Opening up photovoltaics research
With EU funding of the project 'Photovoltaic European research infrastructure' (SOPHIA)(opens in new window), around 20 European leading institutions are seeking to create a single entry point to top-quality European PV research facilities. With a common platform and free access, the scientific community should be able to conduct efficient and coordinated work, while avoiding duplication of research efforts. The first project activities included organisation of the kick-off meeting and launch of the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) PV joint programme. Transnational access (TNA) to research facilities was organised through regular calls for research proposals. In particular, 6 calls were organised, around 40 applications were submitted and almost half of them benefited from free access. Amongst the accepted TNA applications, five research projects are complete and their results are being disseminated though the project website. In addition, seven more projects were initiated and some are due to start. Collaborative efforts resulted in a number of joint research activities mainly covering silicon materials, thin films, organic PV, and performance and lifetime measurements. Most of them provided promising results, helping to improve the services offered. Furthermore, many round-robin tests were organised to benchmark equipment and harmonise procedures. So far, project dissemination activities include 16 workshops and 6 webinars, while 12 active databases of the available technologies allow further collaboration amongst partners. Some of the best practices within SOPHIA should serve as proposals to amend existing international standards. SOPHIA aimed to facilitate wider sharing of knowledge, tools and techniques across a number of fields and amongst academia and industry all over Europe. A Strategic Research Agenda is under preparation to set out the future of the European PV research infrastructure to policymakers. It will make suggestions for upgrades and new investments in this field.