Addressing the Challenge of Truly Large Scale Photovoltaics: the Industrial and Thermodynamic Potentials of Organic Solar Cells In order for... » More

Addressing the Challenge of Truly Large Scale Photovoltaics: the Industrial and

Thermodynamic Potentials of Organic Solar Cells

In order for photovoltaic systems to ultimately provide a considerable fraction of the world’s energy needs they will need to meet a number of stringent performance metrics regarding their cost, efficiency, and robustness. In addition, they will need to be manufactured with very high throughput methods in order to realize the enormous production scales required. A simple calculation yields that for solar cells with 20% efficiency and 30 year lifetime, a global production rate of 8 billion square meters per year will be required to supply 33% of our future energy needs. This equates to a global production rate of 1 million square meters per hour. After analyzing global photovoltaic statistics and trends and the above calculation in a little more detail, I will discuss the prospects for printed organic photovoltaic devices to meet this daunting challenge. I will analyze the printing methods and production rates possible for organic photovoltaic modules, motivated by the already existing roll-to-roll fabrication lines at several companies and institutions around the world. I will then broadly discuss the thermodynamic principles and potential pathways for advancing organic photovoltaic efficiencies from the current values of 8-10% to a new regime of beyond 20%.

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