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SiGen vFinal DR 2/9/09 11:15 Page 31
MANUFACTURINGISSUES
Cutting out the kerf
The PV industry continues to search for any incremental cost savings in manufacturing
to achieve grid parity and reduce costs to below US$1 per watt generated by solar
means. Alessandro Fujisaka of the Silicon Genesis Corporation discusses how they
have a cutting technique that reduces the wastage from cutting wafers by removing
the grooves made by the cutting tool, known as the kerf.
T
he initial cost for a cell manufacturer is and market conditions. The major concern is the
the wafer. As a result there are extensive cost aspects of wafering and the technical barriers
efforts being addressed for wafer manufacturing to wafer thickness reduction. In crystalline silicon
costs with a focus on the ability to reduce costs by solar cells and modules, the challenge to match
working with thinner wafers and reducing kerf loss the dynamic growth of the thin film sector is
31
(silicon waste) so as to reap the greatest benefit unlikely to be realised by developments in the cell
from the initial material costs. A kerf free approach technology alone. The cutting of silicon ingots into
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leads the way for reducing crystalline silicon waste wafers is a key step in the production of PV cells
.solar
in the race towards grid parity and ultimately $1/ based on crystalline silicon.
watt (W) or less. Silicon Genesis (SiGen) has
-pv-management.com
developed a kerf free photovoltaic (PV) wafering Crystalline silicon holds about 90% of the solar PV
approach as opposed to the wire saw process and market and any opportunity to lower the cost in the
is improving a technology that can lower costs, wafering process is highly desirable and
improve quality, and allow for thicknesses from investigated. The current best practices for the
150µm to 20µm. wafering segment are based on wire saw (WS)
cutting of silicon ingots. The WS relies on simple
The SiGen cleaving manufacturing addresses cutting of the silicon ingot with a multi-kilometre’s Figure 1. Implant and
Issue IV 2009
multiple issues of the current wafering technology long wire and slurry with grit particles and a Cleave process
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