Suntech Claims New World Record in Silicon Panel Efficiency
Suntech Power said Wednesday it now holds the world record in producing the most efficiency multicrystalline silicon panels, beating a record previously held by Sandia National Laboratories. A panel sporting the company's newly developed Pluto cells was able to convert 15.6 percent of the sunlight that strike it into electricity, Suntech said. (...) The new record is a boost to Suntech's plan to market panels assembled with Pluto cells, which it developed with technology licensed from the University of New South Wales [where] Suntech's founder and CEO Zhengrong Shi taught for years. The university holds the world record for silicon cells made in a lab, which were tested by Sandia and yielded 25 percent efficiency. (...) The Pluto technology focuses on improving the cell's ability to trap light to boost electricity production. Pluto cells also use copper instead of silver for its collector and bus lines.