Brand-new globe record for large-area organic PV module efficiency

• Scientists in Germany have attained 12.6% performance with a 26 sq cm organic panel as well as 11.7% for a 204 sq cm device. The tasks were accomplished with a new module format and a slower, high-resolution, short-pulse laser structuring process.

Scientists at German organizations the Bavarian Center for Applied Energy Research, the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg and the Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy have actually established an organic-solar-cell PV module they claim has achieved 2 conversion efficiency records.

The researchers claimed their 26.14 cm2 module, featuring 12 cells attached in series, achieved a qualified efficiency of 12.63%, besting the previous world record of 9.7% established by Toshiba; and a 204cm2, 33-cell version accomplished 11.73%, topping the 8.7% effectiveness also published by Toshiba on a gadget of that scale.

The researchers said the records were acquired using a brand-new module layout and a slower, high-resolution, short-pulse laser structuring procedure. "Losses as a result of making imperfections can be gotten rid of nearly completely by careful style of the production procedure," stated the German team, including the laser structuring made it possible for an uniform covering of all cell layers.

" By minimizing the non-active areas within the overall module location that are utilized for adjoining the individual solar cells of the module in series, geometric fill variables of over 95% have been attained," stated the researchers.

Slower, nanosecond-pulse laser pattern was made use of-- instead of femtosecond pulses-- to prevent laser ablation of active layer material in the active location. The billionths-of-a-second technique supposedly offers even more selectivity and better high quality-- as well as being less costly than-- pulses made at quadrillionths of a second.

" From our perspective, both records are of terrific importance since solar gadgets can be classified in those various location classifications and also are done so on the planet rankings," study co-author Andreas Distler informed pv magazine. "For example, the Martin Green Table (PiP) provides records for cells below and above 1cm ², along with for modules below and over 200cm ². For that reason, we are currently detailed in the Martin Green Table with both records. An additional crucial position is the NREL [UNITED STATE National Renewable Energy Laboratory] champion module efficiency graph, which needs more-than-200 cm ² modules, i.e. we are provided there with the 11.7%.".

Referring to the 12.6% record, Distler claimed it could additionally be gotten to by the larger module however the tools used by the scientists makes it tough to keep a homogeneous movie thickness over the surface area of larger tools. "With better equipment, I am sure the 12.6% PCE [power conversion efficiency] could likewise be gotten to on the bigger module area," he claimed.

The modules as well as related production procedure are defined in the paper Organic photovoltaic modules with brand-new world record effectiveness, released underway in Photovoltaics.

Researchers in South Korea have actually just recently recommended spin finish might cause much more reliable large-area organic modules by enabling bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) movies for such gadgets, and would certainly likewise make such modules more quickly replicable.