PIVOTRY RADIOMETER:  OCTOBER 2010

Pivotry Radiometer is a free monthly newsletter about new developments in the solar renewable energy industry and based upon the "game changers" from the Pivotry Perspectives Workshops conducted by Wayne Chang, Ph.D.  You are welcomed to share this newsletter with others.

 Pivotry Radiometer is in four sections this month:

 1.       New Materials

At the recent Business of Energy: Photovoltaics - Si and Beyond, Buffalo, NY (September 15, 2010), new fundamental materials research was presented by the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo (ref-1.1).  Inorganic nanomaterials are being studied for Generation II and III solar cells.  Generation I solar cells are comprised of crystalline Si.  Quantum dots made from materials such as CdSe may meet light-harvesting requirements for future Generation PV devices, and there is fundamental interest in the assembly and photophysics of these nanomaterials (ref-1.2).  If architectures based on quantum dot solar cells are successful for Generation II and III cells, they will be lower in cost to manufacture and have much greater cell efficiencies over current single-crystal Si solar cells.

 2.       Hybrid Systems and Integration

At the same Business of Energy event, the Director of the National Center for Photovoltaics at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) gave the keynote presentation.  One of the many highlights included NREL's Process Development and Integration Laboratory (PDIL).  The PDIL brings a high-value model for in-house technical experts, the solar industry and university research communities to focus on developing novel solar cell device structures, new materials, new measurement techniques and improved manufacturing methods (ref-2.1).  This approach integrates process equipment tools, data and materials.  Process tools are integrated into clusters; data is integrated from fabrication, measuring devices and analysis to enhance cycles of learning; and novel materials are integrated into test structures and devices to determine performance.  This state-of-the-art integration facility is a key contributor to the advancement of future PV cell technologies.

 3.       Photovoltaic Technology Roadmaps and Standards

The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI) will be sponsoring the upcoming Alternative Energy Workshop, San Jose, CA (October 20-21, 2010).  The focus will be on standardization gaps and technology challenges that can be solved by the electronics industry in cooperation with the alternative energy sectors including solar photovoltaics (ref-3.1).  The development of standards will support the energy sectors with low-cost solutions.  This workshop will examine opportunities for standardization in assembly, testing, and reliability evaluation.  Some of the areas of interest include component and system design, reliability assessment, regulatory compliance, packaging, assembly, test engineering, volume manufacturing, installation and maintenance.

 4.       CULTURE Perspectives

A recent article was published which compared the energy industry with the information technology (IT) industry.  The title was "The Valley of Death: Why Energy Is Not Like IT" (ref-4.1).  This Valley describes the gap between venture capital and project financing.  The innovative technology is too capital intensive for VC's, and still too risky for private equity or bank financing.  The energy sector has significant barriers such as regulatory, political as well as financial for start-up companies to bring new technologies and products to markets.  The accompanying podcast raises many interesting perspectives as to how renewable energy technologies should cross the Valley of Death.  The article also reports that game changing technologies will particularly need new frameworks of financing (models) as the energy sector continues to expand.

 REFERENCES & LINKS

1.1 http://www.nydirectedenergy.org/seminars/photovoltaics.cfm

1.2 http://wings.buffalo.edu/research/watson/

2.1 http://www.nrel.gov/pv/pdil/about_pdil.html

3.1 http://www.inemi.org/cms/calendar/Energy_WS_Oct2010.html

4.1 http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/podcast/2010/09/the-valley-of-death-why-energy-is-not-it

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This newsletter is based upon information that we consider reliable, but we do not represent that it is accurate or complete, and it should not be relied upon as such.