The Cell Awards are judged by a consortium of the solar industry’s
leading companies and research organizations, including Q-Cells,
Suntech Power and Fraunhofer ISE, and recognize products with the most
potential to lower the cost of solar technology.
“Our panel of judges from across the solar industry knows all too
well how difficult it is to expand manufacturing operations when
burdened with silane safety infrastructure and procedures,” said David
Owen, managing director of Photovoltaics International. “Sixtron’s
technology is alleviating this liability, and we believe it will become
an important part of solar’s journey toward grid parity.”
The SunBox is an on-site gas generation system that uses a solid
polymer source material to safely and effectively deposit
anti-reflective and passivation layers on crystalline silicon (c-Si)
solar cells. The SunBox system is plug & play compatible with
industry standard plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD)
equipment on both new and existing manufacturing lines.
Prior to the introduction of the SunBox, anti-reflective coatings
and passivation layers have primarily been deposited using silane. This
pyrophoric gas, which requires costly safety and handling procedures,
multiplies manufacturers’ financial and operational risks.
“The SunBox delivers process improvement to solar cell manufacturers
while at the same time reducing both capital expenses and operating
costs,” said Zbigniew Barwicz, CEO of Sixtron. “Our silane-free system
provides our customers with a path to improved cell efficiencies
without major disruption of manufacturing processes. This award is
independent recognition by top cell manufacturers that the SunBox
provides exceptional value to the industry.”
The SunBox coating system is sold directly to solar cell and
equipment manufacturers by Sixtron, and is currently being evaluated by
leading equipment providers for inclusion into existing and future
turnkey offerings.
About Sixtron Advanced Materials
Sixtron is a private company focused on developing scalable and
cost-effective industrial coating systems that avoid the costs and
hazards associated with shipping silane gas and handling it on-site at
PV fabs. The proprietary Sixtron SunBox system delivers gas using
industry standard PECVD equipment to deposit anti-reflective and
backside passivation coatings on crystalline silicon solar cells. The
company has worked closely throughout its product development with
leading research organizations such as the National Renewable Energy
Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, CO and the University Center of Excellence
for Photovoltaic Research and Education (UCEP) in Atlanta, GA. Sixtron
has raised over $12 million since inception from Ventures West Capital,
Inovia Capital and Cycle Capital. For more information, visit
www.sixtron.com.
About Photovoltaics International:
Photovoltaics International is a dynamic new media platform that is
designed to give real world manufacturing information to decision
makers and implementers responsible for producing solar cells, modules
and thin film. Photovoltaics International independently collects and
disseminates news and in-depth technical information exclusively for PV
manufacturers through its website PV-Tech. With over 12 years’
experience in covering technical manufacturing for the semiconductor
industry, the publishers of Photovoltaics International are uniquely
placed to use their editorial expertise to create a much-needed and
worthwhile resource for PV manufacturers to help them implement
technology that will achieve price and yield goals now and in the
future.