Natcore researchers demonstrate gains in LPD-applied antireflective coating for texturized PV cells

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Natcore Technology scientists working at Ohio State University have continued to make progress on the development of the company's liquid phase deposition (LPD) process, demonstrating it can be used to apply an antireflective coating to textured solar cells as well as standard planar cells. The company said this could help open the door for the industry to achieve even further wafer thickness reductions by eliminating the thermal vacuum AR coating process.

Once solar cells are texturized, they are put through the remaining standard cell processing steps, which include adding the AR coating and the contacts. A growing problem, however, is that the conventional coating process requires the cells to travel through a vacuum furnace. As the wafers get thinner, the existing AR process causes them to warp, reducing the yield from the production process.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

Measurements made at NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland show that the reflectance from texturized wafers coated with Natcore's LPD AR coating is reduced to well below 2% over the entire absorption band of silicon cells–a two-thirds reduction from the typical reflectance achieved by standard industry practices and a result that would be accompanied by an increase in cell efficiency.

(For solar cells, the optimum reflectance is zero; a typical industry reflectance is about 6%. Reflectance is the proportion of light hitting a surface that is reflected from it.)

“The processing steps for achieving this outstanding result will be implemented in the intelligent processing tool we're building in Silicon Valley,” says Brien Lundin, chairman of Natcore. “We've had strong interest in this technology from several solar cell companies in China. We'll send a number of coated wafers for each of them to process into finished solar cells before we take orders for the industrial version of our intelligent processing tool.”

Natcore also recently announced its choice of the Kodak research labs in Rochester, NY, as the location of its new R&D center.

Read Next

September 17, 2025
US renewables developer Longroad Energy has reached financial close for its 400MW 1000 Mile solar project in the US state of Texas.
September 17, 2025
Spanish renewables developer and operator Acciona Energía has commissioned its 412MWp Juna solar PV plant in Kawani village in the western state of Rajasthan. 
September 17, 2025
Spanish IPP Velto Renewables has acquired a portfolio of 53 operational solar assets in Spain with a combined capacity of 260MW.
September 17, 2025
Struggling Swiss solar manufacturer Meyer Burger has formally entered into a debt moratorium, with the possibility of rescuing the entire group now looking unlikely.
September 17, 2025
Nexamp has secured US$350 million through a long-term financing facility to expand its 6GW utility-scale solar and battery storage pipeline in the US. 
September 17, 2025
Chinese module producer DAS Solar is planning a 5GW manufacturing facility focused on producing high-efficiency back contact cells.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK
Solar Media Events
October 7, 2025
Manila, Philippines
Solar Media Events
October 7, 2025
San Francisco Bay Area, USA