THE CHALLENGE OF PV TECHNOLOGIES
Thomas BergerWenzel FialaHannes List
Physics of solar cells
Technologies of solar cells
Silicon solar cellMonocrystalline siliconPoly- or multicrystalline siliconRibbon silicon
Silicon thin-films amorphous siliconprotocrystalline silicon nanocrystalline silicon
Technologies of solar cells
Cadmium Telluride (CdTe)Thin-film, easy to deposit, large scale
productionCopper-Indium Selenide (CuInSe2)Thin film, high optical absorption
coefficientsGallium Arsenide (GaAs) MultijunctionMultiple thin films, Triple-junction cell,
each conductor absorb light most efficiently at a certain colour, absorp nearly the entire solar spectrum
Technologies of solar cells
Single Crystal Solar Cellhigh-purity material, excellent efficiencies and
long-term stability, too expensive for mass production
Dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC)manufactured by screen printing, lowest-cost
solar cell
Organic/Polymer Solar CellsLow efficiency, mechanical flexibility
Nanocrystalline Solar Cellshigh surface area to increase internal reflections
and hence increase the probability of light absorption
Current use of PV-Technologies
Low power applications/solar chargers
Solar parks/power plants
Water pumping
Space applications
And many, many more
Efficiency in current PV-Technologies
Currently efficiencies of solar cells – maximum 20 %
In research labs they reach already 35 % and more
Theoretical calculations of up to 80 % in the future
The future of PV-Technologies
Many research groups in universities and research institutions around the world are currently active in the field of photovoltaics. This research can be divided into three areas:
Making current technology solar cells cheaper and/or more efficient
Developing new technologiesDeveloping new materials
Photovoltaic in Austria
Photovoltaic in Austria
• Funded since the mid-1980s• First program in 1992 („200 kW-
photovoltaic-broadtest“)• Today Vorarlberg has more than 1/3 of
Austrians PV-Powerplants
Photovoltaic in Austria
Installed performance: Accumulated performance:
Photovoltaic in Austria
• Till the end of 2006, 25.5 MWp has been installed
• Of this amount, 88% were run by grid-connection, 12 % autarchically
• There is an estimated amount of approximately 20 GWh/year PV-power in Austria
Photovoltaic in Austria
• Costs: • 49 Cents for plants < 5kW• 42 Cents for plants between 5-10 kW• 32 Cents for plants > 10 kW
Photovoltaic in Austria
20% scenario in Austria till 2050
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