The cracks are showing

Finding tiny cracks in a silicon solar cell is not that easy, particularly given that these cracks initially have little or no effect on module performance. But a number of common occurrences in a module’s lifetime can cause cracks to grow, rendering whole areas of a cell useless. And this is increasingly being recognized as one of the most significant risks to module reliability – one which the PV industry is hard at work to mitigate.

Issue 10-2020

The most common way to cut a cell is a “scribe and break” process. This sees the rear of the cell first scribed by a laser through about one-third of its thickness. In the next step, mechanical force is applied along the scribed line to break the cell in two. Despite the level of sophistication, with this process there is an inherent risk of microcracks forming at the cell edge during scribing. In addition to crack formation, cell cutting processes also involve the risk of damaging the extremely sensitive passivation layers.

Image: Innolas Solutions

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