XsunX Inc. a developer of thin-film photovoltaic (TFPV) solar cell technologies and manufacturing processes, and Intevac Inc., a provider of magnetic media deposition equipment to the hard disk drive industry, have signed a joint business agreement to collaborate in the development of techniques and equipment for the production of commercially marketable processes and equipment for the manufacture of copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film solar cells.
XsunX and Intevac plan to develop a new breed of TFPV manufacturing techniques to produce thin-film solar cells.
The two companies are adapting high-rate production tools from the disk drive industry with process knowledge from the CIGS and thin-film industry. This approach focuses on maintaining a relatively small deposition area – initially about five square inches, similar in size to silicon solar wafers – which the companies believe reduces a significant challenge that has faced the CIGS industry in the past: maintaining cell performance while scaling commercial production.Â
SOURCE: XsunX Inc.
