2023-10-14 00:46:00
Acquires ownership of LECO technology
[인더스트리뉴스 최용구 기자] Hanwha Solutions Q Cells Division (hereinfollowing referred to as Hanwha Q Cells, Qcells) acquired ownership of LECO (Laser enhanced contact optimization) technology by acquiring Cell Engineering (CE). LECO is known as a technique to increase the efficiency of PERC and TOPCon solar cells.
On the 13th, pv magazine and others reported, “Qcells recently acquired full intellectual property rights to LECO technology through its acquisition of Cell Engineering.”
When LECO is applied, contact resistance can be lowered by improving the contact characteristics between the metal and semiconductor of the cell. This has the effect of increasing optical conversion efficiency.
The effectiveness of LECO has been proven through reports such as ‘Reliability Evaluation of Photovoltaic Modules Fabricated from Treated Solar Cells by Laser-Enhanced Contact Optimization Process (2022)’ published at EUPVSEC. Cases in which defective contact cells that passed the LECO process were improved to meet actual production standards were reported.
Qcells R&D Center located in Thalheim, Germany [사진=한화큐셀]
CE began developing the LECO manufacturing process in 2017. According to the company, LECO technology can increase PERC and TOPCon solar cell efficiency by 0.2% to 0.5%. A simple and cost-effective laser technique is applied.
A LECO official explained, “It is a process that increases production yield by alleviating changes in the manufacturing stage.”
“We worked very closely with CE,” said Jörg Müller, Head of R&D at Qcells. “This acquisition of Qcells was made to realize the full potential of LECO technology.”
“We are eager to collaborate with other industry players to leverage the benefits of LECO technology,” said Danielle Merfeld, global CTO of Qcells. “We do not tolerate any illegal use of LECO technology.”
“We are committed to protecting intellectual property rights so that the solar industry can continue its research and development activities with confidence,” he said.
According to pv magazine, Hanwha Q CELLS is in the process of patent litigation with several competitors around the world over possible patent infringement on passivation technology.
Hanwha Q CELLS is continuing its upward trend by winning consecutive awards as the ‘2023 Solar Top Brand’ selected by global market research firm EUPD. It was on the award list in Europe for 10 consecutive years and in the U.S. for 2 consecutive years.
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