in sheet-to sheet and roll-to-roll technology.

The efficiency of solution-processed organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices could be improved considerably in the last years. This renders their stability as the limiting factor for successful applications. Under indoor conditions, OPV is already now one of the smartest choices to power the dynamically increasing number of electronic devices of the so-called internet of things. Another promising approach is to make use of the unique absorption properties of organic semiconductors to realize efficient solar modules with high visual transparency.
I will present results of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO)-free cells developed at Fraunhofer ISE for the different applications. Further, our effort to up-scale these specific device stacks will be discussed.
In the second part, I will shortly present our new approach to detect luminescence. It allows to derive the internal quasi Fermi level separation and it will be shown how this relates to the voltage that is measured between the terminals of the solar cell.

The efficiency of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has seen an unprecedented increase in few years’ times, with nowadays certified values exceeding 25%. Also in tandem architectures, record values well above 30% have been reported recently. Obviously, this has created a lot of enthusiasm not only in the research community but overall, in the photovoltaic (PV) industry.
Scepticism remains though, as cost-effective scale-up, sustainability and long-term reliability need to be proven still. This requires an appropriate assessment of materials, device configurations as well as processes to filter out those ones that can result in effectively raising the technology readiness level (TRL) of this high-potential emerging PV technology.

Both for single junction modules as for tandems, with these considerations in mind, we have systematically put together processes and architectures bringing this technology closer to industrialization. Results will be presented on how we came to these selections and how this approach enabled taking substantial steps forward.

Over the past decade metal halide perovskites (MHPs) have emerged as potentially transformational materials for enabling low-cost high efficiency photovoltaics (PVs). In this talk the basic of these material and systems that makes them of such excitement for PV as, current state-of-the-art devices have reached lab scale solar cell efficiencies exceeding any other polycrystalline thin film technology. In addition, MHPs have shown the promise of creating low-cost high efficiency tandems based on both all-perovskite configurations and in combination with incumbent technologies (i.e., Si, CIGS) to target performance beyond single junction PV efficiency limits. This presentation will ask question about how we can take these lessons from PV material and apply them to our current understanding of hybrid semiconductors. The current status of the MHP-PV technologies will be touched upon from the perspective of what basic question need to be addressed in these semiconductor materials to translate their promise into deployable technologies that can have impact.

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To provide affordable energy access to households currently without electricity a Fit-for-Purpose Clean
Energy Systems is required. Organic solar cells (OSCs) are the least expensive and most environmentally
friendly means to generate off grid solar power. OSCs provide the lowest levelized cost of electricity, are
ultra-thin and lightweight, flexible, impact resistant, sustainably produced, and easily recovered. Power
Bloom’s innovations in processing engineering will leverage exponential technologies (Industry 4.0) to
scale manufacturing capabilities while simultaneously improving solar cell performance. Roll-to-roll
additive manufacturing of organic solar cells using advanced material formulations will allow us to meet
the cost-performance required for affordable, off grid, clean energy access.
Today, more than 760 million people around the globe do not have access to household electricity. While
addressing energy access has been a focus for governments and nongovernmental organizations, this
issue has not been solved. The lack of a viable, self-sustaining business model has thus far prevented
global access to electric power. Power Bloom is purpose driven to address energy poverty by creating and
scaling an energy supply chain and network. Designing fit-for-purpose OSCs is critical in creating a viable
business strategy to bring affordable products to remote consumers who are five or more years from grid
extension. Access to electricity starts the virtuous cycle of well-being with benefits in health, education,
safety, income opportunities, and connections to people – all leading to increased prosperity. Those
consumers who get their first access to 10-Watt power will require more power as their quality of life
improves, thus providing opportunities to grow the economic gains realized from electrification. Market
synergy between distributed clean energy, telecommunications, and lighting industries can lead to an
ecosystem with leveraged sales channels and improved reach to the end customers currently living in
energy poverty.

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Perovskite solar cells have attracted tremendous attention as an emerging next generation photovoltaic technology and have recently shown breakthroughs towards commercialization. The solution processability of perovskite materials offers an attractive opportunity for the commercialization of perovskite PV using high-throughput sheet-to-sheet coating (S2S) or roll-to-roll (R2R) processes with low CAPEX and low operating costs. Such facile and low-temperature manufacturing methods allow perovskite PV to have reduced energy payback time and greenhouse gas emissions as compared to mainstream silicon photovoltaics. Rayleigh’s primary focus is to optimize a processing protocol for high quality, whole device stack coating including the electron transport layer, absorber, hole transport layer and back electrode. The upscaling of perovskite modules was achieved using S2S coating with the ability to coat 20 cm wide by 30 cm long substrates and R2R coating with a 30 cm webwidth.

The OPV technology is in constant development and in early market adopters’ installations. Throughout the last seven years Sunew is strongly leading the market expansion and the OPV volume production with more than 18.000m² of OPV produced. To achieve these marks Sunew focused on robust process procedures and rigid quality control methods, to guarantee a uniformity from batch to batch, independent of external factors. We will present the results of these methods and the confirmation of batches uniformity. Also, a strong confirmation of OPV durability considering outdoor tests of different batches and OPV structures.

For over 11 years, (TNO part of) Solliance has been dedicated to the effort of enabling low-cost production of customized solar modules suitable for integration into buildings, infrastructure, or any surface exposed to solar irradiation. During this time we have established significant expertise in the optimization of flexible PV laminates for integration into various products, using low-cost materials while still obtaining the desired lifetime. Currently, we are applying this expertise in the development of a Mass Customization pilot line, which will enable large scale production of customized PV laminates suitable for integration. Mass Customization will allow flexibility in electrical output, material choice, lifetime, flexibility and aesthetics at minimum cost, and thus make the integration of PV materials more cost effective.

Reaching the U.S. government’s decarbonization goals of 100% carbon-free electricity generation by 2035 and net-zero economy-wide carbon emissions by 2050 will require significant deployment of solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity. Emerging photovoltaic technologies such as perovskites may be able to augment increased silicon and CdTe deployment to achieve these aggressive targets. In this talk, the US Solar Energy Technologies Office’s (SETO) perspective on halide perovskite PV commercialization will be described: the critical technical barriers, the commercialization pitfalls and opportunities, and how SETO supports efforts to overcome barriers and challenges to commercialization. SETO will also discuss current and past support for perovskite innovation, and how SETO’s portfolio reflects overall office strategy.

The development of complex functional solar materials poses a multi-objective
optimization problem in a large multi-dimensional parameter space. Solving it requires
reproducible, user-independent laboratory work and intelligent preselection of
experiments. However, experimental materials science is a field where manual
routines are still predominant, although other domains like pharmacy or chemistry
have introduced robotics and automation long before. Human interaction in the
process of data acquisition is seen critical due to incomplete assessment of meta-data
or hidden processing correlations which complex reproducibility. Materials
Acceleration Platforms (MAPs) are regarded as an enabling technology for Data-Driven
Material Science, leading to an increased number of concepts and a dynamic evolution
of MAP lines. In this talk, I will present our approach to laboratory automation in
materials science with a strong focus on fully functional solar devices.

AMANDA (Autonomous Materials and Device Application Platform - www.amanda-
platform.com) was developed as a generic platform for distributed materials research

comprising a self-developed software backbone and several MAPs. However, one
realizes that accelerating a whole technology requires more than accelerated materials
research. It also takes devices and process development to truly accelerate a PV
technology. These are concepts are summarized under Technology Acceleration
Platforms (TAP)
This talk will stepwise introduce the current concepts and technologies to accelerate
solar technologies: from the material to the device and to the process. The outlook will
discuss how these platforms can be made communicative to each other in order to
transform them into autonomously acting TAP with the power to accelerate the
learning curve for a whole solar cell technology.

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For more than a decade, i-components has developed high performance barrier solutions for the display industry (QD films, Electronic Shelf Label).

This presentation introduces its product line dedicated for the solar industry, aiming at offering efficient and long-lasting protection against water and oxygen to TF-PV modules.