Qcells has set a world record tandem solar cell efficiency on a full-area M10 cell that can be scaled up for mass production.
The South Korean company achieved an efficiency of 28.6% on a 330.56 square cm cell produced on its pilot line in Germany.
The solar cell uses perovskite technology for the top cell and proprietary Q.ANTUM technology for the bottom cell. Qcells said this tandem structure improves performance by allowing the top cell to capture the high-energy light more efficiently, while the bottom cell captures the transmitted low-energy light.
“This improves power per area and therefore fewer modules are needed to achieve the same solar system power,” the company said in a statement. “This breakthrough has the potential to further reduce the cost of solar energy and the land footprint required for solar projects, making solar energy even more affordable, accessible and sustainable.”
The CalLab of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) independently verified the record result.
Danielle Merfeld, Qcells Global CTO, said the tandem cell “will accelerate the commercialization process of this technology and ultimately deliver a quantum leap in photovoltaic performance.”
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