New TU/e ​​test lab investigates solar cells at the atomic level

Eindhoven University of Technology will start using a new test lab for research into thin-film solar cells this month. Among other things, the lab will use a transmission electron microscope to study the solar cells at the atomic level.

At the end of November, TU/e ​​will start using a new advanced test center for thin-film solar cells at the Eindhoven High Tech Campus at Philips Innovation Services. This location was chosen because of the presence of a two million euro denomination at the lab: Philips has the expertise to operate the microscope.

A term has the ability to distinguish individual atoms from each other. This is useful for studying the stacked layers of different materials in thin film zone cells atom by atom. The efficiency of such a solar cell depends on the properties of the interfaces between the different layers. The tem at the test facility also has a large eds detector to be able to determine at the atomic level what kind of elements are involved. Another advantage of the TU/e ​​microscope is that it can study the brittle solar cell materials such as organic molecules, polymers and graphene without negative influence.

The TEM can make structures smaller than 0.1 nanometer visible. The device uses beams of high-energy electrons, which have a much smaller wavelength than visible light. The test lab is part of the Solliance partnership, which includes TU/e, TNO, Holst Centre, ECN, imec and Forschungszentrum Jülich. Solliance will have its own production lines for thin-film solar cells on the High Tech Campus, so that the results of the research can be applied immediately.