:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/dc/a2/dca2307d17ba96e0362e1c25587377a4/87566427.jpeg "Buck-boost converters are equivalent to flyback converters that use a single inductor instead of a transformer. (Source: Unsplash)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/55/3b/553b805ebe887a7a4565e4d2c9e74655/0114174641.jpeg "Magnachip commences full-scale mass production of 1200V and 650V IGBTs for PTC heaters of electric vehicles. (Source: phaisarnwong2517 - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/3d/94/3d94fad8175978d8f231f080ed33e324/0114078634.jpeg "Besides three new liquid electrolyte battery technologies to deliver higher power, longer range, faster charging and lower cost, the solid-state breakthrough shifts development focus to mass production. (Source: Toyota)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/77/c7/77c74eb68b51dd581c637f13e7904647/0114028178.jpeg "Until now, hall-effect sensors have been unsuitable for many high voltage designs. This changes with the new solution from Melexis. (Source: Siam - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/e4/6d/e46df499be81049cc6ede08d3e0c8c08/0113685834.jpeg "This article looks at how guitar developers like Gibson, Les Paul, and Fender, along with amplifier and loudspeaker specialists, particularly Marshall, worked with the musicians and developed the electronic technology that allowed them to express their musical ideas like never before. (Source: Dimitrius - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/e9/14/e9141f4fe8a97bcb0479750ea031ad27/0113687025.jpeg "This article takes a closer look at the semiconductor supply chain. (Source: tippapatt - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/b9/34/b934371165521e0a7189d43baf7e3183/0113803771.jpeg "Silicon carbide chips increase the efficiency of the power electronics to as much as 99 percent. (Source: EUROMEDIAHOUSE FOTOCENTRUM GMBH www.euromediahouse.de)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/cb/4b/cb4b68f0f097dff72c5d741af90dcc11/0113681055.jpeg "The global chip shortage has been an ongoing problem since 2020. Now the EU has officially approved the EU Chips Act to help counteract the shortage. (Source: Nuthawut - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/99/52/9952fb75c4e194dbddfda8d9b97ac117/0102959153.jpeg "The issue for Moore’s Law is the inherent complexity of semiconductor process technology, and these complexities have been growing. This article explains the meaning of Moore's Law and answers the question whether Moore's Law is dead or still valid in 20223. (Source: Revoltan - stock.adobe.com )")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/c4/2f/c42fa6bec271ba6d847660b392828275/0114038865.jpeg "This article explains semiconductor manufacturing in 7 steps. (Source: Maksim Shmeljov - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/75/7c/757c8d874ba877ba50f1fceb864f93a1/0113683290.jpeg "A group of scientists have developed a new superconducting device, which could dramatically cut the amount of energy used in high-power computing systems. (Source: Gorodenkoff - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/08/34/0834c64c44532c88b7c71c4edddfc8a0/0113458055.jpeg "Spin waves can help future computer chips solve complex calculations with a hundredfold reduction in the power they need. (Source: Emily / stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/20/03/200396e9281965851356ac8c84aabcbd/0114036921.jpeg "The new functions can be seen in action at EuMW in the Radar Test Bench Compact 3D and in several demonstrations of individual DARTS. (Source: dSPACE GmbH)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/14/b2/14b2d600e37a456dad1cea5baed9fec9/0113806284.jpeg "RISC-V came as the fifth generation of RISC processors in 2015. (Source: Song_about_summer - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/9d/e0/9de0c6f0fcd9f328c533d415a3c4488e/0113286401.jpeg "The article explores the levels of coding for electrical/electronics engineers and lists such top 5 programming languages. (Source: Jamie - stock.adobe.com)")
:quality(80)/p7i.vogel.de/wcms/85/6b/856bce624dfeda205e78a957fd66a0d8/0113105385.jpeg "Find out more about power electronic circuit simulation tools in this article. (Source: lersan - stock.adobe.com)")
RENEWABLE ENERGY 21.4 % record efficiency for flexible solar cells
A new efficiency record of 21.4% for flexible CIGS solar cell on polymer film has been achieved by scientists at Empa. Solar cells of this type are especially suited for applications on roofs, transport vehicles or mobile devices.
Related Vendors
:fill(fff,0)/p7i.vogel.de/companies/62/95/6295c25c8dc1a/schunk-sonosystems-300dpi.png "schunk-sonosystems-300dpi (Schunk)")
:fill(fff,0)/p7i.vogel.de/companies/5f/71/5f71d5f92a5f6/2000px-rogers-corporation-logo-svg.png "2000px-Rogers_Corporation_Logo.svg.png (rogers germany)"){kind=logo}
:fill(fff,0)/p7i.vogel.de/companies/63/6c/636ccb0a8231b/microchip-logo-svg.png "microchip-logo-svg (Microchip Logo)"){kind=logo}
:fill(fff,0)/p7i.vogel.de/companies/63/d2/63d2e757ee6c6/programmable-power-social-v2-500x500.png "programmable-power-social-v2-500x500 (programmablepower.com)")
A group of scientists at Empa has pushed the efficiency of flexible solar cells to a new limit. Independent measurements revealed an efficiency of 21.4 % when these types of solar cells convert light into electricity. For comparison: the best efficiency of a non-flexible solar cell made of crystalline silicon is reported at 26.7 %.
High efficiency flexible solar cells are processed on a polymer film by a low temperature co-evaporation method for the growth of the thin film Cu(In,Ga)Se2 semiconductor that absorbs the light. Empa scientist Shiro Nishiwaki optimized the composition of the layer and alkali dopants for achieving performance improvement. The researchers then investigated the effects of combined heat and illumination exposure after the processing of solar cells and found a boost in the photovoltaic performance, which remains stable after several months. The solar cell efficiency of 21.38 % was independently measured at Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg, Germany.
Setting new records for 22 years
Ayodhya Tiwari and his team are doing research on flexible thin film solar cells for more than 22 years. With their profound knowledge of the technology and the fundamental physical processes, they have achieved several efficiency records throughout the years. They started with 12.8 % in 1999, moved to 14.1 % (2005), 17.6 % (2010), 18.7 % (2011), 20.4 % (2013) and 20.8 % in 2019.
Flexible and lightweight solar modules with this technology are especially suited for applications on roofs and facades of buildings, greenhouses, transport vehicles, airships and portable electronics. Empa collaborates with Swiss company Flisom for roll-to-roll manufacturing of lightweight flexible solar modules for such applications.
The research and development work was supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy.
(ID:47624528)
:quality(80)/images.vogel.de/vogelonline/bdb/1949600/1949653/original.jpg "Lithium in its initial form as granulate as the basis for manufacturing innovative and efficient next-generation batteries. (Fraunhofer FEP)")
:quality(80)/images.vogel.de/vogelonline/bdb/1962400/1962433/original.jpg "RENA is developing a technology for mass-production of silicon anodes. (RENA Technologies)")