Longi releases wafers for TOPCon, heterojunction, back-contact cell tech

Chinese manufacturer Longi says that its new wafers offer a notable efficiency boost of approximately 0.1% across various cell technologies.

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Chinese solar module manufacturer Longi Green Energy has unveiled new wafers designed for cell technologies such as tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon), heterojunction (HJT), and back-contact (BC).

Wang Yichun, product R&D director for Longi's wafer division, said that new wafers offer comprehensive platform compatibility, high resistance consistency, and effective impurity absorption as key advantages.

The manufacturer said it is currently offering multiple size specifications to meet market demand and accommodate different thickness requirements. It said the new wafers provide consistent axial resistance distribution, effectively reducing the resistivity variance between the head and tail of silicon rods.

This enhancement, from three times to less than 1.5 times under the same rod length, reportedly facilitates a more concentrated distribution of cell efficiency, resulting in the production of higher-grade cells and minimizing discrepancies on the module side. Enhanced metal impurity absorption capacity of the wafers reportedly offer substantial potential for further improvements in cell efficiency over traditional products.

Longi said its internal tests have shown a 16% increase in bending strength for the Tera wafers compared to conventional alternatives, significantly enhancing fracture resistance. This heightened durability allows for thinner products and reduces fragmentation rates in the manufacturing process.

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The manufacturer claimed that the new wafers improve efficiency by about 0.1% across different cell platforms, meeting strict quality standards for high-efficiency cells without extra post-production costs.

The company plans to start verification matching in April, followed by pilot testing and certification in June, with mass production and shipment for downstream cell manufacturing scheduled for September.

Wang emphasized the importance of optimizing product performance in collaboration with customers to fully leverage the performance advantages offered by the wafers. The grand unveiling of the latest product attracted the attention of industry cell leaders such as Solar Space, Jietai Technology, Eging PV, and Runergy.

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