5th-6th November 2007,

Halle/Saale (Germany)

 

SYMPOSIUM

 

Mechanical Issues in Manufacturing & Application of Solar Cells and Modules

 

The requirement for cost reduction in solar cell and module fabrication has increased automatisation in production, the use of thin silicon wafers and introduced large thin film panel fabrication. During fabrication mechanical loads can cause micro-cracks, wafer breakage, failure of electrical interconnects or delamination of polymer foils. In application modules have to withstand harsh environment conditions over a certain period of time without failure. It is important to understand the factors limiting strength and reliability in order to optimize PV production and reduce costs.

 

The symposium is focused on, but is not limited to the following topics:

 

Wafer fabrication

• Concepts for fabrication of thin
• Influence of dicing and thinning techniques
• wafer strength
• material investigations

Cell production

• Industrial requirements
• Micro crack detection systems
• Probabilistic design
• Thermomechanical loads
• Automatisation (handling, gripper)

Modules

• Cell breakage during module fabrication
• Long-term reliability of electrical interconnects
• Mechanical loading during use (snow, wind load)