Polish monocrystalline silicon photovoltaic modules

Crystalline silicon solar cells are today's main photovoltaic technology, enabling the production of electricity with minimal carbon emissions and at an unprecedented low cost. This Review discusses the recent evolution of this technology, the present status of research and industrial development, and the near-future perspectives.

Masuko, K. et al. Achievement of more than 25% conversion efficiency with crystalline silicon heterojunction solar cell. IEEE J. Photovolt. 4, 1433–1435 (2014). Boccard, M. & Holman, Z. C. Amorphous silicon carbide passivating layers for crystalline-silicon-based heterojunction solar cells. J. Appl. Phys. 118, 065704 (2015).

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative Crystalline silicon (c-Si) photovoltaics has long been considered energy intensive and costly. Over the past decades, spectacular improvements along the manufacturing chain have made c-Si a low-cost source of electricity that can no longer be ignored.

Except for niche applications (which still constitute a lot of opportunities), the status of crystalline silicon shows that a solar technology needs to go over 22% module efficiency at a cost below US$0.2 W −1 within the next 5 years to be competitive on the mass market.

To conclude, we discuss what it will take for other PV technologies to compete with silicon on the mass market. Crystalline silicon solar cells are today's main photovoltaic technology, enabling the production of electricity with minimal carbon emissions and at an unprecedented low cost.

Today's typical wholesale price for mainstream crystalline silicon modules is in the range US$0.17–0.25 W −1 (ref. 10), depending on the type and efficiency, which converts to a staggering low US$35–50 m −2. Data until 2021 adapted with permission from ref. 10, Fraunhofer ISE.