CIGS: Almost, but not quite there yet

Thin film has grown to approximately 10% of the overall PV market in 2008 and is expected to gain an even larger share in the next few years. The promise of low cost energy, reaching the "mythical", $1/Watt milestone a few years ago, is making conventional silicon PV companies grow increasingly concerned. First Solar is already producing at $0.98/Watt and several other thin film companies are increasing their production levels in the next few years.

 

The horse that everyone's betting on though, although it bolted out at an amazing start is now facing obstacles. Copper Indium Gallium diSelenide (CIGS) solar cells have the potential to slash down energy prices to half of what First Solar has achieved, the active material in them has the highest conversion efficiencies of any thin film technology yet... although the technology is not quite there.

 

IDTechEx believes that the amount of venture capital investment along with the intensified work for the transition from lab scale to high-volume production is going to make CIGS a technology that will be taking up a large chunk of orders and will be dominant in the PV market. The following paragraphs illustrate some of the factors that will drastically influence and shape the fate of CIGS solar cells.

Manufacturers all over the world are already gearing up for mass production, with companies like Solibro, Global Solar and Avancis already having produced their first solar cells in 2008. Centrotherm, a company that has been an active player in the arena of semiconductors has redefined itself and is now a provider of CIGS turnkey solutions, a move that has led to a dramatic increase in its size (more than doubling its personnel since it entered the PV arena). Other interesting companies in the field include Solyndra and Nanosolar.

 

 

Solyndra produces CIGS solar cells for commercial rooftops but their solar cells are very different to the type of cells everyone is used to. The company employs cylindrical modules which capture sunlight across a 360-degree photovoltaic surface capable of converting direct, diffused and reflected sunlight into electricity. The panels are lightweight and allow wind to blow through them. The horizontal mounting and unique "air-flow" properties of Solyndra's solar panel design promise a substantially simplified installation process.

 

Nanosolar on the other hand, promises to cut down the cost of solar energy by revolutionizing the manufacturing of its CIGS solar cells rather than bringing down installation costs. Using a printing process, the active layers of the modules will be deposited on a roll to roll process on metal foils, allowing for flexibility, high volumes and cheap production.

Unfortunately things are not easy for all CIGS developers. Solyndra claim to have an order catalogue of approximately $1 billion and that's one of the highly successful startups.

 

Nanosolar on the other hand are trying their best to optimize their manufacturing process and achieve the high efficiencies that CIGS cells give in the lab on a mass production scale. That is unfortunately not as easy as it sounds and so, the company has had to face setbacks that have delayed their date of initiation of production repeatedly.

 

 

Similar issues were faced by Miasolé in California and Ascent Solar in Colorado, a company that has had substantial financial backing from the USAF. These companies are also trying to iron out the difficulties in their manufacturing processes and of course, the quicker that happens, the faster their product offerings will become available.

CIGS is the kind of technology that could disrupt the way that the PV industry is currently moving forward. Achieving efficiencies that a-Si technologies can only dream of and utilizing much less toxic materials than CdTe, for example, CIGS has the potential to become the technology of choice for both the residential and commercial rooftop as well as applications such as BIPV due to its ability to be flexible.

 

Even though First Solar is well ahead of the competition, the game is far from won... It's only just beginning.

Photovoltaics Beyond Conventional Silicon Europe 2009, co-located with Printed Electronics Europe, is in Dresden, Germany on 7th - 8th April. This conference maps the launch of many forms of flexible solar cell designed for replacing everything from power stations to batteries, but also making totally new things possible in e-packaging, skin patches delivering drugs and mobile phones and laptops that will never have flat batteries. With over 50 exhibitors and over 700 attendees, these joint conferences and exhibition are set to be the biggest of its kind. For more information on the conference, visit www.IDTechEx.com/pvEurope.

 

 

For more information on the topic please contact the author Dr. Harry Zervos at h.zervos@IDTechEx.com or to find out more about the Photovoltaics Beyond Conventional Silicon Europe 2009 conference please contact the Event Manager Mrs. Chris Clare at c.clare@IDTechEx.com.

Photovoltaics Beyond Conventional Silicon Europe 2009 April 7-8, Dresden, Germany

 

Printed Electronics Europe 2009 April 7-8, Dresden, Germany

 

Photovoltaics Beyond Conventional Silicon USA 2009 Dec 2-3, San Jose, USA