Optimal Materials and Deposition Technique Lead to Cost-Effective Solar Cell with Best-Ever Conversion Efficiency (Fact Sheet)

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (U.S.)

关键词: 14 Solar Energy;    Lattice-Matched;    Solar Cells;    Concentrator Solar Cells;    36 Materials Science;   

DOI  :  10.2172/1046279
RP-ID  :  NREL/FS-2000-55741
RP-ID  :  AC36-08GO28308
RP-ID  :  1046279

美国|英语

来源: UNT Digital Library

【 摘 要 】

This fact sheet describes how the SJ3 solar cell was invented, explains how the technology works, and why it won an R&D 100 Award. Based on NREL and Solar Junction technology, the commercial SJ3 concentrator solar cell - with 43.5% conversion efficiency at 418 suns - uses a lattice-matched multijunction architecture that has near-term potential for cells with {approx}50% efficiency. Multijunction solar cells have higher conversion efficiencies than any other type of solar cell. But developers of utility-scale and space applications crave even better efficiencies at lower costs to be both cost-effective and able to meet the demand for power. The SJ3 multijunction cell, developed by Solar Junction with assistance from foundational technological advances by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, has the highest efficiency to date - almost 2% absolute more than the current industry standard multijunction cell-yet at a comparable cost. So what did it take to create this cell having 43.5% efficiency at 418-sun concentration? A combination of materials with carefully designed properties, a manufacturing technique allowing precise control, and an optimized device design.