LONGi Announces Developing 33.9% Efficiency With Perovskite

LONGi Announces Developing 33.9% Efficiency With Perovskite

Chinese solar module manufacturer–LONGi claimed to have developed a 33.9 percent efficiency in crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells. It is reported that the previous world record was 33.7% and was conducted by King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST) in May this year.

According to the latest certification report of the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells, independently developed by the Chinese solar giant LONGi has reached 33.9%. This is also reported to be the current highest efficiency record in the world. This latest progress in LONGI as per the report was announced after the announcement of 31.8% at the SNEC 2023 on May 24 and 33.5% at the InterSolar Europe 2023 on June 14.

The new record efficiency of 33.9% has reportedly surpassed the Shockley-Quieser (S-Q), theoretical efficiency limit that is of 33.7% of single junction solar cells for the first time. This provides meaningful empirical data to demonstrate the advantages of crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells over crystalline silicon single junction solar cells in terms of efficiency.

According to Xixiang Xu, the chief scientist and vice president of LONGi Central R&D Institute, in November 2022 announced that its silicon heterojunction cell efficiency exceeded 26.81%. This has reportedly set a world record in the global crystalline silicon single-junction cell field. This time the R&D team has announced setting a new world record for the efficiency of crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells, marking that LONGi has become the dual champion. In addition, the company also says that it has set a new world record of 33.9%. It suggests that it is the first time that a Chinese company has broken records since the efficiency record of crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells was in 2015.

Zhenguo Li, founder and President of LONGi, said that the efficiency of solar cells is a key indicator and benchmark for evaluating the potential of photovoltaic technologies. As a mainstream solar cell technology occupying more than 90% of the market share, the efficiency of crystalline silicon single-junction cells continues to improve, getting closer and closer to its theoretical efficiency limit of 29.4%. The theoretical efficiency limit of crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells can reach 43%, and it is recognized as the mainstream technical solution to break through the efficiency limit of crystalline silicon single-junction cells. The emergence of crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem technology has opened up a new track for the development of next-generation high-efficiency solar cell technology. This means that the same area, absorbing the same light, can emit more electricity.

Hua Jiang, deputy secretary-general of China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA), said that, ‘LONGi’s new world record of 33.9% efficiency means that the enterprise’s research and development in crystalline silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells technology is at a global leading level.’ Jiang Hua pointed out that, ‘The photovoltaic industry is a cost-oriented industry, and reducing costs and increasing efficiency are the core of development. He adds that continuously improving the conversion efficiency of solar cells is an effective measure to reduce LCOE. Once this high-efficiency solar cell technology truly achieves mass production, it will promote a significant decrease in the cost of photovoltaic power generation compared to before. This, he claims, will be absolutely beneficial for promoting the growth of China and even the global photovoltaic market. The growth of the photovoltaic market will also drive the entire global energy transition, he says.