NCU in Collaboration with Ways Technical Corporation Set a New World Record of Power Conversion Efficiency

The organic photovoltaics (OPV) mini-module co-developed by the Research Center of New Generation Light Driven Photovoltaic Modules (RCNPV) at National Central University (NCU) and Ways Technical Corp., Ltd./Nanobit Tech. had just set a new world record efficiency of 13.6%！The outstanding research outcome was published in Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications, an authoritative international journal in the field of solar cell technology. It was also the first joint research team in Taiwan that have been listed in the Solar Cell Efficiency Tables section of this journal. The champion OPV mini-module was mainly fabricated by Ways Corporation. NCU was responsible for adjusting the module configuration and carried out the whole efficiency verification through the laboratory procedures accredited by ISO/IEC 17025 in Photovoltaic Efficiency Verification Laboratory (PVEVL) of the RCNPV. The photovoltaic parameters of the record-breaking OPV mini-module were finally confirmed by the European Commission Joint Research Centre—European Solar Test Installation (JRC-ESTI), an authoritative internationally recognized solar cell and module calibration and efficiency verification laboratory, also accredited under ISO/IEC 17025. “OPV technology has numerous advantages, including semi-transparence, color variability, flexibility, and excellent power conversion efficiency under the dim-light condition. In addition, it has also a simple fabrication process, low manufacturing costs, and short energy payback time. OPV could produce electricity both outdoors and indoors, which allows it to be applied in many aspects of our daily lives: electric power to all types of IoT sensors, portable electric devices, and sustainable farms as well as using as building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) electric generation systems, portable charging devices, and so on. Its commercial value is inestimable,” said Prof. Chun-Guey Wu, Director of the RCNPV. The efficiency verification data of the OPV mini-module obtained by PVEVL in the RCNPV at NCU were excellent matched with the data measured by the JRC-ESTI. The highly consistent results also suggest that NCU’s PVEVL can provide an accurate verification of the performance of emerging solar cells for academic and industry sectors in Taiwan in time; Moreover, PVEVL has showed the competence in parallel with that of a world-recognized laboratories, which has connected to the global network and gained prestige. We can anticipate that the NCU’s PVEVL will become an international authoritative third-party laboratory in the field of solar cell efficiency verification in the future. The Research Center of New Generation Light-Driven Photovoltaic Modules (RCNPV) at NCU was established in 2012 with the great support of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), Taiwan. PVEVL in the RCNPV passed the assessment of the Taiwan Accreditation Foundation (TAF) in 2017. It is the first university-level PV efficiency verification laboratory that had been accredited on the basis of the ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation, and the lab is eligible to use the ILAC MRA (International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation—Mutual Recognition Arrangement) mark. PVEVL had passed the re-evaluation and extended the accreditation to 2023 for providing service. The research teams at the RCNPV, with the continued strong support from the MOST and NCU, will continue conducting comprehensive research and development of novel materials, advanced fabrication processes, and accurate performance characterization of new generation light-driven cells to benefit the relevant academic, research, and industrial units nationwide.