In WP1 further progress was made in both the stability and uptime of the so called G4 reactor. Having the tool in operation 5 days a week, sufficient wires could be fabricated to supply all the work performed in WP2.
The new G5 reactor has demonstrated to be able to make nanowires with both passivation and pn-junction. These full solar nanowires are the first ever grown using Aerotaxy.
Based on the further learnings from both the G4 and the G5 tool, a start has been made with the design of the next generation of Aerotaxy furnace. This furnace will address modularity, and especially system control.
In WP2 the first solar cells (filmcells) were obtained based on the nanowire membranes that were fabricated according to the Solfilm production process. These solar cells were fabricated using MOCVD wires and resulted in efficiencies close to the 5% target efficiencies.
The size of the nanowire membranes has been increased from an 8-inch disc (approx. 200 mm diameter) to a rectangle of 156 x 950 mm. This size has been chosen as this is the width of a 60-cell silicon module and the height of a single cell. Increasing the size to these dimensions in a single step gives high confidence that the next step to full module size will not lead to fundamental issues. The quality of this membrane has been checked at multiple locations and is in all locations according to the specs for the 5% efficiency target.
In WP3 the main activity is to build a new cleanroom that allows the fabrication of solar cells or modules with a size of 156 mm x 156 mm. This is the size that is indicated by the commercial partners, future customers, and participants in the sample program as being the minimum size required to ship Solfilm-based products to the final customers for sampling. This cleanroom opened in March 2018 and is producing filmcell samples.
In WP4 the goal is to fabricate tandem solar cells and module demonstrators together with partners. For this, a sample program has been started in which membranes, solar cells, and modules will be delivered to prove the progress made and allow the potential customer to start initial integration experiments.
In WP5 focus lies on the dissemination of project results and the development of an ecosystem of partners in the value chain. Sol Voltaics has continued building momentum for their new technology using press releases, company visits and relaunching the company website. The attention from the market has resulted in additional funding. A funding round of $21.3M was closed in 2017, which, in the recent years, is a record for a PV startup. The ecosystem surrounding Sol Voltaics continues to grow.
In WP6 the activities required to form relationships and partnerships in order to successfully
bring SolFilm to market are described. A major step in the last year has been to increase ties to potential producers of the Solfilm modules. Interest from large companies already in possession of suitable production equipment has resulted in closer collaboration.
Eight patents have been granted in Japan, China, USA, South Korea and Europe.
