ContiTech Showcases Flexographic Printed Solar Cells at LOPEC

A new kind of process is set to bring about a lasting reduction in solar cell production costs in the future – and will make Germany competitive again in this segment. The role ContiTech is playing in this development will be demonstrated by the company at LOPEC, 2014 the trade show for printed electronics.

Exhibits shown by ContiTech Elastomer Coatings included products from CONTI Laserline as well as solar cells whose front side metallization was applied using flexographic printing. ContiTech leads the project and is collaborating with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in order to advance this innovative technology.

“Our task is to develop and optimize microstructured elastomer printing plates for the transfer of metal fluids,” said Armin Senne, flexo business manager at ContiTech. “This also includes elastomer printing plates as well as the evaluation of anilox rollers.” The successful test phase has shown a high cost-saving potential when using this technology in the manufacture of crystalline solar cells.

In addition, the project team, that includes other companies and research institutions, realizes ultra-fine lines with widths of less than 40 μm in order to reduce shadowing of the solar cell’s front side. In this way, the technology not only leads to lower production costs, but also demonstrates potential to improve the efficiency of solar cells.

“And yet with this technology we’re only at the start of a development that ContiTech will continue to be involved in,” said Senne. “The knowledge gained from this project can also be channeled into cost-efficient production of many other products in the field of functional flexo printing in the future.”