At this year’s EU-PVSEC solar show (September 25-28) in Frankfurt, Germany, Heraeus Materials Technology GmbH & Co. KG (Hanau, Germany) will highlight sputter targets for CIGS (copper-indium-gallium-selenide) solar cell production at booth no. G16 in Hall 3.0.

The company reports that it will showcase a range of high quality sputter targets that provide cost and competitive advantages to thin film solar cell manufacturers when compared to crystalline solar cells.

CIGS targets offer higher sputter performance and optimal target material utilization for added cost savings

The focus is on high quality targets for thin film solar cell production, especially indium, copper-gallium and ZAO (aluminum doped zinc oxide) tube targets. Looking to the continued growth of the CIGS solar cell market, Heraeus has developed CIGS targets with higher sputter performance and optimal target material utilization for added cost savings, the company emphasizes.

Providing R&D and production expertise

Heraeus notes that it works with customers during the product development stages to best minimize production costs. In addition to target production, Heraeus works continually on the development and optimization of new target materials in its specialized R&D sputter lab for thin film layer systems.

Heraeus carries out customer tests and analyzes how new materials behave to enable the next generation of thin film solar cells. The company wants to provide its customers technology and cost advantages in the highly competitive solar cell market, especially with crystalline cell manufacturers.

Sputtering has advantages over evaporation processes

According to Heraeus sputtering has advantages over evaporation processes and PVD processes provide excellent and homogeneous thin film layers, even for large coating areas (i.e. simultaneous coating of multiple substrates), which can also improve solar cell efficiencies. Heraeus has long-standing experience in CIGS technology, having developed and distributed indium, indium-based and copper-gallium targets since the early 1990’s. The company has successively expanded its expertise across all sputter materials used in thin film solar cell production. Its CIGS product portfolio complements a wide range of sputter materials, the company reports.

2012-09-12 | Courtesy: Heraeus Materials Technology GmbH & Co. KG | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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