Progress in Thin Film Silicon Based Solar Cell Technology

Advances in material processing cause that new solar cell technologies are emerging. Emerging photovoltaic solar cell technologies such as thin film solar cells tend to be cheaper than silicon cells made in standard technologies. Thin film PV technologies face a number of hurdles as they advance towards low-cost goals that are competitive with traditional sources of electricity. The US Department of Energy cost goal for thin films is about $0.33/Wp, which is based on a module efficiency goal of about 15% and module manufacturing costs of about $50/m2. This paper investigates the issues associated with achieving the opportunities for manufacturing cost reductions& improvement in cell efficiency. Key areas such as capital costs, deposition rates, layer thickness, materials costs, yields, substrates, and front and cell efficiency will be examined. One major conclusion is that materials costs must be reduced because they will dominate in mature technologies. Another is that module efficiency could be the overriding parameters if different thin films each optimize their manufacturing to a similar level.