The first of Xunlight’s 25MW wide-web, roll-to-roll photovoltaic manufacturing equipment lines has been fully installed at the company’s 122,000-sq-ft facility in Toledo, Ohio, putting the operation on track to begin production of high-efficiency thin-film silicon PV modules. The company’s proprietary roll-to-roll equipment, the first of four systems in the pipeline, has been shown to demonstrate uniform deposition of triple-junction thin-film silicon solar cells.
The recently completed installation is comprised of a 200-foot-long series of connected vacuum deposition chambers and will involve a PECVD process to deposit thin-film silicon solar cells on a 3ft wide, mile-long stainless-steel substrate. Once completed, four 25MW installations will bring the company’s cell production to 100MW by the end of 2010.
“For a company striving to become a low-cost producer of solar panels, having completed the development, design and construction of its first large-scale production equipment is undoubtedly a major milestone,” said Xunlight CEO Dr. Xunming Deng. “This important achievement would not be possible without the dedication and hard work of the Xunlight team, the commitment of our investors, and support from the state and federal government.”