Lasing on a sunny afternoon: from Einstein to Bell Labs to next-gen solar cells !

Laser tooling has historically been used for a number of routine production-line stages within both crystalline-silicon and thin-film cell and panel manufacture – performing mainly loss-preventative steps. With enhanced efficiencies being championed by almost every leading solar cell manufacturer to maintain competitiveness, laser-based tools now form the basis of new solar cell concepts, hitherto restricted to research laboratories and regionally-funded collaborations.  This talk will start by reviewing pivotal timelines when the laser and solar industries overlapped since the start of the 20th century: followed by a review of the leading candidates for next-generation c-Si cell types beyond 2010 and why laser processing is vital to their success in the marketplace.