Organic solar cell is about to make a breakthrough

According to the German Business Daily website on July 15, Organic solar cell are about to make a breakthrough.

When Carl Leo looked at the rows of houses, his first thought was potential. "Almost every roof must be equipped with solar energy equipment," he said, but the physics professor at TU Dresden also knew how difficult it was.

The roof has a curvature or angle, and the windows cannot be obstructed. One of the top scholars in the field of solar cell technology, Leo, explained, "This leads to a lot of valuable space being unusable

The regulations for installing solar energy equipment on new buildings in various federal states in Germany are currently stricter to varying degrees, as Germany plans to switch to green electricity by 2035. According to the German Renewable Energy Law, the cumulative installed capacity of photovoltaics in Germany should reach 215 gigawatts by 2030. Therefore, according to the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs' photovoltaic strategic plan, the newly added photovoltaic installed capacity must double from a full 7 gigawatts in 2022 to 22 gigawatts per year.

Achieving these goals requires more space. Scientists have developed a new type of solar panel that is expected to solve this problem: Organic solar cell. Thin and flexible Organic solar cell are made not of silicon but of hydrocarbons. This will bring infinite possibilities.

The Statics characteristics of curved roofs, car bodies and aircraft wings are not yet suitable for the installation of traditional silicon components. And new flexible solar cells can not only be used in these places, but can even be installed on glass curtain walls and windows because they only absorb some visible light.

Low conversion rate is the main reason why Organic solar cell with many advantages have not been widely used. Traditional silicon modules can convert 20% of solar energy into electricity, while the conversion rate of Organic solar cell is only 9%.

The Asian region can produce solar cells at lower costs and also has a large amount of rare earths required for the production of traditional solar cells. Organic solar cell do not need such raw materials. This new way of obtaining energy is expected to bring some of the solar energy industry back to Germany.

Leo said, "To win in the competition, we either have lower production costs or have patents and technology." Organic batteries may be the answer to the question. He also said, "We have knowledge and practical basic patents in materials, components, and manufacturing technology

Leo called for more research funding to promote Germany's accelerated development in this field. He believes, "If research projects can receive stronger support, we will have great potential

Leo has been engaged in the research of Organic solar cell at TU Dresden since the 1990s. In addition, about 30 companies and dozens of research institutions from around the world are also conducting relevant research. In 2006, the physicist, together with five other scientists from TU Dresden and University of Ulm, founded Heliatek. The company has started mass production of Organic solar cell since 2019, and is the global market leader in this field.

The German Energy Group is a client of the company, along with South Korean technology giant Samsung and companies from France, Spain, the UK, Singapore, and Japan. Jido Vantatweck, the director of Helia Technology, said that demand growth from Southeast Asia is particularly strong.