Heraeus Photovoltaics, the worldwide leading supplier of metallization solutions to the PV industry, received the Solar + Power Award 2016 at the intersolar show in Munich, Germany for its new passivated emitter rear contact (PERC) back-side tabbing paste. The award, which is voted on by industry peers, highlights Heraeus’ long-standing track record of innovation in PERC-solar cell technology by delivering higher cell efficiencies and improved long-term reliability.

Heraeus’ winning product, the SOL326 Series, is a low-activity PERC back-side silver tabbing paste for mono- and multicrystalline solar cell wafers. The paste is based on a unique glass chemistry, exclusively developed and produced by Heraeus. The glass formulation imparts a controlled reaction between the Ag paste and the dielectric layer to maintain the passivation layer under the metallized area while, at the same time, showing improved cell efficiencies of over 20%. Additionally the SOL326 series features enhanced solderability and higher adhesion thus increasing the long-term reliability of PERC-solar cells. The SOL326 series is part of Heraeus PERC-package, which also includes the SOL9631 series, a low-temperature front-side paste which reduces light-introduced-degradation (LID) loss to be similar as a normal P-type module.

“Photovoltaics will become the most efficient way to produce energy in the future. We predict levelized costs of electricity to be reduced by 50% in the next five years”, said Andreas Liebheit, President of Heraeus Photovoltaics. “Heraeus already today contributes strongly to this vision by delivering the most efficient silver pastes in the PV industry,” he added

The Solar + Power Awards are in their 8th year and recognize innovative manufacturing and product approaches along the entire PV value chain. There are 10 award categories with Heraeus being this year’s winner in the PV Materials Enabling category. More than 47,000 PV industry professionals were asked to vote for companies in each category.