SPECIAL PV workshop - thanks to all participants

The Special PV workshop took place online during the last two days: organized by INES-PFE & CEA-INES with support of two EU projects (ECoVEM & RadHard), it gathered 230+ persons and from 34 countries (EU, North America & Africa mainly): highly skilled experts from academic, industry and space agencies, as well as general public & students.

As highlights for day 1, dedicated to solar cells: cutting edge presentations from III-V EU/US experts showing cells diversification trends: more junction for efficiency premium, thinner cells for mass savings, but also radiation hard or even lower cost options. Insights on detailed irradiation damage mechanism in matter introduced the discussions on more disruptive potential space PV technologies: at devices levels with ultra-thin or nanowires approaches, but also with more exotic materials such as perovskites.

The second day, dedicated to solar arrays, was also full of captivating highlights. After an introduction reviewing the various constraints & opportunities for PV in Solar System, specific problematics were tackled: from interconnector thermomechanical behavior, micro-concentration systems up to development of deployment mechanisms by STI. Photovoltaics solutions for Cubesat and larger satellite constellations, like OneWeb, were talked through, with a strong focus on low cost, including terrestrial silicon. Status & challenges of innovative high power flexible solar arrays for geostationary missions were closing this session.