Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

Aroma Solar has opened a 1.2 GW tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) module facility in in the northern Indian state of Haryana, using automated production and AI-based quality control.

GCL Technology says its GCL Optoelectronic subsidiary plans a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) in 2026, alongside a potential 500 MW factory in the United States and a roadmap for space-based solar.

Scientists in Australia claim that TOPCon cells are rapidly closing the open-circuit voltage gap with heterojunction counterparts, now under 10 mV, while offering greater wafer tolerance and high industrial scalability. Despite slightly lower efficiency, TOPCon-based perovskite/silicon tandems can achieve a levelized cost of energy comparable to heterojunction-based tandems due to reduced fabrication costs, according to the researchers.

Company statements in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission indicate it will seek an arrangement between itself and creditors that may allow it to survive “as a going concern.”

Median solar module pricing in the United States reached $0.28 per watt as the market adjusted to intensified trade enforcement and new Foreign Entity of Concern compliance requirements, according to the Q1 2026 Quarterly Pricing & Domestic Content Report from Anza.

A UNSW-led team found that annealing conditions significantly affect stress, strain, and microstructure in copper-plated heterojunction solar cell contacts, with fast annealing increasing microstrain in both copper and indium tin oxide.

Spanish researchers found that semi-transparent silicon PV greenhouses boosted tomato fruit weight by 25% while generating 726.8 kWh over two seasons, outperforming cadmium telluride PV and shaded controls. The PV-Si system balanced sunlight, temperature, and energy, showing strong agrivoltaic potential.

The German manufacturer said its new back-contact solar panel has a power conversion efficiency of up to 23.52%.

A German research team has developed CuInSe₂ micro-concentrator solar cells using laser-assisted metal-organic chemical vapor deposition to grow indium islands directly on molybdenum-coated glass, forming absorber arrays without masks or patterning. The not-yet-optimized micro-modules achieved up to 0.65% efficiency under one sun, with gains of up to 250% under concentrated illumination.

Japanese researchers developed a molybdenum-based spin-flip emitter that efficiently harvests triplet excitons from singlet-fission tetracene dimers, producing strong near-infrared emission. This approach could boost solar cell efficiency and enable new quantum technologies by converting otherwise “dark” excitons into usable light.