Light of the world—Building success as the solar industry goes global
that benefit from DEK’s inline production around 12 weeks and shorter.
techniques are particularly easily replicated
“PV cell production
As an example of how equipment
using cost-effective equipment. design is changing from the ground up
A number of accelerator technologies has been a low volume, to address the revolution going on in the
are also available to support future speed
niche activity for the
PV cell market, the DEK PVP1200 stencil
increases when the industry requires. printring machine is built around a com-
These include dual-lane printing, for majority of its history. mon control platform shared with DEK’s
example, a technique that is already proven
The traditional compa-
surface-mount and semiconductor-packag-
in the surface-mount electronic assembly ing equipment. This allows new customer
market. Another expected development is nies supplying capital orders to be fulfilled rapidly and also helps
to increase the printable area for thin film
PV cells to increase total effective through-
equipment tend to be
ensure a cost-effective solution.
Already some established suppliers to
put. Large-format printing solutions are
organised accordingly.
the PV industry are struggling to satisfy
already available to meet this demand,
based on existing technologies developed
As a result, mainte-
their existing customer bases. To succeed in
the future, PV cell producers will require
for manufacturers of large backplane as-
nance, service and
the levels of support and attention cur-
semblies for telecom switches and Internet
servers.
process support infra-
rently enjoyed by manufacturers of PCs,
cellphones, gaming terminals, telecom
Suppliers to the emerging world PV
structures are not
equipment and other high-volume elec-
cell production market must demonstrate tronic products.
a robust roadmap capable of delivering
normally configured to
throughput in excess of 2,400 UPH going
serve large numbers of
conclusion:
forward. Forward-looking strategy
customers operating in
Solar energy appears to have come of age.
Technical trends
diverse global areas.”
Valuable help has come in the form of
Among the important technical trends effective government incentives for
within PV cell development, manufacturers consumers, as well as public pressure on
are using progressively thinner silicon businesses to adopt greener energy policies.
wafers. Typical thickness is being reduced
natural cooling. Hot melt is expected to
Sales of PV panels are increasing rapidly,
from around 220-200 microns to the
eliminate the drying stage and thereby
and continued strong acceleration is
region of 180-150 microns. This is partly a
achieve faster throughput.
expected in markets spanning Asian,
response to the general shortage of silicon American, European and African
caused by the rapid ramping of production
operational enhancements
territories.
volumes worldwide. A benefit is that the
This rapid growth in global demand for
This represents a tremendous op-
overall weight of the panel is reduced,
PV cells will also bring logistical challenges
portunity for suppliers of PV products,
making for easier transportation and
for manufacturers. Technical support from
including established manufacturers and
installation. The thinner wafers are more
equipment suppliers is a key issue. PV cell
new market entrants. But many equip-
vulnerable to damage in production,
production has been a low volume, niche
ment suppliers are not prepared for the
however. Poor handling or clamping
activity for the majority of its history. The
increased technical, logistical and customer
mechanisms are major contributors to
traditional companies supplying capital
support demands that this emerging age
lost yield through breakage. Enhanced wafer
equipment tend to be organised accordingly.
will impose. For manufacturers seeking a
support and automatic vision alignment are
As a result, maintenance, service and
leading position going forward, selecting
required.
process support infrastructures are not
a technology partner with a credible road-
Another major cause of wafer damage
normally configured to serve large numbers
map and suitable support infrastructure
is bending due to thermal expansion.
of customers operating in diverse global
will be critical to achieving success.
Mismatches in the thermal expansion
areas. In addition, equipment design,
coefficient (CTE) of materials deposited
production practices and factory capacity
in the top and bottom sides of the wafer
are also now struggling to keep pace with
can cause the substrate to bow and crack.
accelerating demand.
So-called ‘low-bow’ techniques designed
The key issue is that historically low
to address these CTE mismatch hazards
sales volumes for PV panels have warranted
will demand improved process control
reliance on bespoke equipment, built to
Darren Brown is DEK’s alternative
for closer matching between the top- and
special order. With the transition to a high-
energy business development manager.
bottom-side deposits.
volume global market, capital equipment
DEK has been supplying the Asian PV
Changes in the sequence of deposition
suppliers must make use of more modern
cell market successfully for some time
processes are also expected. New ‘hot-melt’
techniques, including basing machine
with the DEK-J range of thick-film
technology for fabrication of bus bars and
designs on standardised functional blocks
printing platforms. DEK also offers a
current collectors, for example, could
and modular construction techniques to
complete turnkey production-line solution
replace the conventional print/dry
meet customer requirements more quickly
for bulk-silicon wafer-based PV metalliza-
sequence. This process uses a pre-heating
and at lower overall cost. Historically, a
tion that combines DEK’s screen printing
stage to allow a liquid-metal deposit to
lead-time of some eight months has been
expertise with drying technology from
be printed at elevated temperature. The
the norm among equipment suppliers.
BTU International.
deposit subsequently solidifies through
This is set to reduce dramatically, to
22 – Global Solar Technology – September/October 2008 www.globalsolartechnology.com
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