What are crystalline silicon solar cells?

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.

What are the challenges of silicon solar cell production?

However, challenges remain in several aspects, such as increasing the production yield, stability, reliability, cost, and sustainability. In this paper, we present an overview of the silicon solar cell value chain (from silicon feedstock production to ingots and solar cell processing).

What changes have been made to silicon PV components?

In this Review, we survey the key changes related to materials and industrial processing of silicon PV components. At the wafer level, a strong reduction in polysilicon cost and the general implementation of diamond wire sawing has reduced the cost of monocrystalline wafers.

What are the different crystallization methods for silicon ingot production?

We briefly describe the different silicon grades, and we compare the two main crystallization mechanisms for silicon ingot production (i.e., the monocrystalline Czochralski process and multicrystalline directional solidification). We highlight the key industrial challenges of both crystallization methods.

How has the crystalline-silicon (c-Si) photovoltaic industry changed over the past decade?

Over the past decade, the crystalline-silicon (c-Si) photovoltaic (PV) industry has grown rapidly and developed a truly global supply chain, driven by increasing consumer demand for PV as well as technical advances in cell performance and manufacturing processes that enabled dramatic cost reductions.

How are silicon solar cells made?

The production of silicon solar cells The production of a typical silicon solar cell ( Fig. 2) starts with the carbothermic reduction of silicates in an electric arc furnace. In this process large amounts of electrical energy break the silicon–oxygen bond in SiO 2 via an endothermic reaction with carbon.