Latest results of the German joint project “flexible CIGSe thin film solar cells for space applications”

This German joint project is directed towards the development of a flexible Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGSe) thin film solar cell technology on a polyimide (PI) substrate for space applications. A group of partners with an academic and/or industrial background in the field of chalcopyrite based thin film solar cells work together to ingrain space technology in production facilities for terrestrial PV. The three production technologies batch type multi-stage co-evaporation, in-line co-evaporation and roll-to-roll co-evaporation are investigated. So far, a maximum total area solar cell efficiency of 15.5 % has been achieved for lab scale devices (0.5 cm², AM 1.5, no AR). On a large area, standardized device an active area efficiency of 12.7 % has been achieved (25.9 cm², AM 1.5, no AR) based on an industrial roll-to-roll production process.