Pressemeldung

Eichenau, September 1, 2008, A new collaboration between HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM BERLIN FÜR MATERIALIEN UND ENERGIE, formerly the Hahn-Meitner-Institut (HMI), and STANGL Semiconductor Equipment AG (STANGL) will develop full production scale equipment for alternative buffer layer deposition in thin film solar cell fabrication.

The newly developed Spray Ion Layer Gas Reaction (ILGAR) is a thin-film deposition method developed and patented at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB).

As the size of the substrates used in thin-film production increases and the tact time decreases there is an increasing need for new methods of buffer layer production. Spray-ILGAR has been used to deposit indium sulfide buffer layers which are capable of replacing the cadmium sulfide buffers used in chalcopyrite cells in order to avoid toxic materials such as cadmium. A certified efficiency of 14.7% has been achieved in the lab on a commercial absorber from AVANCIS, without the need for any wet treatment or the presence of cadmium.

The standard buffer layer in a chalcopyrite thin-film solar cell is made by chemical bath deposition (CBD). This a reliable method which is commercially accepted, however it also has a number of disadvantages including; long process times, large amounts of liquid waste, critical process parameters, an inherent batch type nature and difficulties with very large substrates.

The nature of the spray technique means that the ILGAR process is reproducible, fast, cheap and suitable for scaling up into an in-line process on large areas.

STANGL designs and produces high-tech systems that are used for fully-automated application of the single-sided wet chemical coating. STANGL is world market leader with the TENUIS Wet Process Equipment for Thin-Film Solar Cells on Glass. Together with STANGL Semiconductor Equipment AG ILGAR production equipment will be made available for thin-film solar cell manufacturers.

Short profile STANGL/SINGULUS
STANGL is currently one of the few suppliers of wet-chemical machines for both crystalline silicon solar technology and thin-film solar technology, with growth rates in excess of 40 %. SINGULUS, STANGL’s parent company, is set to unveil its own solar coating machine in 2008, based on its wealth of experience in the core area of optical discs. It will be able to tap into STANGL's experience and market knowledge for this move. In March 2008, SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES teamed up with Q-Cells, the most important solar cell producer worldwide, for the development of this new machine and won the company as a key customer. STANGL and SINGULUS will systematically expand their solar activities.

Together with the equipment made by STANGL, SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES will then be able to offer two important machine groups with wet-chemical and vacuum coating processes for a production line for crystalline silicon solar cells. The goal is to strengthen its global position for production equipment for crystalline solar cells over the next few years

For further information please visit us at the 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition from 1st to 5th September 2008 at the Feria Valencia in Valencia, Spain, at booth B9, Hall 2.