Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co., Ltd. and IBM
are collaborating to establish new, low-cost methods for bringing the next generation
of solar energy products to market -- products that will be more affordable
and easier to install than those available today.
Specifically, TOK and IBM have agreed to jointly develop processes, materials,
and equipment suitable for the production of CIGS (Copper-Indium-Gallium-Selenide)
solar cell modules. Currently, the relatively high-cost of electricity produced
by solar cells compared to electricity from other energy sources is an inhibitor
to a more widespread adoption of solar energy. Use of thin film technology,
such as CIGS, has great promise in reducing the overall cost of solar cells
and further enabling their widespread adoption.
IBM Research has developed new, non-vacuum, solution-based manufacturing processes
for CIGS solar cells and is targeting efficiencies around 15% and higher. Current
thin film product efficiencies vary from around 6% to less than 12%. Combining
IBM's technology with the proven coating technique and high purity chemicals
of TOK -- built upon years of experience manufacturing semiconductors and LCD
panels -- has the potential to bring the large scale production of thin-film
solar cells to market.
"Our goal is to develop more efficient photovoltaic structures that would
reduce the cost, minimize the complexity, and improve the flexibility of producing
solar electric power," said Dr. Tze-Chiang Chen, IBM Vice President of
Science and Technology, IBM Research. "Now, IBM's advanced technology combined
with TOK's expertise in equipment design and manufacture, have the potential
to broaden the use of alternative energy sources."
Yoichi Nakamura, President & Chief Executive Officer, TOK, said, "We
believe that this joint development is a great opportunity to expand the applications
of our technologies into the photovoltaic industry, bringing a new solid business
block for us."
Despite the abundance of solar power, current solar cell systems, which largely
rely on silicon for their conversion function, are comparatively less efficient
and more expensive than other energy sources. Thin-film CIGS solar cells can
be 100x thinner than silicon-wafer cells, can be deposited on cheap glass substrates,
and thus have correspondingly lower cost.
Thin-film solar cells also have the advantage that they could be arranged on
a flexible backing, suitable for the tops and sides of buildings, tinted windows,
and other surfaces. Solution processing allows "printing" onto a rolled
backing of a flexible module, or a glass plate, eliminating many of the high
energy and equipment intensive processes that are typical in conventional photovoltaics
manufacturing.
IBM Research is exploring four main areas of photovoltaic research: using current
technologies to develop cheaper and more efficient silicon solar cells, developing
new solution-processed thin-film photovoltaic devices, concentrator photovoltaics,
and future generation photovoltaic architectures based upon nanostructures such
as semiconductor quantum dots and nanowires.
In addition to the photovoltaic research announced today, IBM is focused on
several areas related to energy and the environment, including energy efficient
technology and services, carbon management, advanced water management, intelligent
utility networks and intelligent transportation systems. With decades of leadership
in environmental stewardship, proven ability to solve complex challenges and
unparalleled global reach, TOK and IBM are uniquely positioned to increase the
efficiency of today's systems and enable our clients' "green" strategies.
Posted June 17th, 2008
