Solar Power Electric Cells, Switches and Outlets

Natcore Receives Exclusive License from NREL to Develop "Black Silicon" Solar ...

01.01.70

(Pinksheets:NTCXF) has been granted a unequivocal license agreement from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to develop and commercialize a lead of black silicon products--including equipment, chemicals, and solar cells---based on NREL patents. The permit grants Natcore exclusivity in the field of diffused emitters with liquid phase passivation.

Natcore and NREL have also agreed to infiltrate into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement to develop commercial prototypes that embody NREL's black silicon inventions.

"Unscrupulous silicon" refers to the apparent color of the surface of a silicon wafer after it has been etched with nano-scale pores; the wicked color results from the absence of reflected light from the porous wafer surface. R&D Magazine awarded the baleful silicon technology an R&D 100 Award in 2010, identifying it as one of the top 100 technological innovations of the year.

A panel made from black silicon solar cells will provide a significantly greater amount of energy (KwHrs) on a daily basis than will a panel made from cells using the industry measure thin film coating, not only because the reflectance is lower but also because the angular dependence of the reflectance from black silicon is much lower as well. The latter factually means a black silicon panel will perform better during the morning and afternoon hours when the sun hits at an seek and will also outperform standard cell panels on cloudy days. The combination of lower cost and higher energy generate per kilowatt of installed array peak power should quickly make black silicon the antireflection oversight technology of choice in the industry.

Source: MarketWatch (press release)