SBIR-STTR Award

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will develop high speed laser crystallization (HSLC) of solution deposited aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) nanoparticle layers in order to reduce the manufacturing cost of thin film solar cells. AZO is a promising transparent conductive oxide (TCO). Deposition of TCO layers is one of the most expensive steps during the manufacturing process of thin film solar cells. Initial studies has already shown that HSLC crystallization of AZO layers yielded resistivity less than 3 x 10-4 ohms-cm and a maximum mobility of 380 cm2/vs (1-2 orders higher than the other deposition techniques such as sputtering). The proposed work will investigate high speed laser crystallization of AZO nanoparticles inks to prove the viability of high volume production of high performance TCO layers by HSLC of solution deposited nanoparticles. Technical milestones include: TCO deposition process speeds up to 2 orders faster over current techniques, transmission over 90% in 400-1500 nm range, and sheet resistance under 10 ohm/square. Scaling and optimization of the high-speed processes will be demonstrated on multiple large-area cells with a goal of a relative efficiency improvement of > 5% over baseline cells using a sputtered AZO layer. The broader/ commercial potential of this project will be achieved through new equipment for integration into manufacturing to produce high-efficiency CIGS solar modules. Nearly half of the world?s CIGS solar manufacturing capacity has been established in the U.S. This SBIR development has the potential to improve manufactured CIGS solar cell efficiency by over 5% (relative) and reduce cost per watt by more than 10%. This would aid in moving flexible CIGS solar products into a market lead position, grow U.S. manufacturing, and enable large-scale adoption of solar. Integrating this technology into other PV device stack layers (such as the CIGS absorber layer) as well as the TCO layer, which is the subject of this proposal, could create over $4 billion in economic value annually by 2020. This process also has the potential to improve other commodity thin-film materials such as those used in lightweight paper batteries, organic solid state lighting, flexible displays, and RFID tags

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project lies in reducing manufacturing costs in the $32 billion touchscreen module market and eliminating use of the rare-earth metal, Indium. Touchscreen modules are used in mobile phones, computers, point-of-sale terminals, and other display products. Existing methods to produce the transparent conducting film in touchscreen modules require many process steps and have low throughput. . By using much higher-speed processes and greatly reducing the number of process steps, this method enables 80% cost reduction in production of touchscreen sensor films. The phase II project will further develop the process to produce patterned sensor films over large areas and integrate with equipment that scales well to manufacturing. Analysis shows that the payback time on capital expenditure for new equipment required by the process will be under one year. Cost reductions enable gross margin increases of 50% and make US-based manufacturing of touchscreen modules feasible.This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project will develop high speed laser crystallization (HSLC) of printed aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) nanoparticle layers on glass to replace indium tin oxide (ITO) for the Touch Panel Industry. Sputter deposition of ITO layers for touch panels has been the Industry standard for many years. Sputtered ITO requires costly vacuum systems with slow growth rates during ITO deposition. In addition, touchscreen sensors require expensive patterning using slow and costly photolithography process steps. Indium is a rare-earth material used in multiple large volume markets which has experienced high price volatility. R&D in Phase II will focus on producing patterned AZO films and working prototypes over large areas with a figure of merit higher than industry standard touch films with a projected cost structure lower than what is currently capable in large volume manufacturing . HSLC rapidly converts nanoparticles into crystalline films with superior properties at energy efficient ambient conditions. The advantages of this environmentally benign process include high throughput, high efficiency, high optical transmission, and low cost. Technical results will also advance printable electronics for other applications and markets.