Product Reviews

  • SierraTherm’s new APCVD system offers 660mm deposition width

    17 September 2008, 14:49

    Product Briefing Outline: SierraTherm Production Furnaces has introduced its new 5500 Series APCVD system with a 660mm deposition width.  This tool is capable of depositing a combination of up to five layers of doped (BSG, PSG) and undoped SiO2 films in a single pass. Its throughput capacity of 1875 WPH for 156mm wafers or 2300 WPH of 125mm wafers make it compatible with today’s high production cell lines.  Films with thicknesses of up to 300nm can be deposited at this process speed.

  • Eyelit Inc’s MES is designed for fast ramp flexibility

    16 September 2008, 12:08

    Product Briefing Outline: The ‘Eyelit Manufacturing’ solution delivers a full featured, technically advanced manufacturing execution system (MES), asset management, product costing, plant-level connectivity hub, and broad spectrum of other essential functionality. By giving clear insight into production process efficiency, performance/equipment efficiency, inventory control and resource management along with the ability to automatically react to conditions in any factory system, Eyelit Manufacturing suite enables customers to coordinate, control, and respond to changing demands in production.

  • 1,200wph solar-cell metallization platform from DEK

    10 September 2008, 16:03

    Product Briefing Outline: DEK has introduced the PVP1200 screen printer capable of 1,200 wafers-per-hour (WPH) throughput and offering advanced automated features for high speed and repeatability. The PVP1200 is built using expertise gained from DEK’s established high-accuracy screen printing platforms, proven in surface-mount assembly and chip-scale semiconductor packaging.

  • Ultrasonic Systems PV360 cell coating system offer uniform spraying

    08 September 2008, 15:38

    Product Briefing Outline: Ultrasonic Systems, Inc (USI) has introduced the PV360, which is a production coating system for photovoltaic wafers. The system features USI’s proprietary nozzle-less spray technology, which provides a more uniform, thinner coating application than conventional spray technology.

  • Adept Technology’s new robot streamlines solar cell production

    08 September 2008, 15:31

    Product Briefing Outline: Adept Technology has launched its ‘Adept Quattro’ s650 robot that comes with a Bernoulli gripper. The new system integrates high resolution inspection with high speed solar cell handling. The Quattro robot is claimed to be the world’s fastest robot with over 200 systems sold worldwide. The Bernoulli gripper combined with the Quattro robot creates an effective method for manipulating solar cells without the potential for product damage.

  • MANZ complete Back-end line offers throughput of 2400 cells/ hour

    27 August 2008, 15:14

    Product Briefing Outline: The MANZ I-series, backend-line, has a throughput of 2400 cells/ hour, and is claimed to be the fastest backend system available in the market today. One single system includes printing, firing, laser edge isolation, cell testing and sorting for crystalline solar cells. Cell manufacturers are able to buy the system including all options such as firing and testing, as a one shop solution from MANZ. The specific design and the very low breakage rates of the system are designed to improve productivity and lowers cost of ownership (CoO).

  • Coveme backsheet has a 5x lifetime extension

    27 August 2008, 15:09

    Product Briefing Outline: Coveme SpA’s new ‘dyMat PYE’ backsheet material is used to prevent electrical hazards and to grant high vapour barrier, thus avoiding power loss during the expected lifetime of the solar module. Coveme, in co-operation with DuPont Teijin Films, has developed a high grade PET inner layer with a lifetime five times longer than traditional polyester. Traditional solutions are multiple layer backsheets with fluoropolymers on the air side, polyester (PET) in the middle, and a third layer towards the cell side. Most of the job is done by the polyester film that must be protected by an outer layer versus the air side.

  • Transparent polymer protective covering from Enerize boosts PV module efficiencies

    20 August 2008, 16:01

    Product Briefing Outline: Enerize Corporation has developed a new design for photovoltaic (PV) modules using a proprietary transparent polymer material that is claimed to outperform glass conventionally used as a protective covering. The proprietary polymer material is highly transparent, and stable under UV and ionizing radiation exposure. The new highly transparent polymer material can be applied directly to the PV module surface at low temperatures, eliminating the need for the adhesives required with glass and some other polymers. Evaluation of the new Enerize polymer encapsulation materials has been carried out using PV modules that include up to 5 solar cells with a surface area of 72 cm2 each.

  • GreenMountain Engineering’s Trac-Stat SL1 measures tracker performance

    20 August 2008, 15:47

    Product Briefing Outline: GreenMountain Engineering has launched its new diagnostic instrument for measuring tracker performance, the Trac-Stat SL1. The SL1 is a high-resolution datalogging sensor that mounts on a solar tracker. It records the angle of error between the sun and the tracker for use in the development of tracking, concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) and solar thermal systems. Utility-scale solar company GreenVolts is testing GreenMountain’s Trac-Stat SL1 as part of its concentrating photovoltaic system.

  • MANZ/Optomec Aerosol Jet technology prints features below 40 microns

    13 August 2008, 15:32

    Product Briefing Outline: MANZ print station powered by Optomec Aerosol Jet Manz offers a new print station for contact-less printing of crystalline solar cells using OPTOMEC Aerosol Jet technology and will be the exclusive sales and marketing partner for the Optomec solar applications. Optomec has developed an advanced contact free metallization process for crystalline solar cells. Manz will integrate the Optomec technology into its back end line platform.

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  • Photovoltaics International 16th Edition

    Photovoltaics International 16th Edition

    This sixteenth edition of Photovoltaics International marks four years of production of the quarterly journal. As always, our focus is on efficiency and quality improvement and cost reduction in manufacturing. As 2012 rolls along, companies are falling by the wayside due to supply and demand issues, ASP declines and drastic governmental subsidy cuts. A clear picture of 2012 is offered through papers from the likes of TÜV Rheinland, Fraunhofer ISE, SEMI PV Group and EPIA, amongst others.

  • Photovoltaics International Lite, Volume 05 - 2011

    Photovoltaics International Lite, Volume 05 - 2011

    This digital interactive Lite sees Tom Cheyney follow Agua Caliente’s progress on becoming one of first truly utility-scale PV power farms, where 40–50MW (AC) will be commissioned by the end of the year. We also feature one of the world’s largest silicon thin-film PV power plants, Avenal; a report on warnings of the collapse of module prices from Solarbuzz and PI-Berlin presents tips on PV module testing. A print version of this edition will be distributed at Solar Power International 2011 in Dallas, Texas.

  • Manufacturing The Solar Future: The 2012 Production Annual

    Manufacturing The Solar Future: The 2012 Production Annual

    Manufacturing the Solar Future 2012, the second in the Photovoltaics International PV Production Annual series, delivers the next installment of in-depth technical manufacturing information on PV production processes.

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