CEA-INES, 3Sun achieve 30.8% efficiency for tandem perovskite-silicon solar cell

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Researchers at France's National Solar Energy Institute (INES) – a division of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) and 3SUN, the PV module manufacturing unit of Italian renewable specialist Enel Green Power (Enel Group), claim to have achieved a power conversion efficiency of 30.8% for a two-terminal tandem perovskite-silicon solar cell.

The cell consists of a top cell based on a perovskite absorber and a bottom cell with a heterojunction (HJT) structure. It has an active area of 9 cm².

The scientists said the new result improves on the 29.8% efficiency they achieved for the same kind of cell in September, without providing technical details on the cell improvement.

“The decisive factor is the ability of our researchers to take the tandem further towards an industrialization made possible by the choice of materials which, by working closely with CEA at INES, have allowed us to scale this technology to areas larger than cm²,” said Cosimo Gerardi, Chief Technology Officer at 3Sun, in September.

3Sun is betting on an n-type heterojunction (HJT) cell with an efficiency of 25.5% for its new 3 GW solar module factory now nearing full operation in Catania, southern Italy. It recently said this could result in module efficiencies above 24%.

From 2026, 3Sun plans to offer even more efficient solar modules based on tandem silicon-perovskite cells. The final products will reportedly reach efficiencies of around 30%.

CEA-INES and 3Sun have jointly developed DC/DC maximum power point trackers (MPPT). They are also working on high-efficiency bifacial PV panels. In addition, they achieved a power conversion efficiency rating of 24.47% for a gallium-doped p-type heterojunction silicon solar cell in March 2022.

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