Photovoltaics
German and Dutch Researchers Set New Solar Cell Efficiency Mark
A team from the Fraunhofer Institute for Social Energy Research (ISE) in Freiburg and the NWO Institute AMOLF in Amsterdam have bettered the record for silicon solar cells.
Oct 26, 2023
The new silicon solar cells have an efficiency of 36.1 percent, the highest ever attained for silicon-based cells. Silicon cells represent 95 percent of those sold around the world, according to the US Department of Energy.
The record-setting cell combines a highly efficient new design with two semiconductor layers of gallium-indium-phosphide and gallium-indium-arsenide-phosphide developed by Fraunhofer ISE. They are coated with a special metal-polymer nanofilm, developed by AMOLF and co-manufactured by the two institutes. That increases the amount of light received in the interior of the solar cell.
This new record is the result of a unique collaboration that began in 2020,” said AMOLF project director Albert Polman on the website of the Institute for Regenerative Energy Economy IWR.
“It’s a great achievement for researchers in both teams to combine the best available procedures to jointly set a new record for silicon-based tandem solar cells,” added Fraunhofer ISE department head Frank Dimroth.
The institutes say the new cells could be used in electric vehicles, drones and consumer goods, where they would take up less space than conventional solar cells.
