CIGS Solar Cells: How and Why is their Cost Falling?
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This document provides an overview of CIGS thin-film solar cells, including their advantages, current state of development, and future opportunities. CIGS cells have higher efficiency than other thin film technologies due to their ability to absorb different wavelengths of light. Efforts are underway to further improve efficiency through cell structure optimization and new deposition techniques that reduce costs. The document outlines several low-cost processing methods in development, such as printing and electrodeposition. It also discusses entrepreneurial opportunities throughout the CIGS value chain, including in materials/chemicals, manufacturing, installation/maintenance, and training.
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CIGS Solar Cells: How and Why is their Cost Falling?
- 1. MT5009 ANALYZING HI-TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIESCIGS Solar Cells Zhang Xuan (a0068215) Rajendiran Aravind Raj (a0065709) Wu Yiming (a0068957) 21/04/2011
- 2. Outline
- 5. Outline
- 7. Cell contacts, emitter and passivation
- 8. Improve device structure and develop new device with novel concept
- 13. High rate deposition in large area
- 15. Band gap & grain size
- 16. Low-lifetime of thin film, sensitive to moisture
- 21. Different PV technologies market share
- 24. Direct band gap material
- 26. Band gap can be varied from 1.0 eV to 1.7 eV
- 29. Adaptability - transferable know how from existing industry
- 31. Lightweight and light bulk, Can be manufactured on flexible substrate
- 32. lead to niche market applications. E.g. BIPV
- 33. Less environmental footprint for recycling for CIGS
- 36. Why CIGS has high efficiency than other thin films? By adjusting ratio of CIGS mixture , the broad energy band distribution can be achieved. CIGS absorb light of different wavelengths in solar spectrum. It has wide solar spectrum response and is capable of fully utilizing incident light compared to it competitors . % I can absorb more light than other thin films – CIGS % Courtesy : AUO Solar
- 37. Outline
- 38. Does the CIGS has reached maximum efficiency ? CIGS absorber layer quantum efficiency might have reached saturation, but improvements can be done in cell structure and materials used for fabrication to increase efficiency. End user is concerned about cost also.
- 42. Improvements in modules CIGS * Laser scribing * Monolithic fabrication * More transparent , less absorption glass for lamination* Ink based printing technology on flexible substrates * BOS improvements Cell Module Substrate
- 44. Uniform & quality deposition of thin films over large area
- 45. Role of contaminants and some unexplained stories too….Courtesy: Global Solar
- 46. Latest CIGS Update Research Industry Efficiency : 20.3 % Area : 0.5 sq.cms Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research ZSW Efficiency : 15.7 % Area : 1 sq.m MiaSolé
- 47. Outline
- 48. Cost & Efficiency Analysis
- 49. Cost: CIGS < c-Si? Manufacturing Steps CIGS Solar Cell Si – Wafer Solar Cell Module Cell Cell Substrate Module Substrate The monolithic integration of thin-film PV can lead to significant manufacturing cost reduction compared to c-Si technology.
- 51. Cost: a-Si vs. CIGS & CdTe a-Si has the lowest manufacturing costs/watt, but its low conversion efficiencies, <10%, require a greater investment in the BOS components, the supporting infrastructure that includes mounting structures, inverters and electrical wiring. By contrast, CIGS and CdTe have demonstrated efficiencies approaching and exceeding a-Si. a-Si CIGS CdTe
- 53. In principle, the cost/area should be similar, thus, efficiency becomes a crucial factor for cost/watt.
- 54. However, production processes in terms of throughput and yield can differ significantly and may offset the advantage of higher performance.
- 55. Its production is not easy as four different materials are used.
- 57. co-evaporation
- 58. by sputtering of the metals, followed by selenization with H2Se.
- 59. These two processes suffer from relatively slow throughput, poor material utilization, and relatively high vacuum.
- 60. One such example is a process that uses nano-components to make printable precursors that are crystallized into CIGS.
- 61. Need for Low-Cost, High-Throughput Processes.
- 62. A lower-cost process should feature high deposition rates, high material utilization, and simpler equipment capable of processing very large substrates.Used by Global Solar and Wurth Solar Reference: M. Kaelin, Low cost processing of CIGS thin film solar cells, solar energy, 2004
- 63. Low Cost Processing of CIGS[2] Non-vacuum absorber formation techniques Often poor quality, includes impurity phases and may be amorphous or microcrystalline due to the low deposition T (<400 °C) Quality improved, material is annealed at a higher temperature Reference: M. Kaelin, Low cost processing of CIGS thin film solar cells, solar energy, 2004
- 65. Cons: Impurity phases, Traces from reaction by-products, Small grain-size obtained.
- 67. Very efficient use of material, exhibits high packing densities.
- 68. Does not require expensive vacuum equipment, manufacturing cost per square meter is significantly lower compared to vacuum deposited absorber layers.Reference: M. Kaelin, Low cost processing of CIGS thin film solar cells, solar energy, 2004
- 70. A conversion efficiency approaching 14% has been confirmed at NREL
- 71. Modules have been manufactured demonstrating process flowReference: Rommel Noufi, Thin Film CIGS Photovoltaics, SoloPower, Inc.
- 73. Can be high throughput once the hardware is tuned to the specifics of the process
- 74. Near 100% material utilization
- 75. Pre-formed expensive materials are not required, e.g. sputtering targets, nano-particles
- 76. Crystallographically oriented CIGS films with good morphology and density have been demonstrated
- 77. Thickness and composition control of the deposited films are integral part of the process
- 78. Readily scalableReference: Rommel Noufi, Thin Film CIGS Photovoltaics, SoloPower, Inc.
- 80. Currently developed a novel ink printing method for fabricating CIGS thin-film solar cells.
- 81. Significantly lower manufacturing costs than all current solar cell technologies.
- 82. Combines the following advantages to achieve low costs
- 83. Exceptional utilization of materials
- 84. Low capital equipment expenses
- 85. Application over various area formats due to versatility printing
- 86. Excellent compositional uniformity established within ink formation, resulting in high production yields
- 87. Adaptability to flexible substrates
- 88. Efficiency reaching above 14%, with large potential for performance improvements.
- 89. Robust module architecture that reduces assembly costs and minimizes field service failures.Reference: Competitiveness of Ink-Based Thin-Film Photovoltaics, Advantages of ISET’s Printed CIGS over other Current Photovoltaic Technologies
- 90. ISET’s Monolithically Integrated CIGS Modules Reference: Competitiveness of Ink-Based Thin-Film Photovoltaics, Advantages of ISET’s Printed CIGS over other Current Photovoltaic Technologies
- 91. ISET’s Ink-based Fabrication of CIGS bare glass metalized glass ink-coated substrate final CIGS module Ink-Based CIGS Production Process Sequence – very simple Reference: Competitiveness of Ink-Based Thin-Film Photovoltaics, Advantages of ISET’s Printed CIGS over other Current Photovoltaic Technologies
- 92. ISET’s Printed CIGS vs. High-Vacuum CIGS Reference: Competitiveness of Ink-Based Thin-Film Photovoltaics, Advantages of ISET’s Printed CIGS over other Current Photovoltaic Technologies
- 93. ISET’s Monolithically Integrated CIGS Modules Reference: Competitiveness of Ink-Based Thin-Film Photovoltaics, Advantages of ISET’s Printed CIGS over other Current Photovoltaic Technologies
- 94. Outline
- 96. Power supplies for satellites and space vehicles (high efficiency and radiation hardness)
- 97. Decentralized power supply - Building Integrated PV, foldable or rollable panels (flexible substrate and light bulk)
- 98. transparent substrates apply to large areas like windows
- 99. thin substrate can be painted onto aircraft wings
- 100. Power supply for portable purposes (lightweight and high efficiency)
- 101. Consumer products such as watches, toys and calculators
- 102. Power supply for emergency and remote areas (durability and high efficiency)
- 103. solar powered water pumping & water treatment system
- 104. remote lighting system & PV powered electric fencing
- 105. telecommunications and remote monitoring Systems
- 106. PV powered storage batteries, vehicles and traffic control signal
- 107. vaccine and blood storage refrigerators for remote areas http://www.baulinks.de/webplugin/2007/i/0732-wuerthsolar1.jpg http://www.copper.org/innovations/2007/05/images/civilian_flex_panel.jpg http://www.esa.int/images/ISS_2004_web400.jpg http://www.rgp.ufl.edu/publications/explore/v12n2/images/thin-film.jpg
- 108. CIGS solar cell value chain opportunities lie in each segment of the chain Entrepreneurial Opportunities
- 110. Individual components that make up the CIGS layer - inks, nanoparticles
- 111. Suspension solvents and additives such as resins and wetting agents
- 113. Polyimide Films – dominated by polymer substratesEntrepreneurial Opportunities
- 115. Individual components that make up the CIGS layer - inks, nanoparticles
- 116. Suspension solvents and additives such as resins and wetting agents
- 118. Polyimide Films – dominated by polymer substratesEntrepreneurial Opportunities
- 120. Outside firms like roof and building firms come in as BIPV installer
- 121. Training people for the solar energy industry
- 122. Trading of solar panels and a range of solar energy products
Hinweis der Redaktion
- Today, PV provides 0.1% of total global electricity generation. However, PV is expanding very rapidly due to effective supporting policies and recent dramatic cost reductions. In the IEA solar PV roadmap vision, PV is projected to provide 5% of global electricity consumption in 2030, rising to 11% in 2050
- A p-n junction is formed by placing p-type and n-type semiconductors next to one another. The p-type, with one less electron, attracts the surplus electron from the n-type to stabilize itself. Thus the electricity is displaced and generates a flow of electrons, otherwise known as electricity. When sunlight hits the semiconductor, an electron springs up and is attracted toward the n-type semiconductor. This causes more negatives in the n-type semiconductors and more positives in the p-type, thus generating a higher flow of electricity. This is the photovoltaic effect.For crystal-growth feedstock, the c-Si PV industry has been relying on waste material from the semiconductor Si industry and on secondary polysilicon, the excess or rejected material from electronic-grade polysilicon production. This amounts to about 10% of the polysilicon material used by the semiconductor Si industry
- Thin-film silicon cells have become popular due to cost, flexibility, lighter weight, and ease of integration, compared to wafer silicon cells.Thin film is a process where material from a target source is coated onto a substrate via a plasma field. These thin films are minuscule — angstroms to microns thick — and therefore use a very small amount of material to achieve most coating thickness goals.Active materials: CdS and CdTe converts sun energy to electricityTCO layer: allows light to pass through to the active materials while being electrically conductiveGlass: provide mechanical strength and protection against weather elementsAmorphous silicon (a-Si) and other thin film silicon (TF-Si)Cadmium Telluride (CdTe)Copper indium gallium selenide (CIS or CIGS)Dye-sensitized solar cell and other organic solar cell
- direct solar radiation can be concentrated by optical means and used in concentrator solar cell technologies. Considerable research has been undertaken in this high-efficiency approach because of the attractive feature of the much smaller solar cell area required. Low and medium concentration systems (up to 100 suns) work with high-efficiency silicon solardeveloping active layers which best match the solar spectrum or which modify the incoming solar spectrum. Both approaches build on progress in nanotechnology and nano-materials. Quantum wells, quantum wires and quantum dots are examples of structures introduced in the active layer. Further approaches deal with the collection of excited charge carriers (hot carrier cells) and the formation of intermediate band gaps.
- The abbreviation CIS stands for copper indium diselenide and CIGS for copper indium gallium diselenide. The x describes the ratio between indium and gallium.CIS and CIGS are compound semiconductors of the I-III-VI group.The band-gap structure is a complex heterojunction system.That means that thejunction is formed by different semiconducting materials with unequal band gaps.
- These thin film solar cells show efficiencies of 19% in the case of small area modules in laboratory and of about 13 % in large area modules.They show a very good stability in outdoor tests concerning mechanical load and radiation hardness against electrons and protons.CIGS has no intrinsic degradation mechanisms can be limited to a very small proportion by effective encapsulation. CIGS PV manufacturers are currently targeting module lives of 30 years.
- Thin-film solar cells are created by depositing several layers of a light-absorbing material (a semiconductor) onto a substrate such as coated glass, metal, or plastic. These semiconductor layers don't have to be thick because they can absorb solar energy very efficiently. As a result, thin-film solar cells require less materials to manufacture, are flexible, and are therefore suitable for many applications that crystalline cells are not. Thin-film can also be manufactured in a large-area process, which can be an automated, continuous production process, and therefore has the potential to significantly reduce manufacturing costs.