The first part of this course, which consists of  two weeks, is all about the technology that dominates the PV industry; crystalline silicon. You will learn about the material properties of silicon and we will follow the production process from the raw material all the way to a finished cell and even to the integration of multiple cells into a module.

The most important part of this section covers the design considerations to obtain an ideal open circuit voltage, short circuit current density and fill factor for a crystalline silicon solar cell. You will gain an in-depth understanding of the clever design tricks implemented to optimise these solar cell parameters.

Over the years many design concepts have been introduced, some of which have actually made it to large-scale production. In the last part of this section, we have selected some advanced concepts for you that held record efficiencies or had a big impact in the field. By the end of these two weeks, you will understand why crystalline silicon still dominates the solar cell market as of today from a technical point of view.