Benefitting from abundant resources, a good conversion efficiency of light and robustness proven over the years, crystalline silicon technologies remain the benchmark for photovoltaic electricity. The development of silicon wafers currently represents more than half the price of the modules. With its technology directly linked to the production of thin ribbons, Solarforce™ dramatically reduces the cost of wafers and opens new applications for crystalline silicon cells.

The technology developed by SOLARFORCE is the only one in the world today that can achieve thin crystalline silicon cells in a plausible and industrial manner. Furthermore, this is probably one of the few technologies that can achieve good conversion efficiencies, competitive costs and a very good energy balance all at the same time – without needing to rely on scarce materials. It is a direct technology aimed at producing thin cells ca. 100 micrometers thick, conforming to the "roadmap" of photovoltaic technologies.

The RST Technology of Solarforce™

In the Solarforce™ RST technology, multicrystalline silicon wafers are manufactured from a silicon ribbon, which is obtained by vertical growth on a flexible carbon strip.

It is a technology far more direct than the conventional crystalline silicon technology: it gives access to very low silicon consumption (1 to 2g/Wp), attractive fabrication cost (about 30 cents € / Wp for the silicon wafer), wafers much thinner than in conventional technology (down to 60 micrometers today) and a particularly favorable energy balance.

The advantages of crystalline silicon

With a favorable crystalline structure (large elongated grains), RST technology has a yield potential within the range of crystalline silicon (15% and more), much higher than that of "thin film" technologies.

An attractive price

RST technology has a strong competitive advantage over other silicon technologies; it will reach "grid parity" without recourse to the use of rare materials with uncertain prices and resources. It is a modular technology: equipment prices will decline as production capacity increases.

New applications

The silicon wafers produced by Solarforce are thin (typically from 60 to 120 µm). At these thicknesses, they are flexible and can be incorporated into soft, lightweight modules, paving the way for new applications of crystalline silicon cells.