Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

The New South Wales government has approved a new copper mine it says will support the state’s renewable energy transition and reinforce its place in global clean energy technology supply chains.

Researchers at NREL found that UV exposure can cause significant, partly non-recoverable degradation in TOPCon solar cells, with strong cell-to-cell and intra-cell variability linked to passivation and processing inconsistencies. While some UV-related losses recover quickly under light and are unlikely to affect field performance, the findings highlight gaps in current qualification tests and the need for improved UV aging standards.

UNSW researchers identified a new damp-heat degradation mechanism in TOPCon modules with laser-fired contacts, driven primarily by rear-side recombination and open-circuit voltage loss rather than series-resistance increase. The study highlights that magnesium in white EVA encapsulants accelerates degradation, guiding improved encapsulant and backsheet selection for more reliable modules in humid environments.

The new Tesla Solar Panel and mounting system pairs with the company’s inverter, Powerwall battery, EV charging and vehicles, creating an all-Tesla residential solar offering for the first time.

Engineers at the University of New South Wales have developed a real-time monitoring technique that reveals how silicon solar cells can self-repair following ultraviolet-induced damage, offering new insights into solar panel degradation and lifetime performance.

With silver prices rising, more large solar manufacturers are expected to switch to copper for cell metallization. Radovan Kopecek of ISC Konstanz tells pv magazine that he expects the entire industry to follow. Ning Song of the University of New South Wales says a small efficiency tradeoff may be acceptable if the cost savings are significant and do not introduce new reliability risks.

Researchers have used multivalent amidinium ligands to boost perovskite solar cell efficiency to 25.4%, achieving over 95% stability after 1,100 hours at 85 C. The proposed approach enables controlled low-dimensional passivation layers, offering a practical route for durable, large-area perovskite devices.

Researchers at the University of New South Wales have achieved a record-setting power conversion efficiency with solar cells made from antimony chalcogenide, an emerging PV material regarded as a strong candidate for next-generation solar technology.

Researchers in China developed a novel two dimensional seeding agent to regulate crystallisation in a 1.80-eV wide-bandgap perovskite film. A perovskite-silicon tandem device made with the resulting optimised subcell achieved an efficiency of 31.13%, outperforming a control device.

University of New South Wales researchers found that some POE encapsulants can trigger severe corrosion in TOPCon solar modules, causing up to 55% power loss under damp-heat conditions. Their study highlights that module reliability depends on the exact encapsulant formulation, not just the polymer type.