BP Solar Power

One of the greatest issues facing the solar industry concerns efficiency.  BP Solar is working to achieve greater silicon cell efficiency.  Recently, IMEC and BP Solar demonstrated 18% conversion efficiency, using Mono2 silicon.

The two companies combined processing techniques to create a new base material for solar cells.  The Mono2 silicon production process is an inexpensive alternative to other silicon substrates.  Its production combines low-defect densities and high-conversion efficiencies with perhaps the most important element:  a lower cost, compared to traditional multicrystalline substrates.

Production of Mono2 involves extra processing steps to the standard, industrially-applied process of a full aluminum back surface field, increasing manufacturing plausibility. A proprietary growth nucleation process is used for casting ingots for producing crystal bricks and wafers through which preferred crystallograph orientations can be created.  This allows overall improvement in efficiency on a cell-by-cell basis.

BP Solar’s Vice President, Eric Daniels, stated:

“BP Solar is working to leverage such key technology developments to further reduce the cost of PV electricity. Working with R&D centers such as IMEC and key customers, we are commercializing this technology and seek to provide a better platform for the current and next generation solar cells.  This collaboration with IMEC represents significant progress towards that goal.”

Development of Mono2 is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Technologies Pathways Partnership.