Your daily dose of photovoltaic technology developments and solar news

• Popular Technical Papers

  • Overview of automation in the photovoltaic industry
  • Understanding moisture ingress and packaging requirements for photovoltaic modules
  • Evaluation of encapsulant materials for PV applications
  • Inline processing of crystalline silicon solar cells: the holy grail for large-scale manufacturing?
  • PV sector outlook: an analyst’s perspective

• Featured Technical Papers

  • Transparent conducting oxide deposition techniques for thin-film photovoltaics
  • Comprehensive and advanced quality assurance measures for optimal yields from PV power plants
  • Surface passivation of silicon solar cells using industrially relevant Al2O3 deposition techniques
  • Influence of a-Si:H deposition temperature on thermal stability of a-Si:H/SiNx:H stacks
  • Integrated loops: a prerequisite for sustainable and environmentally-friendly polysilicon production

With more than 80% of PV module demand being satisfied by crystalline-based modules, the health of the silicon and wafer supply chain is of vital importance to the overall PV industry. This paper reviews the overall materials value chain from the manufacture of PV silicon to the wafer, prepared for manufacture of the cell. A glimpse is provided of the various market dynamics that exist in the supply chain, as well as the technology trends that influence or threaten the supply of wafers. Although the manufacturing routes are mature and well established, we also take a look at the possibility of novel and disruptive technologies altering the overall supply landscape.

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