Niger Cadmium Telluride Solar Panel Assembly

Cadmium telluride solar panels are thin-film photovoltaic devices that convert sunlight directly into electricity through the photovoltaic effect. Unlike traditional silicon solar panels, which use crystalline silicon wafers, CdTe panels employ a thin layer of cadmium telluride semiconductor material as the absorber layer.

The United States is the leader in cadmium telluride (CdTe) photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing, and NREL has been at the forefront of research and development in this area. PV solar cells based on CdTe represent the largest segment of commercial thin-film module production worldwide.

Cadmium Telluride Absorber Layer: This is where the magic happens. Cadmium telluride, a compound of cadmium and tellurium, absorbs photons from sunlight and generates electron-hole pairs. These charge carriers are then separated by an electric field within the material.

Cadmium telluride, a compound of cadmium and tellurium, absorbs photons from sunlight and generates electron-hole pairs. These charge carriers are then separated by an electric field within the material. 4. Back Contact:

The incorporation of zinc or magnesium to form cadmium zine telluride (CdZnTe) and cadmium magnesium telluride (CdMgTe) represents a possible way to move the bandgap into a viable regime for tandem incorporation, but using these materials introduces processing challenges that have thus far prevented their use in high-throughput manufacturing.

In production, all these layers are deposited on incoming glass and processed into complete solar panels in just a few hours. NREL has a world-class assembly of CdTe photovoltaic research tools and expertise. This includes the ability to deposit all the layers mentioned above as well as novel materials and device structures.