In the past 5 years, the yearly world market growth rate for Photovoltaics was an average of more than 40%, which makes it one of the fastest growing industries at present. Business analysts predict the market volume to increase to ? 25 billion in 2010 and expect rising profit margins and lower prices for consumers at the same time. Today PV is dominated by wafer based Crystalline Silicon Technology as the in the global market with more than 90% market share in 2004. The various thin film technologies (TF) have the highest cost reduction potential of all PV technologies in middle and long term. Equally, competitive technologies are amorphous/microcrystalline Silicon, CdTe and the material family of Cu (In,Ga)(Se,S)2. thin films. One of the main disadvantages of thin Film Technologies in comparison to Crystalline Silicon Technologies is still the not very advanced scientific database (at least for CdTe and CIS) and the missing maturity in production technology. To overcome these obstacles more efforts on further scientific R&D with respect to PV quality and stability on the one hand and on the establishment of professional and standardized production equipment under industrial circumstances bringing down manufacturing cost on the other hand are needed.

JAEGER-WALDAU Arnulf; 

2006-03-29

JRC31947

EUR 22122 EN,   

https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC31947,