News 2024

Dr. Jasna Jankovic, Associate Professor at the Institute of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Connecticut, has been awarded the Fraunhofer Bessel Research Award by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. She was nominated for the award by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, where she will be working as a visiting scientist from December 1. The focus of the joint research work is the development of advanced ex-situ characterization methods for state-of-the-art, innovative fuel cell and electrolyser materials.

Dr. Robin Lang was distinguished with the Best Oral Presentation Award at the 35th International Photovoltaic Science and Engineering Conference (PVSEC-35) in Japan for his outstanding scientific presentation in the field of III-V solar cells. In his presentation, the researcher from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg presented his research results and provided a detailed loss analysis of the production of a III-V multi-junction solar cell.

His Royal Highness, The Grand Duke of Luxembourg visited the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE on November 8, 2024. Along with a delegation consisting of politicians and scientists, he was interested to hear about research into integrated photovoltaics and hydrogen technology. The delegation included Stéphanie Obertin, Luxembourg’s Minister for Digitization and Minister for Higher Education and Research, and Her Excellency, Sylvie Lucas, Luxembourg’s Ambassador to Germany.

At the 41st European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference EU PVSEC in September, Christian Schmiga received the Poster Award and Oussama Er-Raji the Student Award respectively for outstanding scientific work. Christian Schmiga was honored for his research on copper-metallized TOPCon solar cells, and Oussama Er-Raji received the award for his work on manufacturing processes for perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells. Thanks to his research into improved passivation of the tandem solar cell, a research group at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE has just succeeded in producing a scalable perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell with an efficiency of 31.6 percent.

Dr. Elias Frei took over as head of the Hydrogen Technologies division at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg on October 1, 2024. The chemist previously held leading positions at BASF SE.

Lithium-ion batteries are the state of the art in stationary energy storage, but parts of the raw material extraction are controversial due to environmental and social problems. The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE has therefore joined forces with partners in the INFAB project to research an alternative technology based on zinc-ion batteries. The project covered all process stages, from the development of cell chemistry and manufacturing processes to the battery management system.

Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE have succeeded in producing a perovskite silicon tandem solar cell with 31.6 percent efficiency. The new 1 cm² solar cell is special in that the perovskite layer of the top cell was deposited on an industrially textured silicon heterojunction solar cell using a hybrid manufacturing route. The successful use of textured standard silicon solar cells and the uniform application of the perovskite layer on the texturized surface are important prerequisites for the industrial production of perovskite silicon tandem solar cells.

Spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a large number of photovoltaic factories along the entire PV value chain are currently being constructed in the USA. The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE is providing support in technology selection, product design and even during factory ramp-up for some of these companies. PV manufacturers are focusing on production technologies for high-efficiency heterojunction solar cells and particularly for TOPCon solar cells. Also shingle matrix PV modules for use in integrated PV products and space applications are becoming very popular. At the RE+ held from September 9-12 in Anaheim, California, researchers from Fraunhofer ISE will be on location to provide information on the advantages and disadvantages of current PV technologies and their manufacturing processes.

How can Indian cities be decarbonized through renewable energies and modern energy system technology? What experiences from Europe can possibly be transferred? This is what Mrinal Madas from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in New Delhi is currently researching as a guest scientist at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE. The business manager and engineer has been awarded a German Chancellor Fellowship by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation for prospective leaders from India.

Concentrator photovoltaics (CPV) could once again become an economically attractive and high-efficient PV technology for regions with high direct solar irradiance. To leverage its advantages, Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE and Soltec have partnered to develop a prototype of a two-axis tracker which is designed to smoothly integrate with Fraunhofer ISE’s latest micro-CPV technology. Soltec and Fraunhofer ISE plan to install a first prototype in Spain by the end of 2024.