Loughborough and Swansea universities have joined forces to create lightweight cadmium telluride solar cells (CdTe) on ultra-thin glass. This technology could revolutionize power systems for satellites and space manufacturing.
Context and demand
Global space industry, in particular in Great Britain, where it is evaluated in 17,5 billion pounds, is growing rapidly. According to forecasts of the European Space Agency, demand for solar energy in space will increase from 1 MW/year to 10 GW/year to 2035 year. This is due to the expansion of satellite constellations, such as SpaceX's Starlink, and the development of space production, in particular, semiconductors and optical fibers.
New technology
Today, space missions use silicon or multilayer solar cells (MJSC). The latter have high efficiency, but complex manufacturing and high cost limit their scalability. New CdTe technology on glass, tested on AlSat-Nano cubesat, is easier, a cheaper and radiation-resistant alternative. It has already achieved efficiency 23,1% on Earth and aimed at 20% in space.
Cooperation and resources
The three-year project is funded by the UKRI EPSRC and uses the cutting-edge facilities of both universities. Swansea Center for Integrative Semiconductor Materials (CISM) equipped with the AIXTRON CCS MOCVD system, and Loughborough offers the National Facility for High Resolution Cathodoluminescence Analysis, necessary for the study of solar and optoelectronic devices.
Partnership with industry
The project is supported by six industrial partners, which provide technical expertise and support for the sum 112 000 pounds. Including: 5N Plus Inc. (Canada), AIXTRON (Great Britain), CTF Solar GmbH (Germany), Teledyne Qioptiq (Great Britain), Manufacturing Technology Centre (Great Britain) та Satellite Applications.
The value of the project
CdTe technology on glass provides higher specific power, longer life in space and much lower cost. This opens up prospects for powering the next generation of space missions, contributing to the UK's ambitions to capture a significant share of the global space technology market.
Source: https://www.lboro.ac.uk