Search sponsor
Search sponsor
Solar and semiconductor industry veteran Peter Borden will join high-efficiency thin-film PV developer Wakonda Technologies as executive chairman. He will focus on the company's strategic vision and direction, including product and market strategy and the development of strategic alliances.
Founded in 2005, Wakonda is developing a low-cost, high-efficiency thin-film technology which can be manufactured on a roll-to-roll production line. The PV approach employs a flexible "virtual single crystal" metal-foil substrate combined with a III-V compound semiconductor-based absorber-film stack.
Borden comes to Wakonda from Applied Materials, where he most recently worked in the solar group. He joined AMAT in 2003 after the capital equipment supplier bought Boxer Cross, a metrology and process control company where he served as cofounder and CTO. Earlier in his career, Borden was cofounder and VP of High Yield Technologies, the originator of the first commercial in situ particle monitoring system for the chipmaking sector. Before that, he led the photovoltaics group at Varian Associates.
The author of more than 80 technical publications and holder of some 30 patents, Borden has a BS from MIT and MS and PhD degrees from Stanford University.
"Peter brings an extensive solar industry background to Wakonda, as well as first-hand experience working with emerging companies, having founded and led two previous companies," said Les Fritzemeier, Wakonda's president/CEO. "We are very fortunate to have Peter joining us at this exciting time in our company."
"Wakonda's approach creates new opportunities in solar cell manufacturing that will impact both existing and emerging photovoltaic markets," added Borden. "I look forward to working closely with Les, Ryne [Rafaelle], and the rest of the team as we continue to make progress on their vision to enable solar photovoltaic power that is directly competitive with commercial and residential electricity."
