Solarfun targets light induced degradation in new ‘ECLIPSE’ solar cell

Light-induced degradation (LID) problems with boron doped p-type crystalline-silicon solar cells has been targeted by Solarfun Power Holdings with a new cell configuration, dubbed ‘ECLIPSE,’ which is claimed to reduce LID impact in PV modules to about 1%. Standard cells can suffer from up to 3% degradation during the first day of exposure to the sun. Solarfun claims that module power reduction is limited to less than 2W compared to about 4W to 5W for a 180W module equipped with standard cells.

"We have devoted considerable resources and management attention to develop and produce differentiated products,” noted Peter Xie, President of Solarfun. “We are proud to introduce this innovation in our new 'ECLIPSE' line with reduced LID. The advance is made possible by our vertically integrated manufacturing model and ability to control the quality of raw materials throughout the production process. By adjusting chemical properties in both the ingot-making and cell-processing phases of manufacturing, we have achieved a low concentration of impurity while still maintaining high yields. We remain committed to our strategy of continually enhancing our technology to produce differentiated and more efficient products for our customers."

Solarfun claims that ECLIPSE modules will give an increase in electricity generation of about 1% to 2% over a one-, five-, 10-, and 25- year period when compared with standard modules.

Sixtron Advanced Materials has recently introduced a patent-pending antireflective passivation coating technology that it says targets the LID problem, resulting in only a 1% loss.