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

As 2009 comes to a close, many equipment suppliers are reflecting on the fact that the photovoltaic industry, despite its huge growth potential, can be a brutal place to do business. In the first half of the year many equipment suppliers had the unnerving experience of falling off a cliff, going from record order levels to no orders at all in the space of a few months. This sobering moment served as a reminder that the PV industry needs both access to finance and government support to continue growing. Indeed, it should be remembered that photovoltaics would still only be an interesting technology serving niche markets were it not for government subsidies. The one good thing about this year has been the accelerated drop in cell and panel prices. This is bringing ever closer the day when the price of PV generated electricity reaches parity with electricity generated from non-renewable sources and subsidies are no longer required. It is also driving a new round of investment in more efficient manufacturing equipment.

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