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Nature Communications volume 17, Article number: 2897 (2026) Cite this article
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Overcoming the inherent limitations of perovskite-perovskite heterojunctions in simultaneously boosting built-in potential and suppressing non-radiative recombination remains a critical challenge in perovskite solar cells. Here, we introduce a ferroelectric-based heterojunction architecture that addresses this dual challenge through synergistic mechanisms. Firstly, the spontaneous polarization inherent to the ferroelectric-based heterojunction significantly amplifies the built-in electric field, enhancing charge separation and transport, thereby increasing open-circuit voltage from 1.16 to 1.21 V. Secondly, ferroelectric nuclei effectively regulate perovskite crystallization kinetics via dissolution-recrystallization modulation, effectively suppressing trap states and elevating fill factor from 83.6% to 86.8%. The champion devices achieve a power conversion efficiency of 26.62% (certified 26.07%) with an open-circuit voltage-fill factor product of 1.05 V, reaching 90.3% of the Shockley-Queisser limit. Furthermore, the modified devices demonstrate enhanced operational stability with over 85% efficiency reservation after 500 h of maximum power point tracking, charting clear pathways towards high-performance photovoltaic cells.
The emergence of metal halide perovskites has catalyzed a paradigm shift in photovoltaics^1,2,3. Leveraging their exceptional optoelectronic characteristics, perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have achieved rapid breakthroughs in power conversion efficiency (PCE), with the current record of 27.3% positioning them as a compelling contender to the monocrystalline silicon benchmark⁴. Despite the encouraging progress achieved, energy loss remains an intractable challenge within PSCs, restricting further efficiency climbing towards the Schockley-Queisser (SQ) limit^5,6,7. The performance of PSCs with certain functional layers is closely related to the difference between quasi-Fermi levels for electrons and holes, which determines the established built-in potential and the achievable energy conversion in devices^8,9.
The built-in electric field can serve as the driving force for charge separation and transport from the perovskite absorber to the corresponding electrodes, with its reinforcing assistance to enhance carrier extraction and mitigate energy loss¹⁰. However, non-radiative recombination loss stemming from defect capture and interface mismatch poses significant obstacles, potentially threatening the splitting of quasi-Fermi levels and the open-circuit voltage (V_OC) deficit¹¹. Furthermore, the lower fill factor (FF) of PSCs, as compared to the commercial silicon and GaAs photovoltaics, is primarily attributed to carrier transport limitations and interfacial recombination¹². As such, research efforts to achieve efficiency breakthroughs are centered on addressing the losses in V_OC and FF, both of which bridge the gap of at least 5% from the theoretical values¹³.
Among the non-radiative recombination pathways identified in PSCs, the high-density defect within the solution-processed perovskite films and mismatched band structure are the predominant sources¹⁴. The rapid nucleation and growth process generally causes disordered crystallization issues on both spatial and time scales, resulting in films characterized by inhomogeneous compositional distributions and severe defect residue¹⁵. The high-density charged defects and lattice dislocations serve as the charge recombination centers to capture the carrier by Coulombic interactions and restrain the charge transport efficiency¹⁶. Additionally, the deep-level defects can also induce charge accumulation and yield the back electric field inside devices, thereby compromising device performance¹¹. Besides the defect influences, the considerable energy offset between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) level of the general carbazole-based self-assembly monolayers (SAMs) and the valence band edge of perovskite causes a weak built-in electric field for driving the carrier separation and extraction in inverted PSCs¹⁷. This results in unbalanced charge transfer and significant carrier accumulation at the contact interfaces, further exacerbating the energy loss and compromising the device performance. Therefore, to overcome the theoretical limit of solar cells, optimizing the crystallization kinetics to minimize defect density and strengthening the built-in field to accelerate charge transport in PSCs tends to be imperative.
The perovskite-perovskite heterojunction emerges as an effective strategy to enhance the built-in electric field in PSCs. This approach involves blending two types of perovskite compositions with distinct band gaps and optoelectronic properties, achieved through in situ phase segregation within the absorber layer¹⁸. Low-dimensional perovskite materials, including 2D perovskite crystals, 1D perovskitoids, and 0D quantum dots, have been incorporated into bulk 3D perovskites to introduce an additional electric field, thus promoting more efficient charge extraction¹⁹. Theoretically, ferroelectric perovskites, which exhibit dipole characteristics under external fields, are expected to enhance the built-in potential of PSCs through self-polarization²⁰. Well-controlled intrinsic polarization directions and the precise spatial distribution of ferroelectrics are beneficial for aligning the local electric field, ultimately impacting charge collection efficiency. Quite recently published pioneering work has demonstrated this concept by introducing a 2D photo-ferroelectric perovskite to form a 2D/3D layered junction, which induced the spontaneous accumulation of the 2D ferroelectric phase²¹. This approach mitigated interfacial recombination in PSCs and achieved a significant V_OC gain of 1.21 V. However, despite this V_OC enhancement, substantial energy loss persists in such 2D/3D layered perovskite junctions. These losses are primarily attributed to the high density of non-radiative recombination sites in the bulk 3D perovskite layer, leading to a maximum PCE below 25%. This underscores the challenge of simultaneously achieving a high built-in electric field and a reduction in non-radiative recombination sites in the pursuit of enhanced cell performance.
Herein, we demonstrate ferroelectric-based heterojunctions (FBHJ), constructed by incorporating either Dion–Jacobson (DJ)- or Ruddlesden–Popper (RP)-phase 2D perovskites, synergistically decrease V_OC and FF deficits in PSCs through coupled built-in field amplification and crystallization modulation. We experimentally verify the effects of FBHJ on optimizing nucleation rate, growth uniformity, dissolution-recrystallization dynamics, and defect suppression in films by in situ optical spectrometry techniques. These benefits demonstrate substantial enhancements in the built-in electric field and charge collection efficiency in devices. As a result, PSCs achieve an impressive PCE of 26.62% (certified 26.07%) with a V_OC × FF product of 1.05 V, surpassing 90% of the SQ limits and representing a low energy loss among reported PSCs with PCEs exceeding 26%.
We engineered two distinct FBHJ architectures to validate the universality of our strategy: FAPbI₃ integrated with DJ-phase ferroelectric perovskite (4-(aminomethyl)piperidinium)PbI₄ (denoted as 4AMP-DJ), and FAPbI₃ coupled with RP-phase ferroelectric (4,4-difluoropiperidinium)₂PbI₄ (denoted as DDFP-RP). Figure 1a illustrates the device configuration of the FBHJ solar cell using ferroelectric decoration, and Fig. 1b presents the molecular architectures of the DJ- and RP-phase ferroelectric perovskites reported in current research.
a The device structure of the inverted PSCs. b The packing structure of (4AMP)PbI₄ and (DDFP)₂PbI₄ perovskites in their ferroelectric phases. c J–V curves and d statistic distribution of PCEs of the control and FBHJ PSCs. Error bars are the standard deviation of PCEs for 30 devices in each case. The lines in the middle of the box plots indicate the median values. e The stabilized power output curves of FBHJ PSCs. f EQE curves of the control and FBHJ PSCs. g The J–V curve of the champion FBHJ-based flexible PSCs. Illustrations provide specific device performance parameters. h The certified J–V curve of the champion FBHJ PSCs from the Fujian Metrology Institute (FIL) of the National Photovoltaic Industry Metrology Center (NPVM). The institutional logo @ 2025 Fujian Metrology Institute. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. i Plots of V_OC × FF products for the state-of-the-art inverted PSCs with PCE over 26%, derived from Supplementary Table 7. j Operational stability of unencapsulated devices at the maximum power point (MPP) tracking with continuous one-sun illumination under N₂ atmosphere at 45 °C.
Systematic device characterizations were conducted to validate the efficacy of FBHJ in overcoming the SQ efficiency limit. Incorporation of 4AMP-DJ at optimized concentrations induced remarkable performance enhancements, in which the PCE increased from 24.46% (control) to 26.62%, accompanied by substantial improvements in V_OC from 1.16 V to 1.21 V (ΔV_OC = +50 mV) and FF from 83.57% to 86.79% (ΔFF = +3.22%), while maintaining a stable short-circuit current density (J_SC ≈ 25.4 mA cm^-2) (Supplementary Fig. 1). Notably, the V_OC enhancement exhibited concentration-dependent saturation behaviors. Further increasing the 4AMP-DJ concentration preserved a high V_OC (1.21 V), while it triggered reductions in FF and J_SC (Supplementary Fig. 2, Supplementary Table 1), suggesting compromised charge transport at an excessive ferroelectric content. This nonlinear response highlights the requirement of balance modulation between charge transport and built-in electric field, which will be systematically discussed in the following sections. The universality of FBHJ engineering was further confirmed as the DDFP-RP also achieved comparable performance metrics (V_OC = 1.20 V, PCE = 26.18%) as depicted in Fig. 1c. The PCE statistics further validated the performance improvement in devices through ferroelectric doping (Fig. 1d, Supplementary Fig. 3 and Supplementary Table 2).
Steady-state power output measurements under maximum power point tracking (1.04 V bias) confirmed exceptional operational stability, with PCEs stabilizing at 26.31% (4AMP-DJ) and 26.01% (DDFP-RP) over 600 s of illumination (Fig. 1e). Spectral response analysis revealed near-unity external quantum efficiency (EQE) across 300–800 nm, yielding integrated J_SC values of 25.01, 25.10, and 25.06 mA cm⁻² for the control, 4AMP-DJ, and DDFP-RP devices, respectively (Fig. 1f). The minimal variation in J_SC variation (<0.4%) corroborates that the efficiency gains are primarily originated from improvements in V_OC and FF. To evaluate the compatibility of the FBHJ strategy in variations of device structures, we extended this approach to flexible devices, obtaining a champion PCE of 25.15% with a V_OC of 1.19 V (Fig. 1g, Supplementary Fig. 4 and Supplementary Table 3). In addition, the 4AMP-DJ PSCs at an active area of 1.04 cm² delivered a champion PCE of 25.45%, illustrating good scalability (Supplementary Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 4).
The champion device with an aperture area of 0.0718 cm² achieved a certified PCE of 26.07% (Fig. 1h, Supplementary Fig. 6) from the Fujian Metrology Institute (FIL) of the National Photovoltaic Industry Metrology Center (NPVM). Crucially, the V_OC × FF product of 1.053 V approaches 90.3% of the SQ theoretical limit for the 1.56 eV bandgap perovskite^22,23, corresponding to a low energy loss of 0.35 eV with respect to the SQ limit of 0.29 eV, which represents a small reported value for inverted PSCs exceeding 26% efficiency (Fig. 1i, Supplementary Table 5)^{5,6,7,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41}. This near-ideal V_OC × FF product stems from low V_OC deficit (0.35 eV) and FF deficit (3.41%) simultaneously. Moreover, the hysteresis index of PSCs was significantly mitigated through the ferroelectric doping (Supplementary Fig. 7, Supplementary Table 6).
The operational stability of PSCs was investigated under constant 100 mW cm⁻² illumination in a nitrogen atmosphere⁴². FBHJ devices retained 85% initial PCE after 500 h of maximum power point tracking (MPPT), outperforming that of the control with 50% retention (Fig. 1j). The T₈₀ lifetime extrapolation suggests over 700 h operational stability under 1-sun equivalent stress (Supplementary Fig. 8). This synergistic enhancement of efficiency and stability conclusively indicates a dual-function potential of the FBHJ strategy, simultaneously engineering built-in electric fields through ferroelectric polarization while passivating defect sites via improved perovskite crystallization.
To elucidate the optimization mechanism underlying the energy loss in FBHJ PSCs, we then explored the influences of ferroelectric doping on the ferroelectricity of perovskite films. (4AMP)PbI₄ belongs to a typical 2D DJ-phase perovskite, in which PbI₆⁴⁻ octahedral adopts a corner-shared model to form 2D inorganic perovskite frameworks, while 4AMP cations acting as interlayers are arranged in an alternating up-and-down orientation (Supplementary Fig. 9, Supplementary Note 1). The DDFP cation with asymmetrical structure and fluoridation substituent was chosen as the spacer ligand to construct the 2D perovskite ferroelectric (DFPD)₂PbI₄, featuring an RP configuration with infinite corner-sharing [PbI₄]_n²⁻ layers separated by two DFPD-based spacer layers (Supplementary Fig. 10, Supplementary Note 2).
We then conducted the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) tests to determine the ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition behaviors of (4AMP)PbI₄ and (DDFP)₂PbI₄. For (4AMP)PbI₄, an endothermic peak was observed at 351 K in the heating run, accompanied by a corresponding exothermic peak detected at 348 K in the cooling run (Supplementary Fig. 11). The DSC curves of (DDFP)₂PbI₄ revealed an endothermic anomaly peak at 428 K during the heating cycle with an exothermic anomaly peak at 405 K (Supplementary Fig. 12a), indicating a reversible phase transition. Notably, the relative permittivity (ɛ′) of (DDFP)₂PbI₄ under the heating treatment exhibited an abnormal surge at 428 K, labeled as Curie temperature (T_C), further confirming the paraelectric-ferroelectric phase transition (Supplementary Fig. 12b).
Piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) is a powerful tool for identifying ferroelectricity. As illustrated in Fig. 2a–c, the control film demonstrated a homogeneous phase without distinct ferroelectric domain walls, implying nonintrinsic ferroelectricity. By contrast, (4AMP)PbI₄ and (DDFP)₂PbI₄ presented obvious domain structures along the out-of-plane direction, where domain walls with weak piezoelectric response separate domains with different orientations (Supplementary Figs. 13, 14)⁴³. Critically, the observed ferroelectric domain structure is unrelated to the topography, confirming that the signal comes from piezoelectric responses with different orientation domains rather than morphology crosstalk. 4AMP-DJ and DDFP-RP FBHJ films exhibited a ferroelectric domain structure similar to the (4AMP)PbI₄ and (DDFP)₂PbI₄, showing clear and well-defined domains (Fig. 2d–i). PFM analyses revealed that FBHJ films preserve ferroelectric domains within the 2D ferroelectric composites⁴³. In addition, the FBHJ films also presented butterfly-shaped amplitude loops in response to variations in the electric field (Supplementary Fig. 15), further confirming the manifestation of ferroelectric behaviors in FBHJ films. Macroscopic P–E hysteresis loops of FBHJ film have been supplemented as Supplementary Fig. 16, revealing their ferroelectricity at the enlarged scale. By contrast, the intrinsic ferroelectricity was absent in the pristine FAPbI₃ films.
Topography, amplitude, and phase images of a–c control, d–f 4AMP-DJ and g–i DDFP-RP films. Scalebar of 600 nm.
To elucidate the crystallization behavior of FBHJ perovskite, we conducted in situ spectroscopy characterizations during film formation (Fig. 3a, b). In situ photoluminescence (PL) spectrometry was applied to monitor the crystallization evolution behaviors of perovskite films during the spin-coating and annealing stages, especially for the top surface under an optical reflection mode^44,45. The intensity evolution against time was plotted in Fig. 3c for the PL peak at 775 nm. During spin-coating, anti-solvent dripping triggers rapid perovskite nucleation, whereas no significant difference in PL intensity was observed among different films (Supplementary Fig. 17). However, distinct kinetics emerged during the annealing stage. Initially, residual solvent evaporation induced a rapid dissociation of nuclei at the liquid-air interface^46,47, leading to a sharp decay in PL intensity within the first ca. 7 s. Subsequently, the dissolved crystal at the top surface began to recrystallize, which took ca. 16 s, 28 s, and 49 s for the PL intensity to reach the peak for the control, DDFP-RP, and 4AMP-DJ films, respectively. The extended recrystallization window suggested that FBHJ involves the 2D ferroelectric crystal seeds to regulate the growth behaviors of the intrinsic 3D component, thereby retarding the crystallization rate⁴⁸. The prolonged growth duration in 4AMP-DJ FBHJ film was associated with the enhanced coordination affinity of diammonium spacer ligands and potential intermediate participation in the crystallization retardance⁴⁹. Notably, FBHJ also suppressed defect-induced PL quenching, presenting more stable emission intensity over time.
a in situ PL and b in situ UV-vis spectra of perovskite films during the annealing process. c Evolution of PL intensity at 775 nm for different perovskite films during the annealing process. d Evolution of absorption intensity at 550 nm for different perovskite films during the annealing process. e, f LaMer model illustrating the correlation between nucleation/growth rate and concentration evolution of precursor solution in (e) the bulk and f the top surface for the perovskite films.
In situ UV-vis spectroscopy further revealed solvent-evaporation-driven bulk nucleation dynamics in a transmission mode. In the control film, the absorption intensity gradually increased and reached the edge of the bulk phase after an initial 15 s (Fig. 3d), coinciding with top-surface nuclei total dissolution^46,50, followed by secondary crystallization reaching the absorption peak at ca. 23 s. Ferroelectric doping accelerated nucleation, shortening the appearance of the first absorption peak to ca. 7 s (DDFP-RP) and ca. 9 s (4AMP-DJ), while the secondary crystallization window terminated at ca. 15 s and 19 s. This acceleration stems from a Pb-rich environment induced by partial dissolution of ferroelectric perovskite in precursor solution, which promoted the mobile ion diffusion and reduced the perovskite nucleation barrier. Critically, in the FBHJ case, the nucleation termination in the bulk aligned well with surface recrystallization onset at the liquid-air interface, alleviating strain-induced defects via homogeneous growth.
In situ spectroscopic analysis revealed the FBHJ-modulated perovskite crystallization kinetics during thermal annealing, as rationalized by the principles of the LaMer model. In the bulk film, the nucleation process is initiated with solvent evaporation driving rapid dissolution of transient nuclei at the film surface (Fig. 3e), concomitant with bulk solution concentration surpassing the supersaturation threshold (Stage I). Intriguingly, the ferroelectric doping supported a Pb-rich environment in the FBHJ bulk, markedly enhancing perovskite nucleation rates compared to the control (Stage II). The high-polarity organic ligands, featuring strong coordination affinity with Pb-I octahedra framework, would induce the rapid formation of 2D seeds to template crystal growth of FAPbI₃⁴⁸, thereby promoting structurally ordered recrystallization (Stage III). However, excessive dopant concentrations may push the precursor solution beyond its critical supersaturation limit (C_max*), triggering uncontrolled nucleation that compromises size uniformity and film morphology.
At the liquid-air interface, solvent evaporation induces the dissolution of metastable nuclei while progressively elevating the solution concentration, with all film compositions exhibiting similar dissolution-recrystallization initiation thresholds (Fig. 3f). Upon depletion of these interfacial nuclei, a dynamic evolution was established between evaporative flux and bulk solution replenishment, which presented a down-up stage of PL intensity with the extended annealing time. Subsequent solvent depletion shifted the predominant phase transformation mechanism toward regular surface rearrangement. Critically, ferroelectric incorporation facilitates the precise regulation of growth kinetics throughout the FAPbI₃ perovskite. The ferroelectric perovskite effectively serves as a multifunctional crystallization modulator by simultaneously lowering the nucleation energy barrier, prolonging the interfacial recrystallization timeframe, and homogenizing crystal growth dynamics across films. This synergistic regulation affords heterojunction films with exceptional crystalline quality and denser crystalline stacking, as key metrics for the optoelectronic performance of PSCs.
The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis demonstrated effective suppression of PbI₂ residues in films upon ferroelectric incorporation, accompanied by a marginal increase in average grain size and improved spatial homogeneity (Fig. 4a). Cross-sectional SEM revealed vertically continuous grain structures spanning the entire ca. 835 nm-thick perovskite layer (Supplementary Fig. 18), suggesting optimized crystallization pathways conducive to unimpeded charge carrier transport. For the spatial distribution of ferroelectric perovskite in final FBHJ films, time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) characterizations revealed that the 2D ferroelectric perovskites retained their inherent structure within resulting films, which distributed throughout the bulk film and dominantly enriched at the bottom interface (Fig. 4b, Supplementary Figs. 19, 20). Moreover, XRD patterns exhibited characteristic perovskite phase amplification (at 2θ = 14.2°) with 4AMP-DJ and DDFP-RP incorporation, corroborating the enhanced crystallinity observed in morphological studies. Note that the ferroelectric doping distinctly enhanced PL intensity and signal uniformity of perovskite films, indicative of suppressed non-radiative recombination process (Fig. 4c–e). Time-resolved PL spectra illustrated that the average carrier lifetime increased from 9.4 μs (control) to 12.8 and 17.7 μs for the DDFP-RP and 4AMP-DJ samples, respectively, representing one of the state-of-the-art results for the polycrystalline perovskite films (Fig. 4f)⁵¹. Furthermore, space charge limited current (SCLC) measurements quantified the trap density within perovskite films, showing the average value reduced from 5.88 ± 0.94 × 10¹⁵ cm⁻³ (control) to 2.70 ± 0.34 × 10¹⁵ and 1.45 ± 0.12 × 10¹⁵ cm⁻³ of the DDFP-RP and 4AMP-DJ cases, respectively (Fig. 4g, Supplementary Fig. 21). Consequently, ferroelectric incorporation effectively modulates the perovskite crystallization kinetics, facilitating enhanced crystalline quality and suppressed non-radiative recombination in films.
a Top-view SEM images for different perovskite films. Scalebar of 1 μm. b ToF-SIMS depth profiles of DDFP-RP film. c, d PL intensity in PL mapping for control c and 4AMP-DJ d films. Scalebar of 50 μm. e–g steady-state PL, Time-resolved PL, and trap density statistics of perovskite films. Error bars are the standard deviation of trap density derived from 5 samples for each case.
Surface potential distributions across the perovskite films were characterized using Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) (Fig. 5a). Compared with the control film (–55 mV), both the 4AMP-DJ and DDFP-RP FBHJ films showed lower contact potential difference (CPD) values of –212 mV and –142 mV, respectively (Fig. 5b). The statistics of CPD exhibited a more homogeneous distribution of surface potential in the FBHJ films (Fig. 5c), which is favored for interface contact and charge extraction. UV-vis absorption spectra maintained invariant band-edge characteristics (Tauc plot-derived E_g = 1.56 eV) across modified compositions (Supplementary Fig. 22). The energetic alignments extracted from UV-vis absorption and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) were plotted in Fig. 5d, e. Compared to the control film, the Femi level (E_F) was downshifted from −4.40 (control) to −4.42 (DDFP-RP) and −4.44 eV (4AMP-DJ). The energetic gap between E_F and valence band maximum (VBM) was shortened from 1.22 (control) to 1.15 (DDFP-RP) and 1.10 eV (4AMP-DJ), indicating the enhanced p-type character of FBHJ films⁵². Notably, the VBMs of FBHJ perovskites were slightly upshifted and aligned better with the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) level of MeO-4PACz, with the energy offset reduced from 0.30 (control) to 0.25 (DDFP-RP) and 0.22 eV (4AMP-DJ), endowing the more matched energetic alignment at the anode interface. Moreover, the band bending at the junction interface could yield an additional electric field to strengthen the built-in potential, ensuring suppressed energy loss in devices (Supplementary Fig. 23, Supplementary Note 3). TA spectra further illustrated the accelerated carrier transport at the hole extraction interface in FBHJ cases, which verified the synergy of ferroelectric doping on crystallization modulation and interfacial optimization (Supplementary Fig. 24).
a KPFM image of perovskite films. Scalebar of 500 nm. b The line-scan CPD data for the perovskite films extracted from KPFM images. c The CPD distribution histograms of different perovskite films. d Valence band edges and cutoff regions of UPS spectra for the perovskite films. e Energy level alignment within complete devices. f The dependence of V_OC on light intensity for PSCs. g Mott-Schottky plots of PSCs. h Schematic of ferroelectric perovskite doping on improving the built-in electric field (BEF) and defect passivation in FBHJ PSCs.
To further elucidate the charge recombination behavior in FBHJ cells, the dependence of V_OC under varying light intensity (P_light) was studied. Based on the formula of⁵³
the corresponding slopes were calculated to be 1.47k_BT/q, 1.12k_BT/q, and 1.21k_BT/q for the control, 4AMP-DJ, and DDFP-RP PSCs, respectively (Fig. 5f). By quantifying the FF loss in PSCs, the ferroelectric doping collectively reduced the charge recombination and non-radiative recombination losses in devices (Supplementary Fig. 25, Supplementary Note 4). In transient photocurrent decay (TPC) measurements (Supplementary Fig. 26), the FBHJ devices exhibited a faster decay rate compared to the control, implying the improved charge transport behaviors attributable to a reduction in the trap-mediated recombination process. From the C–V measurements in Fig. 5g, the effect of ferroelectric doping on the corresponding built-in potential at the contact interface was estimated by the Mott-Schottky analysis⁵⁴:
where C represents the capacitance of the depletion layer, N is the carrier density, A is the active area, V_bi is the built-in potential at equilibrium, and V is the applied voltage. The V_bi extracted from the intercept of 1/C² = 0 was determined to be 1.12, 1.17, and 1.19 V for the control, DDFP-RP, and 4AMP-DJ devices, respectively. The higher built-in potential further confirmed the higher driving force for charge separation and transport, endowing the synergistic enhancements in V_OC and FF in the FBHJ PSCs.
Overall, our observations indicate that FBHJ architecture features coupled crystallization optimization and built-in field amplification, as shown in Fig. 5h. Ferroelectric doping contributes to the improved energetic alignment at the hole-extraction interface. The reinforced built-in potential can support a stronger driving force for charge separation and extraction. Moreover, the ferroelectric actively participates in the nucleation and growth of FAPbI₃ perovskite and subsequently aggregates at the buried interface in resulting films, achieving significant trap suppression, thereby contributing to the suppressed carrier capture by defects and the charge accumulation at the heterointerface. The synergistic effect of ferroelectric doping on crystallization modulation and internal electric field of perovskite film effectively decreases energy loss in PSCs. Furthermore, ferroelectric-based FBHJ films demonstrate the capacity to inhibit ionic migration under constant illumination and enhance the long-term operational stability of devices (Supplementary Fig. 27). To fully harness the performance potential of devices, further ferroelectric design for improved ferroelectricity, including dipole regulation, intermolecular interactions, and polarization properties, is imperative. Delicate crystallization control to balance the domain distribution and polarization direction within the ferroelectrics would assist in effectively reinforcing the built-in field in perovskite-ferroelectric heterojunctions and minimizing energy loss in PSCs.
In summary, we demonstrate an effective ferroelectric-based heterojunction strategy to minimize the energy loss of PSCs and reveal the underlying mechanisms. The results indicate that ferroelectric heterojunction facilitates the broadening of the built-in potential under spontaneous polarization and supports an enhanced driving force for carrier transport. Furthermore, the ferroelectrics can assist the crystallization process of FAPbI₃, thus contributing to the shortened nucleation duration and prolonged recrystallization window for perovskite films. These benefits promote the growth balance across the films and optimize the crystalline quality, therefore endowing less non-radiative recombination loss in heterojunction films. Consequently, the FBHJ PSCs achieved a champion efficiency of 26.62% (certified 26.07%) with a V_OC × FF value of 1.05 V, surpassing 90% of the SQ thermal limit. Our study deepens the understanding of the optimization effects of ferroelectric perovskite on charge transport and crystallization modulation, thus shedding light on the further development of high-efficiency and stable perovskite photovoltaics.
FAPbI₃, MAPbBr₃, (4AMP) PbI₄ and (DDFP)₂PbI₄ single crystal powders were derived from self-synthesis, patterned indium tin oxide (ITO) glass, cesium iodide (CsI), lead(II) iodide (PbI₂), and methylammonium chloride (MACl) were obtained from Advanced Election Technology Co., Ltd. Phenylethylammonium iodide (PEAI), C₆₀, and [4-(3,6-Dimethoxy-9H-carbazol-9-yl)butyl]phosphonic Acid (MeO-4PACz) were obtained from Xi’an Solar Co., Ltd. Chlorobenzene (CB) (anhydrous, 99.8%), Ethanol (anhydrous, 99.8%) and isopropanol (IPA) (anhydrous, 99.5%) were purchased from Sino-pharm Chemical Reagent Co., Ltd. N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) (anhydrous, 99.8%) and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) (anhydrous, ≥99.9%) were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich.
Devices were fabricated with a planar p-i-n structure of fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO)/SAM/Perovskite/PEAI/C₆₀/BCP/Ag. The FTO glass substrates (2.5 cm × 2.5 cm) underwent a cleaning process involving ultrasonication in a specialized cleaning concentrate (Hellmanex III) mixed with ultrapure water (v:v = 1 ~ 1.5:100) for 30 min, followed by three additional ultrasonication cycles in ultrapure water for 30 min each. Subsequently, the substrates were dried under a nitrogen flow and treated with UV-ozone for 15 min. The MeO-4PACz was dissolved in anhydrous ethanol at a concentration of 0.5 mg ml⁻¹. The as-prepared solution was spin-coated on the glass/FTO substrates at 3000 rpm for 30 s in the N₂-filled glovebox. After annealing at 100 °C on a hotplate for 10 min, the HTL-coated substrates were cooled to room temperature for subsequent fabrication.
The perovskite precursor (1.5 M) was prepared by mixing 1.5 M FAPbI₃, 0.06 M MAPbBr₃, 0.05 M CsI, and 10 mol% excess MACl in a solvent mixture of DMF and DMSO (volume ratio: 4:1). (4AMP) PbI₄ and (DDFP)₂PbI₄ were incorporated into the precursor solutions at different concentrations (ranging from 0 to 5.0 mg ml⁻¹). Subsequently, 100 μl of the perovskite precursor was spin-coated onto the SAM layers at 1000 rpm for 10 s and 4000 rpm for 30 s, with the addition of 200 μl chlorobenzene dripped onto the film at 10 s before the end of the procedure. The film was then transferred to the hot plate and annealed at 100 °C for 40 min. After cooling to room temperature, the perovskite film was spin-coated with PEAI dissolved in IPA (20 mM) at 4000 rpm for 30 s without further processing. Finally, 20 nm C₆₀, 7 nm BCP, and 100 nm silver were thermally evaporated onto the perovskite films.
Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was performed with a differential scanning calorimeter (NETZSCH DSC 214 Polyma) under an N₂ atmosphere. The temperature cycles during both the heating and cooling phases were set at a rate of 10 K min⁻¹. Dielectric constants (ɛ’) were determined based on the variable-temperature dielectric permittivity, using a Tonghui TH2828 A impedance analyzer. P−E hysteresis loops were recorded using a Sawyer−Tower circuit with Precision Premier II (Radiant Technologies, Inc.). Nanoscale polarization imaging and local switching spectroscopy were performed using resonant-enhanced piezoresponse force microscopy (MFP–3D, Asylum Research). Domain imaging and polarization switching studies were conducted using conductive Pt/Ir-coated silicon probes (EFM–50, Nanoworld). All PFM measurements were performed in the out-of-plane (vertical) mode (VPFM) to probe the vertical-aligned polarization component. To confirm the piezoresponse, a 2 V AC driving voltage was applied, measuring normal and shear responses at the second resonant peak of the cantilever-sample system to enhance sensitivity.
UV-visible absorption spectra were acquired on a PerkinElmer UV-Lambda 950 instrument. Steady-state photoluminescence (PL) was recorded with a PicoQuant FT-300 spectrometer. X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies were performed using a DX-2700BH diffractometer (Dandong Haoyuan Instrument Co., Ltd.). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images were obtained using a Hitachi SU-8020 field-emission scanning electron microscope (Japan). Atomic force microscopy (AFM) images and Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (KPFM) images were obtained by a Bruker Dimension Icon instrument (USA). Ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) was performed on a photoelectron spectrometer (ESCALAB Xi⁺, Thermo Fisher Scientific). In situ PL and UV-vis were tested by self-assembling equipment in our laboratory.
J–V characteristics of the solar cells were analyzed by solar simulator equipment (Enlitech, SS-F5) with an illumination intensity (AM 1.5 G, 100 mW·cm⁻²) calibrated via a reference silicon cell with a KG5 filter. The scan range was set from 1.4 V to −0.1 V with a 0.02 V bias step and a 20 ms delay time. The active area of the non-refractive mask is 0.072 cm². The external quantum efficiency (EQE) was measured on a QE-R system (Enli Technology Co., Ltd.) using a 300-WXe lamp as the light source. Capacitance–voltage (C–V) measurements were performed using an electrochemical workstation (Modulab XM, USA) with a frequency of 200 kHz and a scan voltage ranging from 0 to 1.6 V. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was measured in the dark using a ModuLab XM CHAS08 with a frequency range from 0.1 Hz to 100 MHz. The operational stability of the unencapsulated PSCs was evaluated by a multichannel stability test system operating in the MPP tracking mode. The light intensity of the xenon lamp chamber was calibrated to achieve the same J_SC of PSCs as the values measured under the standard solar simulator (AM 1.5 G, 100 mW cm⁻²). During MPP tracking (N₂ atmosphere, 45 ± 5 °C, equal to cell temperature), J–V characteristic curves of the devices were periodically monitored every 2 h.
Further information on research design is available in the Nature Portfolio Reporting Summary linked to this article.
All data are available in the main text or the Supplementary Information. Additional information can be obtained from the corresponding authors upon request. Source data are provided with this paper.
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This work was supported by the Scientific Research Project of China Three Gorges Corporation (Grant No. 202303014, K.Z.), Key Research and Development Program of Shaanxi (Program No. 2025CY-YBXM-170, K.Z.), National Natural Science Foundation of China (52402285, T.N.), National University Research Fund (GK202201005, K.Z.), 111 Project (B21005, S.L.), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (GK202503001, K.Z. and GK202304047, T.N.), Young Talent Fund of Xi’an Association for Science and Technology (959202413046, T.N.).
These authors contributed equally: Nan Wu, Haofei Ni.
Key Laboratory of Applied Surface and Colloid Chemistry, National Ministry of Education; Shaanxi Key Laboratory for Advanced Energy Devices, Shaanxi Engineering Lab for Advanced Energy Technology and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an, China
Nan Wu, Tianqi Niu, Tinghuan Yang, Ru Qin, Lei Lang, Shuang Wang, Di Zhao, Chenqing Tian, Erxin Zhao, Chenxin Zhao & Kui Zhao
Institute for Science and Applications of Molecular Ferroelectrics, Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Advanced Catalysis Materials, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China
Haofei Ni, Changfeng Wang & Yi Zhang
KAUST Solar Center (KSC), Physical and Engineering Division (PSE), King Abdullah; University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Xiaoming Chang
Key Laboratory of Photoelectric Conversion and Utilization of Solar Energy, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian, Liaoning, China
Shengzhong Frank Liu
Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
Shengzhong Frank Liu
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K.Z. conceived and designed the study. K.Z. and T.N. supervised the project. N.W. conducted most of the experiments and performed the data analysis. H.N. and C.W. synthesized and characterized ferroelectric materials. T.Y. and X.C. optimized experimental recipes. R.Q. conducted in situ PL and in situ UV-vis measurements. L.L., D.Z., and C.Z. assisted with SEM testing. S.W. performed GIWAXS. C.T. and E.Z. carried out KPFM measurements. Y.Z. and C.W. helped with experimental design and manuscript preparation. All the authors discussed the results and commented on the paper.
Correspondence to Tianqi Niu, Yi Zhang or Kui Zhao.
The authors declare no competing interests.
Nature Communications thanks Jianhua Hao and the other anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work. A peer review file is available.
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Wu, N., Ni, H., Niu, T. et al. High Open-Circuit Voltage–Fill factor product in perovskite solar cells enabled by ferroelectric heterojunction modulation. Nat Commun 17, 2897 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69391-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69391-3
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May 9, 2026 – 5:36pm
A cow, back right, scratches on a support beam of a solar panel Tuesday, April 28, 2026, at a farm in Christiana, Tenn. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)
CHRISTIANA, Tenn. (AP) — From a distance, the small solar farm in central Tennessee looks like others that now dot rural America, with row upon row of black panels absorbing the sun’s rays to generate electricity.
But beneath these panels is lush pasture instead of gravel, enjoyed by a small herd of cattle that spends its days munching grass and resting in the shade.
Silicon Ranch, which owns the 40-acre farm in Christiana, outside of Nashville, believes cattle-grazing is the next frontier in so-called agrivoltaics, which mostly has involved growing crops or grazing sheep beneath the panels.
The solar company debuted the project this week and will spend the next year working to demonstrate to farmers that much larger cattle also can thrive at solar sites. If successful, advocates say, that could jump-start new projects to meet the soaring electricity demand driven by rapidly expanding data centers — without contributing climate-warming carbon emissions — and help cattle producers hold onto their land and livelihoods.
“Solar is one of the most powerful tools we have for cutting emissions and … is cost-competitive with fossil fuels,” said Taylor Bacon, a doctoral student at Colorado State University who has studied ecological outcomes at solar grazing sites. “I think we’re starting to see enough research that, when you do it well, the land use can be more of an opportunity than a downside.”
Making room for cattle
Though there are far more cattle than sheep in the U.S., their size poses challenges at solar sites, where both expensive equipment and the animals, which can weigh more than half a ton, must be protected.
Solar panels often pivot to near-vertical angles to capture the sun’s rays, leaving little room underneath for cattle; simply raising the panels is cost-prohibitive because of the amount of steel required. So Silicon Ranch raised the panels a little but also developed software that workers activate to turn the panels close to horizontal when cattle are grazing, giving them room to wander, said Nick de Vries, the company’s chief technology officer.
Workers rotate the cattle — currently 10 cows and their calves — between paddocks every few days so panels on the ungrazed portion of the site operate normally, generating a supply of roughly 5 megawatts of electricity for Middle Tennessee Electric, a rural electric co-op.
The hope is that the technology eventually will be adopted more broadly, company officials said.
“We know it works,” said de Vries. “But you need to prove it to other people.”
What are the benefits for farmers?
For solar companies, agricultural land is generally easier to develop than other types of sites. But many farmers — and communities — will need to be convinced that solar grazing will benefit them because of past practices that destroyed topsoil and took land out of production permanently.
“For many agricultural stakeholders, it is offensive to see high-quality farmland getting graded and piled when that’s a farm family’s legacy,” said Ethan Winter, national smart solar director at American Farmland Trust.
But he sees potential for solar grazing partnerships to help farmers keep their land in production and earn extra income at a time when it’s increasingly difficult to earn money farming and ranching alone.
“Agriculture is in a really tough spot right now” including because of trade wars, climate extremes, increased costs and pressure to sell, Winter said. “So maybe this is our moment where we can be helping states meet their energy needs and do that in a way that’s providing new opportunities for farmers.”
Silicon Ranch this year will have almost 15,000 acres of pasture being grazed — mostly by sheep — since launching five years ago, and is working with ranchers, farmers, university researchers and others to adopt best-practices for keeping soils and animals healthy.
What they’re finding is that pasture beneath solar panels retains more moisture, making it more drought tolerant, said Anna Clare Monlezun, a rancher and rangeland ecosystem scientist who’s working on the Tennessee project. Grazing in the shade leaves animals less prone to heat stress, enabling them to gain more weight and drink less water.
“There are more win-wins than trade-offs,” she said.
Sheep already have proven to be a good fit for solar sites, with more than 130,000 acres grazed as of 2024, a number that certainly has grown, said Kevin Richardson, senior director of the American Solar Grazing Association.
But for cattle, the industry still has to overcome site-design challenges and be able to scale up operations while also developing appropriate economic incentives for ranchers, Richardson said.
“Once we have that, I think we’ll see more solar sites using cattle or multi-species grazing with sheep and cattle,” he said.
Farmers often earn about $1,000 an acre by leasing their land for solar, easily 10 times more than what they historically earned through traditional agriculture, said Winter, from the Farmland Trust. That can help them to diversify operations, pay down debt and buy more land.
“I think you’ll start to hear more interest from farmers who are up against a serious financial wall right now and looking for income diversification opportunities that keep land in production,” Winter said. “We need and want to grow America’s energy capacity but not at the expense of our best farmland or at the expense of agricultural livelihoods.”
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Contact between 2D and 3D perovskites reshapes crystal order, lifting efficiency to 26.25%  Tech Xplore
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Europe’s solar boom is powered by Chinese technology. But experts warn Chinese-made tech could threaten the continent’s safety and even create blackouts. Now, Brussels is aiming to reduce its dependence.
The European Commission has moved to block EU funding for Chinese-made solar technology over fears it could pose a security threat to Europe’s power grid and even cause major blackouts. 
The decision, which was confirmed on May 4, reflects growing concern in Brussels that Europe’s dependence on Chinese green technology is making the bloc vulnerable to security threats.
The commission’s funding ban is focused on solar inverters, which are often described as the brain of a solar power system.
These solar inverters are the devices that convert solar energy into usable electricity. They are connected to the internet and can often be accessed remotely for maintenance and software updates. 
“All inverter companies, they do have something like a kill switch,” Christoph Podewils, secretary general of the European Solar Manufacturing Council, told DW. 
A kill switch and other remote connections are normally used for safety or grid stabilization. But cybersecurity experts warn that, in a worst case scenario, hackers or hostile state actors could exploit those remote connections to disrupt electricity supplies. 
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In 2024, 61% of all inverters imported into Europe came from China, according to Geneva-based research group Loom.
Huawei and Sungrow are the two inverter producers dominating not just European, but global markets.  
A handful of Chinese manufacturers have already provided hardware for more than 220 gigawatts of Europe’s installed solar capacity. 
“To put that in perspective, controlling roughly 10 gigawatts would already be sufficient to trigger major disruptions to Europe’s electricity grid,” Podewils said. 
There is no known case of Chinese-made inverters being used to shut down parts of a European grid.
But concerns intensified after Reuters reported in 2025 that US energy officials had discovered rogue communication devices inside some Chinese-made inverters.
“The threat is real,” said cybersecurity expert Swantje Westphal. “It’s not a made-up hypothesis.”
The inverter debate comes as Europe reassesses its wider dependence on Chinese clean technology imports.
According to Loom, China accounts for 98% of solar panels and 88% of lithium-ion batteries imported into Europe.
The organization warned that remote access functions in connected energy technologies could create potential vulnerabilities across power systems. 
Brussels has increasingly taken a tougher stance toward Chinese imports that are seen either as security risks or as threats to European industry.
In March, the European Commission presented its Industrial Accelerator Act, aimed at steering more funding toward European-made green technologies, including batteries and electric vehicles.
The Commission also presented a revisal of its Cybersecurity Act that will give Brussels greater authority to restrict Chinese companies from critical infrastructure such as communications or energy supply across European member states.
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Under the latest measures, EU funds managed directly by the Commission and institutions such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development can no longer be used to purchase Chinese-made solar inverters.
The restrictions do not apply to purchases made directly by EU member states, and existing Chinese inverters installed across Europe can remain in operation. 
“It’s a step in the right direction,” Westpfahl said. ”But we didn’t ban those Chinese inverters from our markets.”
Currently, 80% of Europe’s new solar systems rely on Chinese inverters, according to the European Solar Manufacturing Council.
If demand shifts away from Chinese suppliers, European manufacturers will have to plug a significant gap. But Podewils thinks that European suppliers are ready.  
“It is possible to grow production capacities within just a couple of months to the level needed to cover demand,” said Podewils. 
European-made inverters are expected to cost slightly more than Chinese alternatives — by roughly 2%, according to a European Commission official. But Podewils argues the added cost is justified.
“It’s like an insurance fee,” he said. 
Edited by: Tim Rooks

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Record French Solar Power Output Pushes Prices Below Zero  Bloomberg.com
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CEA’s 2026 manufacturing quality report finds that yield rates vary widely based on the age of solar module assembly facilities, with mature Chinese firms nearing 100% and U.S. outlier facilities ranging all the way down to 30%.
Image: pv magazine/AI generated
From pv magazine USA
Intertek CEA’s Global PV Manufacturing Quality Report 2026 suggests there is much work to be done to improve the quality of solar module manufacturing. The report states that more than 70% of factories were rated in the lowest two tiers — C or D — in 2025 factory audits, and none achieved an A+.

Source – Intertek CEA
One of the report’s central points is that most issues arise during factory ramp-up after construction, and again during capacity expansions. Solar panel re-work, a process in module manufacturing, is hiding these issues though. Typical re-work rates are around 10-15%, but outlier factories pushed far higher: an Indian facility hit 56% in 2024, and a U.S. facility reached 62% in 2025.
Overall, the U.S. has the highest critical issue rate of any surveyed country. While certain Chinese manufacturing facilities are yielding near 100%, some U.S. factories fall in the 30-60% yield range.
CEA explicitly noted:
U.S. capacity expansion is exposing early-stage execution risks.

Source – Intertek CEA
The number-one defect category is soldering — both within solar cells and between them. The trend is being driven by increasing busbar and ribbon counts, which shrink contact areas and make soldering more prone to defects. Electroluminescence (EL) imaging – a now-standard QA technique that uses an applied current to reveal internal cell defects invisible to the eye – is the primary tool catching these issues.
CEA notes that the ability to re-work modules and fix issues catches most problems before shipment. But stable average re-work rates can mask wide factory-level variability – meaning a fleet-wide number that looks fine may hide individual facilities running far above the norm.
The specific issues EL imaging reveals include cold soldering, grid breaks (gaps in the screen-printed metallization on the cell), oversoldering, and cell scratches. Cold soldering – when soldering temperature, time, or pressure are insufficient to fully bond the cell-to-ribbon connection – is a particular concern because the joint can look intact while the metal structure underneath is incomplete, leaving a weak connection that can fail in the field.

Source – Intertek CEA
Other issues exist both before and after EL scanning.
The first is the lay-up process, where the components of the module – front glass, encapsulant, cell strings, bussing ribbons, back encapsulant, and backsheet or rear glass – are stacked in order before lamination fuses them together. Common findings here include encapsulant misalignment, cell string spacing errors, ribbon misalignment, foreign material trapped in the stack, and cell handling damage.
The second is packaging and delivery. Damaged packing is by far the most common finding during container loading inspections, accounting for 47% of issues – pallet damage, torn fixing ties, and damaged outer wood shingling. Missing labels and incorrect fixing each account for another 19%. Factory location can compound the problem: bumpy roads leaving the facility can shift pallets in transit and damage modules before they ever leave the country.
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A massive solar project — a joint initiative between the Chippewas of Rama First Nation and the Orillia Power Generation Corporation — planned for Fairgrounds Road is not going forward.
The Gwanaajiwi Giizis Solar Limited Partnership (GGS-LP) has been advised that its proposed solar energy project was not selected through the Independent Electricity System Operator’s (IESO) LT2(e-1) procurement process.
The 24.5-megawatt project, planned for development on land at 1952 and 1992 Fairgrounds Rd., near Washago.
Construction had been anticipated to begin this summer, with the project reaching commercial operation in spring 2029.
This result does not change the broader direction behind the work, says a joint news release from Rama First Nation and Orillia Power.
“This is not the outcome we had hoped for, but it does not change our commitment to building a strong, sustainable future for Rama," said Rama Chief Ted Williams.
"Projects like this are about more than energy; they are about creating opportunities for our nation and being part of the transition to cleaner, more responsible development."
The proposed site remains a strong candidate for future solar development. Located on Class 5-7 agricultural land and situated along an existing transmission corridor, the land continues to offer strategic advantages for renewable energy projects, notes the release.
The partnership remains “confident” in the long-term potential of the site and the role it can play in future opportunities.
“We remain firmly committed to the partnership we have been fortunate to build with the Chippewas of Rama First Nation,” said Shaun Hinds, president and CEO of Orillia Power Generation.
“Our team will learn from this outcome and use those lessons to strengthen our proposals as we prepare for future opportunities.”
In the coming months, GGS-LP will take part in a debrief process with the IESO to “better understand the results of this procurement and to strengthen future submissions,” notes the media release.
Work is already underway to assess next steps and identify opportunities to re-engage in future procurement cycles.
The project team is also grateful for the strong support shown throughout the process, including from the Township of Ramara.
“While the project was not selected through this procurement process, our focus remains on the future,” reads a statement from GGS-LP.
If you would like to apply to become a Verified Commenter, please fill out this form.
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© 2026 OrilliaMatters.com

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Beacon, N.Y.: When I read Voicer Tom Mielczarek’s recent question, it resonated with me because while it’s true that the U.S. is a major oil producer and exporter, the oil we produce is sweet crude oil. Domestic refineries are designed for heavier crude oil. We export the domestic oil and import the heavy oil, and therein lies the problem.
Many of us are looking at the cost per gallon with increasing horror, worried about how much higher it will go. We feel helpless, even though the solution that ends this is right above us, collected by solar panels.
Transitioning our energy systems to renewables is the most American thing we can do. Oil and gas interests want us to be dependent on volatile international markets as they rake in more than $30 million every hour, which is coming straight from our pockets.
New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act originally demanded 70% renewable electricity by 2030 and 100% zero-emission electricity by 2040. Of course, oil and gas interests hate this because it hurts their bottom line. With Gov. Hochul dismantling the CLCPA, she’s endangering New Yorkers and also making life more expensive for us.
Unlike oil, sunlight is homegrown. Powering our homes with the sunshine overhead sounds like the most pro-American thing I can think of.
Christine Arroyo
Bronx: Some Voicers don’t seem to understand that just because oil comes from under America’s land or coastal waters, the oil does not belong to the U.S.A. Private international companies own it, and they don’t care about our country. Their interest is only in maximizing profit. Some people blamed Joe Biden for high gas prices, although he had nothing to do with it. Today, however, the highest gas prices in our history are a direct result of President Trump’s totally unnecessary war with Iran.
Randall Borra
Valley Stream, L.I.: As Americans are struggling with rising costs, aging infrastructure and underfunded public services, taxpayers should not be asked to finance a lavish ballroom for Trump or any political figure. Public funds are meant to serve the common good — repairing roads, supporting veterans, improving schools, strengthening public safety and protecting programs that millions of working families rely on. A grand ballroom is not a public necessity. It’s a luxury project to satisfy Trump’s enormous ego. Americans should agree on a basic principle: Taxpayers should not subsidize vanity projects for wealthy individuals. If a ballroom is truly important, private donors and personal wealth can fund it without placing the burden on citizens already paying enough in taxes and the high cost of gas. We still don’t know how the war with Iran is going to end. Lastly, did Mexico ever pay for the wall? I didn’t think so.
Vince Sgroi
Scarsdale, N.Y.: We’re paying $4.50 a gallon for gas and Trump is building a $400 million ballroom. He’s making Marie Antoinette look like a socialist.
John Kern
Portsmouth, N.H.: So, if we taxpayers are paying for the ballroom, and the White House belongs to us, does that mean I can have my wedding reception and other functions there — free, of course?
Elizabeth Smith
Plainview, L.I.: Rudy Giuliani may have been a great mayor of New York City for the 112 days beginning on the tragic morning of Sept. 11, 2001, but I will never forgive him for his Jan. 6, 2021 speech to the Capitol rioters-to-be. Shortly before Trump himself stoked the crowd’s anger by telling them, “If you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore,” Giuliani told those MAGA fanatics, “Let’s have trial by combat!”
Richard Siegelman
North Bergen, N.J.: The Supreme Court has vacated the law that prohibited gerrymandering to create racially diverse districts in its Louisiana vs. Callais decision. That being the case, has it occurred to anyone that the gerrymandering, while deemed not in violation of election law, may actually be unconstitutional, as it violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution by favoring one of the two major political parties — specifically, the Republican Party? If the Constitution is truly the law of the land, the gerrymandering must stop.
Irving A. Gelb
East Meadow, L.I.: During his confirmation hearing in 2005, Chief Justice John Roberts pledged to act as an umpire, stating that his job was to “call balls and strikes.” Considering the Supreme Court’s horrendous decisions in the Citizens United, Dobbs, Janus and Callais cases, maybe Roberts should be replaced by the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) System.
Richard Skibins
Brooklyn: Voicer Charles Tal claims that I offer “no proof” concerning the IDF’s atrocities, but I have done precisely that in previous letters. Give proof once, why give it again? With regard to proof, letters to the editor are not term papers. This forum doesn’t provide space for a citation and bibliography page with links to videos that prove my point. But Charles, I assure you that proof is there for people to see, provided they want to see. As far as antisemitism is concerned, Zionists constantly blur the line, but I must insist that Judaism is a religion and Zionism is an ideology. It is the old-fashioned, malignant ideology that I, and most of the world these days, find distressful. Distinctions matter, so stay on topic.
Nick Smith
Bronx: To Voicer Charles Tal: There are videos of IDF prison guards raping Palestinians. The Israeli government dropped charges against the rapists. You can shove your opinion.
W. Twirley
Brooklyn: Voicer Chris Lee conjures a hypothetically corrupt fire inspection system to oppose battery storage. I don’t buy it. We live with lithium-ion batteries all around us: in our laptops, cell phones, cars and e-bikes. Some lucky people even have home battery storage to back up their solar panels. Cell phones no longer spontaneously ignite, e-bike regulations are being tightened to address fire safety, and we’ve seen the same progress in large-scale battery storage design and regulation. Engineers and safety experts are solving problems in a new technology that gets us off expensive and polluting fossil fuels. I don’t buy trying to torpedo technologies and regulations that will save our money, health and climate. I also don’t buy how Hochul is currently trying to torpedo our climate law and keep us hooked on fossil fuels. Wind, solar and batteries are cheaper, cleaner and safer.
Ann Schaetzel
Brooklyn: Alternate side of the street parking is a big joke. I observed that Thursday morning when nobody moved their cars. When I asked one of the car owners why he didn’t move his for the street cleaner to do its job, he told me it’s cheaper to get a ticket than to put his car in a garage. The city is spending money for a service that’s not being performed.
Charlie Pisano
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True North photovoltaic plant  Iberdrola
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The May 2 LNP | LancasterOnline article “Solar vs. farmland: Lancaster County weighs sheep grazing as energy solution” reported on the West Lampeter Township zoning decision to block a 25-acre solar panel installation on sheep pasture. The act of grazing sheep under solar panels was determined to be a non-agricultural activity.
As a curious farmer, I have seen solar grazing operations in a variety of locations, including White Oak Pastures in Georgia and across the state line in Maryland. I would argue that solar grazing is one of the easiest environmental and economic win-wins for preserving farmland and producing energy.
Solar farms require mowing and maintenance to keep the grass down. Sheep require grass! And sheep also benefit from the shade of solar panels during hot months. Agrivoltaics, as this combination is called, isn’t opposed to farmland preservation; it supports it.
At a time when data centers will start taking over vast amounts of the county’s energy and farmland is under threat, why close off an avenue to locally grown energy, food and additional farm revenue to keep land from being developed?
If Lancaster County is to be resilient in the future, energy independence and food security will be critical to weathering the effects of climate change and world events, such as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and supply chain disruption. It seems clear to me that we can’t depend on global food and energy supplies, and that we should consider solutions closer to home. Why not achieve both?
Aidan Fife
Lancaster
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Nissan’s Ao-Solar Extender Adds 11 Miles Of EV Driving Range Per Day  AOL.com
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Business Insider Edition
Renewvia Energy Corp. is expanding its solar-powered mini-grid operations into four African countries as renewable energy providers increasingly move to address the continent’s widening electricity deficit.
Renewvia Energy Corp. is expanding its solar-powered mini-grid operations into four African countries as renewable energy providers increasingly move to address the continent’s widening electricity deficit.
The Atlanta-based company plans to expand into Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, a move expected to require about $750 million in investment for roughly 2.1 million electricity connections, according to Renewvia Solar Africa CEO Trey Jarrard.
Sub-Saharan Africa remains the global epicentre of energy poverty, with nearly 600 million people lacking access to electricity, accounting for more than 80% of the world’s unelectrified population.
Efforts to close the gap have intensified under the World Bank and African Development Bank-backed Mission 300 initiative, which aims to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, Bloomberg reported.
Renewvia already operates 24 commercial mini-grids across Kenya and Nigeria, ranging from 100 kilowatts to 2.5 megawatts. The systems supply electricity to rural communities and commercial clients, including Shell, UBA Bank, and UNHCR.
The company is also seeking $45 million in concessional financing to expand a metro-grid in Kakuma and develop a renewable energy plant in Dadaab, two of the world’s largest refugee settlements.
According to Jarrard, the financing would allow Renewvia to keep electricity tariffs affordable through longer-term, lower-interest loans. The project could increase electricity access in Kakuma and Dadaab fivefold, potentially reaching more than 550,000 people.
Renewvia has also established local entities in Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, and Ethiopia to support early-stage development efforts. One of its proposed projects includes a mini-grid in Baraka, a town on the shores of Lake Tanganyika with a population of about 270,000 people.
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Pennsylvania’s renewable energy future is more affordable than critics claim | PennLive letters  PennLive.com
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Highway garage panels funded with grants
Beacon officials cut the ribbon on Friday (May 8) on a solar array atop the city’s Highway Department garage on Camp Beacon Road funded entirely with state grants.
The panels, which should produce at least 112,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, cost $289,000. They were funded with $140,000 in Clean Energy Communities grants from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, $125,000 secured by state Assembly Member Jonathan Jacobson and $24,000 in state renewable-energy incentives.
A solar farm already in place at the former city landfill near Dennings Point produces about 70 percent of the electricity for municipal operations. The array at the garage will generate about 80 percent of the building’s electricity and bring overall production to 75 percent of municipal needs, Mayor Lee Kyriacou said.
“Beacon is always doing these things to put rhetoric into reality,” said Jacobson, a Democrat whose district includes Beacon. “Everybody talks about renewables and alternative energy, and we’re doing it.”
The conditions Friday morning — sunny but cool — were ideal at the south-facing garage roof, said David Byrne, founder and president of Renua Energy, the Clifton Park company that installed the panels. “That’s when you get maximum output,” he said.
Beacon is eligible for Clean Energy Communities grants because of its participation in the state’s Climate Smart Communities program, where it has earned “silver” status. The city has received nearly $900,000 in Clean Energy grants for sustainability projects.
Type: News
News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Jeff Simms has covered Beacon for The Current since 2015. He studied journalism at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. From there he worked as a reporter for the tri-weekly Watauga Democrat in Boone and the daily Carroll County Times in Westminster, Maryland, before transitioning into nonprofit communications in Washington, D.C., and New York City. He can be reached at [email protected].
The Current welcomes comments on its coverage and local issues. All comments are moderated and must include your full name and may appear in print. We do not post anonymous comments or personal attacks. See our full guidelines here.
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A herd of 450 elephants is moving back toward a solar plant in Sri Lanka.
A solar plant was built on the very ground they lived on for 2,500 years.
They are now returning to the land they depended on for thousands of years.
The animals are returning to their previous habitat.
Their movement is not random. Far from it, actually.
It’s a signal that movement is creating a new conflict between survival and energy.
What is taking place on this Sri Lankan land is more complex than it seems.
What exactly is taking place in this iconic part of the world?
This particular clean energy project can be found in Sri Lanka’s Hambantota region.
An area used by elephants for over 2,000 years.
The land was essential to the majestic creatures.
It played a vital role in the elephant’s migration corridor.
But a large-scale solar project started to change that.
Solar panels have now replaced the open grazing land that the herd relied upon.
What looked like unused land to humans had a hidden purpose.
And that purpose is being disrupted in real time.
Locals raised concerns when the solar farm was being constructed. 
And now, their fears have been confirmed as something is happening.
Elephants have been known to enter land used by humans.
But this one was theirs, originally.
We just took it over with huge arrays of solar panels.
Activists and experts started documenting environmental changes at the Sri Lankan solar farm.
Vegetation was cleared to install new solar infrastructure.
Vegetation that the elephants need to survive. Solar infrastructure replaced grazing areas.
Now, the elephants found fencing and panels instead of grass.
With their food gone, elephants were forced to reroute.
Elephants require huge territories to survive and migrate safely.
One small disruption can impact entire herds.
Human activity in this previously “unused” land increased drastically.
Even renewable energy can adversely affect wildlife.
Wildlife it was supposed to protect. At least that was the hope.
Elephants don’t just vanish when their habitat shrinks.
They adapt.
Evidence shows some opt to return to lands that were once fertile.
A reality that is currently taking place in Sri Lanka.
And the situation has raised concerns.
The details of the situation have been explained in a press release from MONLAR.
Clean energy is impacting the world in ways we never imagined possible.
The herd is now being forced directly toward the solar plant as their food vanishes.
Not by some biological choice, but another reason.
Survival.
Their natural habitats are shrinking.
As this happens, the elephants are returning to areas they once used.
These areas now overlap with the solar power project.
That overlap is pushing elephants into fenced areas with solar panels.
Locals reported that an illegal solar farm was only making things worse. Some projects allegedly ignored warnings over this very issue.
They are not invading a new land. They are simply returning to older ones.
Returning to areas they used for thousands of years.
What is happening now is a direct overlap of two systems.
One enables clean energy generation for humans.
The other is a biological need to feed and survive.
This imbalance is the latest threat to emerge from our collective need for energy.
Without intervention, encounters between elephants and infrastructure are likely to increase.
Some species have been found to thrive around solar farms. But not elephants.
They need a far more pragmatic approach from humanity.
Otherwise, we risk losing one of the Earth’s most iconic creatures.
Disclaimer: Our coverage of events affecting companies is purely informative and descriptive. Under no circumstances does it seek to promote an opinion or create a trend, nor can it be taken as investment advice or a recommendation of any kind.
© 2026 by Ecoportal
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© 2025 THE COOL DOWN COMPANY. All Rights Reserved. Do not sell or share my personal information. Reach us at hello@thecooldown.com.
While the VPP program isn’t available everywhere, you could be surprised by how many local governments and utilities offer incentive programs for homeowners looking to make their homes more energy efficient.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
A homeowner took to Reddit to break down how their Tesla solar panels and Powerwall system are earning them up to $40 per hour during power outages. 
With their solar panels and battery setup, the homeowner was able to participate in Tesla‘s Virtual Power Plant program. In simple terms, the VPP allows Powerwall owners to send stored energy back to the grid during periods of high demand or emergency conditions.
In return, homeowners will get paid $2 for every kilowatt-hour of energy their system sends to support the grid. Participating homeowners can also adjust their output to ensure they keep the energy they need for their home. 
“This is a gamechanger for me, because the Powerwalls can deliver close to 20 kW,” the OP explained. “So I can also charge my car and/or run my A/C during those events and boost the payout from ~$28/hour to closer to $40.”
Want to go solar but not sure who to trust? EnergySage has your back with free and transparent quotes from fully vetted providers in your area.
To get started, just answer a few questions about your home — no phone number required. Within a day or two, EnergySage will email you the best options for your needs, and their expert advisers can help you compare quotes and pick a winner.
While the VPP program isn’t available everywhere, you could be surprised by how many local governments and utilities offer incentive programs for homeowners looking to make their homes more energy efficient. To receive quick solar panel installation estimates and compare quotes, consider checking out the free tools from EnergySage.  
Ultimately, the OP explained that their payout was $730 and that the process was simple. 
Another homeowner chimed in with their experience with the program. 
“[I] did it twice,” they said. “Got paid. Easy process.” 
FROM OUR PARTNER
Want to go solar but not sure who to trust? EnergySage has your back with free and transparent quotes from fully vetted providers that can help you save as much as $10k on installation.
To get started, just answer a few questions about your home — no phone number required. Within a day or two, EnergySage will email you the best local options for your needs, and their expert advisers can help you compare quotes and pick a winner.
“Had my first event recently and was able to discharge about 30kWh in the 2 hour period,”  another said. “Looking forward to many more.”
If you’re curious about upgrading to solar panels but don’t know where to start, EnergySage has free resources to help. By connecting with its experts, homeowners can save up to $10,000 on installation costs. 
Plus, EnergySage also has a helpful mapping tool that shows the average cost of solar panels in your area, as well as details on local incentives. It can help you lock in the best price possible for your solar panel system. 
To boost your savings even more, consider a home battery to sync with your solar panels and protect your home from frustrating outages. Check out EnergySage’s battery resources to learn the best option for your home and budget. 
💡Go deep on the latest news and trends shaping the residential solar landscape
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Lavish Lifestyle, a US-based exterior services company, has added solar panel cleaning to its Ogden-area service lineup. The service is available for residential and commercial property owners in Ogden, Pleasantview, and surrounding northern Utah communities. The service coverage also includes North Ogden, Plain City, West Haven, Layton, Syracuse, Logan, and Salt Lake locations. The company said that the dirt, dust, pollen, bird droppings, and mineral deposits can accumulate on panels over time. According to the company, such buildup can reduce solar panel efficiency and affect energy production for homeowners. The cleaning service has been linked to Lavish Lifestyle’s existing exterior care work across the region. Lavish Lifestyle also provides residential window cleaning, commercial window cleaning, permanent lighting, holiday lighting, temporary lighting, and security lighting.

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PINE POINT, Minn. — The White Earth Reservation is celebrating the launch of its new solar-powered grid, which supporters say will save on energy resources — and money.
Pine Point School and numerous partners flipped the switch on the Pine Point Resilience Hub on Monday, May 4.
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The 500-kilowatt solar array, paired with a 2.475 megawatt-hour battery, is capable of powering the K-8 school building and community center through a full blackout.
“It’s a big day,” said Sandra Kwak, founder and CEO of 10Power, a renewable energy project developer that works with tribal nations, schools, nonprofits and underserved communities globally.
“It’s designed to provide backup power in the case of emergencies, so that people can come here, shelter in the gym, have backup electricity, be able to continue sustaining themselves in the community,” she explained.
The hub contributes to the grid as a whole, too.
“Instead of being a drain in times of strain, the battery has potential to provide capacity, helping to provide stability,” Kwak said.
It will also save the school money on electricity bills year-round, “liberating dollars that can be reinvested” into classrooms and children.
The hub, also dubbed Waabizii1, was dedicated to Mike Swan. Waabizi means “swan” in Ojibwe, and the late Swan was a pillar of the community.
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This project was five years in the making.
It was launched under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, then faced “a turbulent transition as the current administration clawed back clean energy grants, dismantled equity programs and moved to eliminate tax credits for clean energy. Billions of dollars awarded to support community-based projects were terminated by the White House,” according to a news release.
Financing the solar installation required a patchwork of public and private resources, including the U.S. Department of Energy, the Tribal Solar Accelerator Fund, the Verizon Climate Resilience Prize, a private bridge loan and more.
“Through an innovative capital stack, we were able to make this project happen at zero dollars out of pocket to the school,” Kwak said.
Tara Hammond from the Hammond Climate Solutions Foundation partners with philanthropists to finance projects like this one.
“One of the funding streams is the tax credit, which in this case, covered half of the project cost,” Hammond said. “The Trump administration escalated a tax on clean energy and environmental protections, but has also weakened the resilience and capacity of our social systems to support our communities.”
A philanthropist who believed in Pine Point’s vision “chose to step up, not only despite the federal uncertainty, but because of it. That’s what we need in this moment,” she said.
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Minnesota’s Solar for Schools Program was another crucial supporter, awarding $500,000.
“This is one of almost 200 Solar for Schools projects that are in the works or have happened so far,” said program manager Amanda Scheinebeck. “You’re one of the few projects that is sized to produce 100% of the energy needs for your building,” along with battery storage.
According to the release, the Pine Point community sits in the 98th percentile nationally for energy burden — the share of household income spent on electricity.
Pine Point School was built as an all-electric facility with ground-source heat pumps.
According to the release, “The new system was projected to save the school $1.15 million over 25 years. That figure has since been revised downward by roughly $324,000 after the local utility, Itasca-Mantrap Electric Cooperative, announced a rate increase.”
“By turning to the sun, we are doing more than reducing our carbon footprint,” school Superintendent Chris Schultz said. “We are ensuring financial stability. The installation provides resiliency, ensuring our school remains a steady, powered beacon for the community for decades to come.”
The White Earth Tribe will own the system long term.
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A joint venture was created between 10Power and 8th Fire Solar, a community development initiative in Pine Point founded by Winona LaDuke. Together, they’ll handle operations and maintenance of hub, funded through the school’s energy savings. They are recruiting a community member to train as a solar and battery technician.
There are four electric service providers on the reservation. Nathan Matthews, director of the White Earth Tribal Utility Commission, noted the Pine Point Resilience Hub will overproduce electricity in summer, when school is out and grid power is most expensive.
LaDuke said the Pine Point Resilience Hub is a foothold, not a finish line. “This is just the beginning — that’s why it’s called Waabizii1. Next up: getting solar on every home that wants it.”
Schultz on May 4 told students to “look at these panels as a promise. They represent our commitment to being good stewards to the earth, blending a modern nation with the timeless respect for nature that the people of White Earth have honored for generations.”
Laura Lee Erickson, Pine Point’s District 3 representative on the White Earth Tribal Council, agreed.
“Harnessing this gift from the sun gives us power and is in line with the ways of the earth and traditional stewardship values,” Erickson said in a statement.
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Clarification
This piece originally paraphrased researcher Daniel Riser-Espinoza as referring to 851 "bird deaths" at Alberta solar farms based on information from a webinar. Riser-Espinoza actually used the term "detections," which he has since clarified refers to any evidence of a bird death, including live injured birds and dead birds. This piece has been updated accordingly. 

Dozens of Sturgeon County residents rallied late last month to oppose a proposed solar farm near Villeneuve.
About 100 people were at the Villeneuve Community Hall on April 29 for an information session on the proposed St. Albert Villeneuve Solar Battery Project organized by the St. Albert Villeneuve Opposition Solar (SAVOS) group.
CanWest Solar Development Corp. has proposed to build a 1,600 acre solar farm and battery storage site southwest of Villeneuve and east of the Century Estates subdivision. If built, the roughly $300 million project would power about 60,000 homes and offset the equivalent of 17 per cent of St. Albert’s 2023 greenhouse gas emissions.
CanWest president Don Scantland said the facility would be designed to allow for farming and power generation on the same land (agrivoltaics), with the panels covering about 35 per cent of the ground. The panels and screw piles could be removed after 40 years to restore all the land to farming.
Scantland said CanWest was also studying three other potential agrivoltaic projects in Sturgeon County.
SAVOS member Lisa Bendfeld, who lives next to the proposed solar farm, said residents had many concerns about it, including its effects on drainage, wildlife, and aesthetics.
“I fear (my children) may have no interest in living in the area if it looks industrial,” she said.
In addition to disrupting wildlife movements, Bendfeld said the project could harm birds through the lake effect, which hypothesizes that water birds can mistake solar farms for lakes and become injured/killed when they try to land on them.
“There’s huge safety concerns for anyone living near lithium batteries,” Bendfeld continued, arguing that Villeneuve did not have the necessary hydrants or firefighters needed to handle a fire at a battery storage site.
Jamie Victoor, who lives next to the proposed project, said he opposed it because it would take productive farmland out of operation. He questioned how the farm would meet the province’s requirement for solar farms to maintain 80 per cent of the agricultural productivity of any farmland they occupy.
“The equipment of nowadays is way too big to farm in between sections of the panels,” he said. “They’re not going to be able to maintain that level of productivity on the same amount of land.”
Villeneuve resident Colleen Soetaert, who lives 800 metres from a proposed power line route for this project, said this kind of development was a poor fit for the region.
“We are not an industrial community. We are a farm-centred community," she said.
Bendfeld questioned the project’s potential impact on property values and who would remove the panels should the farm’s operators go bankrupt. In Alberta, solar farm builders are required to post a bond up front to cover reclamation costs. She also raised concerns that glare from it could affect pilots at Villeneuve Airport.
“The view and countryside will be lost forever if we get this wrong,” she told the crowd. “We need to do everything possible to stop this 40-year industrial experiment.”
The Gazette took the concerns raised by SAVOS to researchers who have studied solar farms for comment.
Joshua Pearce is a professor at Western University who has studied agrivoltaics for years and founded the group Agrivoltaics Canada. While solar panels can reduce agricultural productivity, he said they can have neutral or positive effects if you pair the right design with the right crop.
“If I’m a farmer, I want (solar) on my land first!” he said, as you get more crops and cash as a result.
Pearce said his experiments found strawberry and lettuce yields rose 18 and 200-400 per cent, respectively, when grown under solar panels compared to the open air.
“Most plants we eat get too much sun,” he explained, and the panels create a cool, moist environment that boosts production, especially during extreme heat.
Pearce said German scientists have found a three per cent hike in production when they put solar panels alongside wheat. By placing the panels far enough apart, they were able to generate power without shading the crops while benefiting from the windbreaking effects of the panels. Such farms were already common in Asia, where they use rotatable panels that can swing out of the way of farm machinery.
When asked if we shouldn’t put solar on roofs and parking lots instead of farmland (a position voiced by some SAVOS members), Pearce said agrivoltaic farms were more economical, as they could produce food and energy at the same time. We also don’t have enough roofs or parking lots to power large industrial sites.
Scantland said his team would design the St. Albert/Villeneuve project to meet the province’s agricultural requirements.
Karl Kosciuch, Daniel Riser-Espinoza, and Lee Walston spoke on their research into the lake effect in a webinar for the Renewable Energy Wildlife Institute last April. They found little evidence that solar farms were causing mass bird deaths or that the lake effect was an issue for birds. Walston said his team was studying birds at solar farms across America and had yet to see any hit solar panels despite 60,000 hours of video monitoring. Riser-Espinoza said studies of 30 Alberta solar farms from 2021–2026 logged 851 injured or dead birds at them, of which four involved water birds. About 35 per cent of the other birds were gray partridges — an introduced species in Alberta.
“There really is not good support for a generalized lake effect,” Riser-Espinoza said.
Multiple studies in the U.K. and U.S. have found that solar farms increase local bird diversity, said Jorden Dye, director of the Pembina Institute’s Business Renewables Centre. That’s because the panels create shade, which draws in bugs and bug-eating birds. Cats, buildings, and climate change were far greater risks to birds than solar farms.
In an email, Scantland said Alberta Environment has reviewed the St. Albert/Villeneuve project and found it posed a low risk to wildlife.
Dye said fires were a real but incredibly rare risk on battery storage sites, with 0.3 per cent of the world’s battery storage sites having fires in 2024. That’s because modern sites are containerized and have fire suppression systems.
Via email, Scantland said his team was required to do a glare assessment of the project as part of its application to the Alberta Utilities Commission. He noted that modern solar panels have anti-reflective coatings that make them less reflective than water, glass buildings, or snow. The panels in this project can also tilt to reduce glare.
Dye noted that a 2021 study by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration found that the glare caused by solar farms was similar to that of a lake or parking lot and not particularly novel.
A June 2025 study in PNAS of some 8.8 million property transactions around 3,699 solar farms in the U.S. found that solar farms increased agricultural land values by about 19 per cent within two miles but reduced residential property values by about five per cent within three miles. The farms had effectively no effect on homes with more than five acres of land; the house value went down, but the land value went up. The farms produced about $22.2 billion in benefit per year by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and about $4.1 billion in costs from lower house values.
Pending approval, Scantland hopes to start construction of the St. Albert/Villeneuve project by 2029.
Details on the project can be found at canwestsolar.com.
About the Author: Kevin Ma
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© 2026 St. Albert Gazette

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According to the latest IndexBox report on the global Zinc Tin Alloy Sputtering Target market, the market enters 2026 with broader demand fundamentals, more disciplined procurement behavior, and a more regionally diversified supply architecture.
The global Zinc Tin Alloy Sputtering Target market occupies a critical niche within the physical vapor deposition (PVD) materials ecosystem, serving as a key enabler for thin-film deposition in semiconductors, flat panel displays (FPDs), solar cells, and architectural glass coatings. As a derived-demand market, its trajectory is tightly linked to capital expenditure cycles in electronics manufacturing, display fabrication, and renewable energy infrastructure. The market is characterized by a bifurcated structure: high-volume, cost-sensitive segments for standardized applications coexist with premium, performance-critical niches requiring ultra-high-purity and custom-composition targets. This stratification creates a pricing ladder from commodity-grade alloys to specialized formulations, where suppliers differentiate through yield improvement, process consistency, and supply chain reliability. Geographically, production is concentrated in manufacturing hubs in Asia-Pacific, while demand is globally dispersed, creating complex logistics and inventory management challenges. The regulatory environment, including RoHS and REACH, acts as an upstream driver, mandating specific material compositions and segmenting suppliers into compliant and non-compliant tiers. Innovation focuses on process chemistry, target geometry (rotatable vs. planar), bonding technology, and packaging that reduces waste and improves ease-of-use for manufacturers. The market is evolving from a pure component supply model toward integrated solutions partnerships, where suppliers are expected to provide co-development expertise and guaranteed performance metrics. This report provides a comprehensive analysis of market size, structure, key trends, and forecast from 2026 to 2035, covering product types, end-
The baseline scenario for the Zinc Tin Alloy Sputtering Target market from 2026 to 2035 points to steady expansion, supported by sustained investment in semiconductor fabrication, display manufacturing, and solar energy. The market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 5.8% from 2025 to 2035, with the market index reaching 176 by 2035 (2025=100). This growth is underpinned by the proliferation of advanced display technologies such as OLED and micro-LED, which require precise thin-film deposition using zinc tin alloy targets for transparent conductive oxides and barrier layers. In the semiconductor sector, the transition to smaller nodes and the adoption of 3D NAND and advanced packaging drive demand for high-purity targets. Solar cell manufacturing, particularly thin-film technologies like CIGS and cadmium telluride, relies on zinc tin alloy targets for buffer and window layers, benefiting from global renewable energy targets. Architectural glass coatings for energy-efficient buildings and automotive glass for heads-up displays and smart windows add further demand. However, the market faces restraints including volatility in zinc and tin raw material prices, high capital intensity of target manufacturing, and competition from alternative materials such as indium tin oxide (ITO) in some applications. Supply chain concentration in a few countries poses geopolitical risks, while environmental regulations on mining and processing add compliance costs. The baseline forecast assumes no major technological disruption that would displace PVD processes, and a moderate global economic growth trajectory with stable industrial production.
Semiconductor manufacturing is the largest end-use segment for zinc tin alloy sputtering targets, accounting for an estimated 35% of global demand. These targets are used in physical vapor deposition processes to create thin films for interconnects, barrier layers, and electrodes in integrated circuits. The segment is driven by the ongoing miniaturization of semiconductor nodes, with foundries investing in 5nm, 3nm, and beyond, requiring ultra-high-purity targets to minimize defects. The shift to 3D NAND flash memory, which involves stacking layers of thin films, further boosts demand. Key demand-side indicators include global semiconductor capital expenditure, wafer starts, and fab utilization rates. Through 2035, the segment is expected to grow as AI, IoT, and 5G drive chip demand, though cyclical downturns may cause short-term volatility. Suppliers are focusing on custom compositions and bonded targets to improve deposition uniformity and target utilization. Current trend: Increasing demand for high-purity targets for advanced node deposition and 3D NAND.
Major trends: Transition to smaller process nodes increasing purity requirements, Adoption of 3D NAND and advanced packaging driving multi-layer deposition, Shift toward rotatable targets for higher material utilization, and Integration of target suppliers in co-development with fabs.
Representative participants: Materion Corporation, JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation, Tosoh Corporation, Honeywell International Inc, and ULVAC, Inc.
Flat panel display coatings represent the second-largest segment, with an estimated 30% share. Zinc tin alloy sputtering targets are used to deposit transparent conductive oxide (TCO) layers, such as indium zinc oxide (IZO) and zinc tin oxide (ZTO), in OLED and LCD displays. The segment is experiencing robust growth due to the rapid adoption of OLED displays in premium smartphones, tablets, and televisions, as well as the emergence of micro-LED technology for large-area displays and wearables. Automotive displays, including center consoles and heads-up displays, are an expanding sub-segment. Demand indicators include global display area shipments, fab investments for Gen 8.5 and Gen 10.5 lines, and consumer electronics sales. Through 2035, the segment will benefit from the proliferation of foldable devices and augmented reality (AR) glasses. However, competition from ITO and alternative TCO materials may limit growth in some applications. Suppliers are developing high-density, low-defect targets to improve display yield and brightness. Current trend: Growing demand for OLED and micro-LED displays in smartphones, TVs, and automotive.
Major trends: OLED penetration in mid-range smartphones and IT panels, Micro-LED commercialization for large displays and wearables, Automotive display growth with larger and curved screens, and Development of flexible and foldable display substrates.
Representative participants: Tosoh Corporation, JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation, Mitsubishi Materials Corporation, Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd, and Plansee SE.
Solar cell thin films account for approximately 18% of the market, with zinc tin alloy targets used as buffer layers and window layers in thin-film photovoltaic technologies such as copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) and cadmium telluride (CdTe). These targets enable high-efficiency light absorption and charge transport. The segment is supported by global renewable energy policies, with many countries setting ambitious solar installation targets for 2030 and beyond. Demand indicators include annual solar PV installations, thin-film market share, and government subsidies. Through 2035, the segment is expected to grow as thin-film technology gains traction in building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and portable applications. However, competition from crystalline silicon solar cells, which dominate the market, may limit growth. Suppliers are focusing on cost reduction and improved target lifetime to compete with silicon-based alternatives. Current trend: Steady growth driven by thin-film solar technology and renewable energy targets.
Major trends: Growth in building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and flexible solar panels, Efficiency improvements in CIGS and CdTe cells, Expansion of solar manufacturing capacity in Asia and the Middle East, and Development of tandem solar cells incorporating thin-film layers.
Representative participants: Materion Corporation, Plansee SE, Angstrom Sciences, Inc, Kurt J. Lesker Company, and Stanford Advanced Materials.
Architectural glass coatings represent 12% of demand, where zinc tin alloy sputtering targets are used to deposit low-emissivity (low-E) coatings and solar control layers on glass for commercial and residential buildings. These coatings improve thermal insulation and reduce energy consumption, aligning with green building standards such as LEED and BREEAM. The segment is driven by urbanization, construction activity, and energy efficiency regulations in developed and emerging economies. Demand indicators include global construction spending, glass production volumes, and building code updates. Through 2035, the segment will benefit from retrofitting of existing buildings and new construction in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. However, the segment is sensitive to economic cycles and construction downturns. Suppliers are developing durable, high-transparency targets for multi-layer coating stacks. Current trend: Increasing demand for energy-efficient low-emissivity (low-E) glass in green buildings.
Major trends: Stringent energy efficiency regulations in Europe and North America, Growth in smart glass and electrochromic windows, Urbanization and infrastructure development in Asia-Pacific, and Retrofit of existing buildings with low-E glass.
Representative participants: Materion Corporation, JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation, Tosoh Corporation, Plansee SE, and ULVAC, Inc.
Automotive glass coatings account for 5% of the market, with zinc tin alloy targets used for anti-reflective, conductive, and privacy coatings on windshields, sunroofs, and side windows. The segment is growing due to the increasing integration of heads-up displays (HUDs), which require precise optical coatings, and smart windows that adjust tint electronically. Electric vehicles (EVs) are a key driver, as they often feature large glass roofs and advanced display systems. Demand indicators include global vehicle production, EV adoption rates, and automotive glass supplier contracts. Through 2035, the segment is expected to grow as autonomous driving features and in-car entertainment systems become more common. However, the segment is small and highly specialized, with stringent automotive quality standards. Suppliers are focusing on high-durability targets that withstand the harsh automotive environment. Current trend: Rising adoption of heads-up displays (HUD) and smart windows in premium vehicles.
Major trends: Integration of heads-up displays (HUD) in mid-range vehicles, Growth of electric vehicles with panoramic glass roofs, Development of smart glass with variable tinting, and Increased use of augmented reality (AR) in windshields.
Representative participants: Materion Corporation, JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation, Tosoh Corporation, Kurt J. Lesker Company, and Testbourne Ltd.
Interactive table based on the Store Companies dataset for this report.
Asia-Pacific leads the market with 55% share, driven by semiconductor fabs in Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan, display manufacturing in China and South Korea, and solar cell production. The region benefits from concentrated supply chains and government support for electronics and renewable energy. Growth will continue through 2035 amid fab expansions and display investments. Direction: Dominant and growing.
North America holds 20% share, supported by semiconductor manufacturing in the US and growing solar installations. The CHIPS Act and reshoring of electronics production are boosting demand. However, higher production costs and reliance on imported targets may limit growth compared to Asia-Pacific. Direction: Stable with moderate growth.
Europe accounts for 15% of the market, with demand from automotive glass coatings, architectural glass, and semiconductor fabs in Germany and France. Stringent energy efficiency regulations and EV adoption drive growth. The region faces competition from Asian suppliers but benefits from high-quality standards. Direction: Steady growth.
Latin America represents 5% of the market, with demand primarily from architectural glass and solar energy projects in Brazil and Mexico. Economic volatility and limited semiconductor manufacturing constrain growth. However, renewable energy investments offer opportunities for thin-film solar applications. Direction: Moderate growth.
Middle East & Africa hold 5% share, driven by construction and solar energy projects in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa. Large-scale solar farms and green building initiatives are key drivers. The region is a small but growing market, with potential for increased demand as industrial diversification progresses. Direction: Emerging growth.
In the baseline scenario, IndexBox estimates a 5.8% compound annual growth rate for the global zinc tin alloy sputtering target market over 2026-2035, bringing the market index to roughly 176 by 2035 (2025=100).
Note: indexed curves are used to compare medium-term scenario trajectories when full absolute volumes are not publicly disclosed.
For full methodological details and benchmark tables, see the latest IndexBox Zinc Tin Alloy Sputtering Target market report.
This report provides an in-depth analysis of the Zinc Tin Alloy Sputtering Target market in the World, including market size, structure, key trends, and forecast. The study highlights demand drivers, supply constraints, and competitive dynamics across the value chain.
The analysis is designed for manufacturers, distributors, investors, and advisors who require a consistent, data-driven view of market dynamics and a transparent analytical definition of the product scope.
This report covers zinc tin alloy sputtering targets, which are specialized materials used in physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes to deposit thin films. The coverage encompasses targets of varying compositions, including zinc-rich and tin-rich alloys, as well as high-purity, rotatable, planar, and bonded targets. The analysis spans the entire value chain from raw material sourcing to end-use applications in semiconductor manufacturing, flat panel displays, solar cells, and architectural glass coatings.
The market is classified primarily under Harmonized System codes for unwrought zinc alloys and tin alloys, which capture the core material forms. Additional relevant codes cover other base metal alloys and chemical products, reflecting the specialized manufactured nature of sputtering targets. This classification framework facilitates tracking trade flows of both raw alloy forms and finished targets.
World
The analysis is built on a multi-source framework that combines official statistics, trade records, company disclosures, and expert validation. Data are standardized, reconciled, and cross-checked to ensure consistency across time series.
All data are normalized to a common product definition and mapped to a consistent set of codes. This ensures that comparisons across time are aligned and actionable.
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Trade Flows and External Dependence
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Commercial Entry and Scaling Priorities
Where the Best Expansion Logic Sits
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Leading supplier of high-performance alloy targets
Major producer of sputtering targets for electronics
Produces high-purity metals and alloy targets
Specialist in high-purity metal and alloy targets
Manufactures sputtering targets and equipment
Produces molybdenum-based and alloy targets
Supplier of sputtering target materials
Distributor and manufacturer of sputtering targets
Manufacturer of custom alloy sputtering targets
Produces a wide range of alloy sputtering targets
Supplier of sputtering targets for R&D and production
Produces various metal and alloy sputtering targets
Chinese manufacturer of sputtering target materials
Chinese supplier for semiconductor and display industries
Produces various metal and alloy targets
Supplies high-purity metals and alloy targets
Chinese producer of sputtering target materials
Supplier of custom sputtering targets
Supplier of high-purity metals for targets
Produces indium, zinc, tin and related alloys
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Colorado has become the latest state to permit plug-in solar, commonly referred to as balcony solar, following the signing of HB26-1007 into law by Gov. Jared Polis. This information was reported by Kelly Pickerel on May 8, 2026.
The legislation, spearheaded by Reps. Lesley Smith and Rebekah Stewart along with Sens. Cathy Kipp and Matt Ball, aims to reduce costs and simplify the process for Colorado households—including renters and those in apartment buildings—to use solar energy for their homes. The bill garnered bipartisan support in both chambers of the Colorado legislature.
The new law establishes a framework for the use of plug-in solar devices, sets critical safety standards for these products, and removes unnecessary interconnection barriers by permitting families to use meter collar adapters.
Following the bill’s signing, Gov. Jared Polis highlighted that the law breaks down clean energy barriers and helps residents save on energy bills. He noted that living in an apartment or multi-family building should not preclude the use of solar panels to reduce energy costs, and that the law expands access and choice to cost-saving clean energy solutions for more Coloradans. He expressed gratitude to the sponsors for broadening options for residents to explore new technology that protects the environment and saves money.
Interactive table based on the Store Companies dataset for this report.
This report provides a comprehensive view of the solar cells and light-emitting diodes industry in the United States, tracking demand, supply, and trade flows across the national value chain. It explains how demand across key channels and end-use segments shapes consumption patterns, while also mapping the role of input availability, production efficiency, and regulatory standards on supply.
Beyond headline metrics, the study benchmarks prices, margins, and trade routes so you can see where value is created and how it moves between domestic suppliers and international partners. The analysis is designed to support strategic planning, market entry, portfolio prioritization, and risk management in the solar cells and light-emitting diodes landscape in the United States.
The report combines market sizing with trade intelligence and price analytics for the United States. It covers both historical performance and the forward outlook to 2035, allowing you to compare cycles, structural shifts, and policy impacts.
This report provides a consistent view of market size, trade balance, prices, and per-capita indicators for the United States. The profile highlights demand structure and trade position, enabling benchmarking against regional and global peers.
The analysis is built on a multi-source framework that combines official statistics, trade records, company disclosures, and expert validation. Data are standardized, reconciled, and cross-checked to ensure consistency across time series.
All data are normalized to a common product definition and mapped to a consistent set of codes. This ensures that comparisons across time are aligned and actionable.
The forecast horizon extends to 2035 and is based on a structured model that links solar cells and light-emitting diodes demand and supply to macroeconomic indicators, trade patterns, and sector-specific drivers. The model captures both cyclical and structural factors and reflects known policy and technology shifts in the United States.
Each projection is built from national historical patterns and the broader regional context, allowing the report to show where growth is concentrated and where risks are elevated.
Prices are analyzed in detail, including export and import unit values, regional spreads, and changes in trade costs. The report highlights how seasonality, freight rates, exchange rates, and supply disruptions influence pricing and margins.
Key producers, exporters, and distributors are profiled with a focus on their operational scale, geographic footprint, product mix, and market positioning. This helps identify competitive pressure points, partnership opportunities, and routes to differentiation.
This report is designed for manufacturers, distributors, importers, wholesalers, investors, and advisors who need a clear, data-driven picture of solar cells and light-emitting diodes dynamics in the United States.
The market size aggregates consumption and trade data, presented in both value and volume terms.
The projections combine historical trends with macroeconomic indicators, trade dynamics, and sector-specific drivers.
Yes, it includes export and import unit values, regional spreads, and a pricing outlook to 2035.
The report benchmarks market size, trade balance, prices, and per-capita indicators for the United States.
Yes, it highlights demand hotspots, trade routes, pricing trends, and competitive context.
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Where Demand Comes From and How It Behaves
Supply Footprint and Value Capture
Trade Flows and External Dependence
Price Formation and Revenue Logic
Who Wins and Why
How the Domestic Market Works
Commercial Entry and Scaling Priorities
Where the Best Expansion Logic Sits
Leading Players and Strategic Archetypes
How the Report Was Built
Major US solar manufacturer
Residential & commercial solar
Former Cree LED business
Spin-off from SunPower
Specialty & high-power LEDs
LED technology & solutions
Advanced photonics
Residential solar panels
CIGS solar technology
US & Canadian manufacturing
North American manufacturing
US-made solar panels
US operations of Korean parent
3D architecture LEDs
High-quality lighting
High-brightness microdisplays
Disinfection & purification
US crystalline silicon solar
Next-generation tandem cells
Tandem cell technology
Manufacturing equipment
Turnkey production lines
Distributor & assembler
Residential & commercial
Former Philips business
Specialty & horticultural
Military & commercial
Aluminum nitride substrates
Materials for UV LEDs
US division of Kyocera
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Scientific Reports volume 16, Article number: 10248 (2026) Cite this article
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In single photovoltaic (PV) systems, inverters are highly important for transforming DC voltage into AC voltage with predetermined amplitude and frequency control. A good inverter must provide a stable output voltage and low harmonic distortion during potential load variation, and it must recover its stability in an efficient manner while maintaining the quality of power during disturbances. Fixed controllers usually do not provide satisfactory performance because of the inherent nonlinear characteristics of the systems, and this drives the adoption of intelligent control techniques. One area of interest is fuzzy logic controllers (FLCs), which can provide a good control measure of nonlinear dynamics and do not require use of a specific mathematical model. This study introduces the Firefly Algorithm to optimize fuzzy controller membership functions for improved voltage regulation, reduced MSE, and lower THD. The input and output membership functions are optimized in order to minimize the mean square error (MSE) of the output voltage. The proposed controller is tested for different load conditions including resistive loads, inductive loads, and non-linear loads; the performance is compared to a traditional fuzzy logic controller (FLC) as well as FLCs optimized using a Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). Results from the simulation indicate the performance achieved from Firefly Algorithm (FA) is acceptable when compared with voltage regulation, harmonic distortion (THD), and dynamic responses for stand-alone photovoltaic systems. Simulation results indicate that the FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller produces a minimum total harmonic distortion of 2.89% and a mean square error of 0.0071, thus showing its superiority over the traditional PI and fuzzy logic controllers for various load conditions.
Nowadays, solar energy systems are renewable energy technology that leverages safe, renewable, and sustainable energy sources. A typical solar system uses solar panel, DC/DC converter, MPPT circuits, batteries, inverters, and more. The inverter converts DC voltage to AC voltage with controlled amplitude and frequency to satisfy the desired output. An important feature of an effective inverter is that it is capable of maintaining the amplitude and frequencies that are desired in all operating conditions at low output harmonic distortion, and it needs to restore the voltage to stability quickly and without experiencing power quality issues at the presence of disruptions. Inverter control methods may be considered either conventional or intelligent, the traditional methods not met performance requirements because of the nonlinearity of the system, which lead to the demand for intelligent control methods.
Intelligent control methods based on fuzzy logic are becoming more appealing than other alternatives, primarily because fuzzy logic tends to require less complex mathematical models. Fuzzy logic could be considered a reasonable approach to deal with nonlinear problems. In a fuzzy logic framework, the variables/membership functions are typically developed by a system expert and/or through experimentation.
Even though they are relatively easy to use, fuzzy controllers could lead to poor performance for the inverter, or worse, an unstable system, if the designer does not have the appropriate membership functions. In this case, the designer needs to have a good understanding of the system’s operational conditions to accomplish a good design, or metaheuristic algorithms could help find the best membership functions. After the designer has designed the membership functions, intelligent algorithms can fine-tune the membership functions. The selected algorithm should enable high accuracy and convergence speed in the context of developing an appropriate membership function¹.
The extension of large penetration of renewables has raised other issues such as harmonic distortion in the output, poor efficiency of power converters, lack of stability for output power and reliability from the perspective of a power electronic converter. Researchers have proposed the application of different control methods to reduce its effect on power converters’ operation and performance. PI (proportional-integral) controllers were commonly adopted as the convertor control algorithm for instance. However, the performance of the PI controller is typically limited to small load disturbances, it is based on an accurate mathematical model of the real system, and the controller parameters must be tuned for acceptable performance.
Fuzzy logic controllers (FLCs) are increasingly being used in converter control designs because of their important advantage, they do not require an exact mathematical model of the system. A FLC’s performance is based on the rule base, the number of rules, and the membership function design, which is typically established through trial-and-error; a very time-consuming process. Instead, optimization methods can be used to aid in the design of fuzzy controllers. A newly available and efficient optimization methodology, which can be utilized, is metaheuristic and evolutionary optimization algorithms, particularly beneficial for the design of fuzzy logic controllers, as it helps to locate global optimum solutions. In addition to their global optimum solutions, the algorithms are stochastic and are helpful in avoiding the algorithm from being trapped in local optima, thus making them beneficial for tuning the membership functions to improve overall controller performance^2,3.
Designing input and output membership functions for inverter control systems is fundamental. A poorly designed membership function may lead to an output voltage that is objectionable with respect to amplitude, frequency, or harmonic content. In this paper, the optimal design of these membership functions is solved with the Firefly Algorithm (FA) in order to dramatically reduce the consequences of manual design or trial-and-error design, as well as improve performance of the inverter system. This study uses and will implement the Firefly Algorithm (FA) to optimally design the fuzzy controller for an inverter. Among other significant characteristics of the FA is its convergence speed and accuracy. The purpose is to design fuzzy membership functions to have a fuzzy controller that operates properly and minimizes the objective function. This paper presents a new method for optimizing a fuzzy controller for a three-phase standalone inverter utilizing the Firefly Algorithm (FA). The principal contributions are as follows:
Exploiting the Firefly Algorithm to calibrate the input-output membership functions for the fuzzy controller to minimize mean squared error (MSE) of voltage and keep total harmonic distortion (THD) low.
Evaluating the serviceability of the controller with variables on the load (resistive, inductive and non-linear load) contrasting against conventional PI controllers and GA and Particle Swarm Optimized Fuzzy controller.
Establishing a method that is fast and efficient in tracking the reference voltage and maintaining stability with abrupt dips in load without compromising power quality.
Emphasizing a method to lessen the need for mathematically accurate system models, and outline a methodology that is applicable and appropriate towards fuzzy controller design for a stand-alone power system.
The main originality of this work lies in the systematic application of the Firefly Algorithm (FA) for the simultaneous optimization of both input and output membership functions of a fuzzy logic controller used in a three-phase standalone photovoltaic inverter. Unlike most existing studies that either rely on manual tuning, trial-and-error approaches, or optimize only partial controller parameters, the proposed method provides a fully automated and unified optimization framework. In addition, the proposed controller is validated under diverse operating conditions, including resistive, inductive, and nonlinear loads, which is rarely addressed comprehensively in previous works. The comparative evaluation with GA- and PSO-based fuzzy controllers further demonstrates the superiority of the FA in terms of mean squared error (MSE), total harmonic distortion (THD), and dynamic voltage response.
This paper is divided into six sections. Section  2 includes a review of previous research. Section  3 explains the basics of fuzzy logic concepts. Section  4 presents the Firefly Algorithm and how it was used in the design of the fuzzy controller. Section  5 presents the simulation results and their analysis. Results and discussion is presented in Sect.  6. Finally, Sect.  7 contains key findings and remarks to conclude the document.
Many studies on inverter control methods have been reported, and in this section, a review of some of the more recent and relevant references is given.
Proportional-Integral (PI) controllers have been regarded as traditional and common approaches to inverter control. In², a conventional PI controller was introduced for inverter control, but the configuration of this controller has been based on the differential equations of the plant in order to achieve acceptable performance. Likewise, a PI controller was applied to a three-phase inverter, but there was no indication of the tuning method for the controller parameters in³. More recently, the focus has been shifted towards using metaheuristic and intelligent algorithms to optimize PI controller parameters to improve performance^4,5.
Another traditional controller widely used for inverter control is the PID controller. Compared with the PI controller, PID control generally provides better performance, but it also faces the same design problems. Besides, like for PI controllers, some intelligent algorithms have also been employed for the optimization of the parameters of PID. In⁶, PSO was adopted, while in⁷, GA was used. Traditional controllers are usually limited to small load changes since they are based on a precise mathematical model of a real system at a specific load condition. Although their design is classified, traditional controllers can lose performance under severe or sudden load changes and can even lead to instability⁸.
To overcome these challenges, inverter systems have been utilizing different AI-centric controllers, such as ANN, fuzzy logic, and ANFIS⁹. In recent years, fuzzy controllers have been applied in controlling inverter applications; they are simple to use and very flexible in complicated systems, even when they do not use complicated mathematical models¹⁰. The fuzzy controllers are well-structured but need precise specification of the membership functions and the rule bases. Each of the rule base, number of rules, and shape of the membership functions can influence the performances of the fuzzy-based controller. The number of rules being too many (overly complex) or too sporadic (not enough rules) or the membership functions being poorly shaped, or rules defined poorly can lead to performance that is not suitable for application. Often each of these factors are determined by trial and error which can be inefficient and laborious. To overcome this limitation, several methods have been proposed in the literature, such as neuro-fuzzy models¹¹, and intelligent optimization algorithms¹². Neuro-fuzzy models need a huge quantity of training data, that is impossible to get for some systems¹³. Due to this fact, the utilized algorithm in the design process of the membership functions should be accurate and has fast convergence rate, in order to successfully avoid the design difficulties of fuzzy controllers.
In recent years, fuzzy control has made great progress, especially in the domain of photovoltaic systems. For instance in¹⁴, a hybrid system was developed with a combination of fuzzy logic and the incremental conductance algorithm to perform MPPT and to exhibit superior performance compared to the traditional approaches by utilizing new input signals such as the sum of the conductances and the variations in the input signal, namely, CSI&SInC. Besides, high levels of precision and efficiency were exhibited regardless of the change in ambient conditions. This is an important step toward enhancing PV system operation, especially when their operation environments are liable to exhibit changing conditions. For designing an inverter with MPPT capability, FLC with SVPWM was used in¹⁵. Simulations and experimental setups yielded results that ensured the proposed combined system enhances MPPT tracking accuracy and reduces THD of the inverter output, hence indicating that FLC design plays a vital role in PV systems where the operating conditions change significantly in very short periods.
According to research in¹⁶ advanced control methods can be developed by combining Type 2 Fuzzy Logic with GA optimisation techniques and multi-layered perceptron (MLP) neural networks (NN’s) in order to obtain MPPT tracking with respect to irradiation and temperature variations. The study indicated that both the accuracy and stability of PV systems were improved by combining these techniques with others based on ANFIS. This methodology is particularly applicable for PV systems operating under varied environmental conditions. In addition in¹⁷ developed a PV system where a bidirectional DC-DC Converter was integrated with ANFIS. The hybrid configuration provides not only optimal power tracking and management of battery charging and battery voltage but also adaptive responses to changes in energy demand and in environmental conditions. Regarding the quality of power and the speeds of harmonics contained within a PV inverter system¹⁸, presented a Fuzzy Control Scheme based upon rules, which was used to optimise the switching of IGBTs, thereby substantially reducing THD in output voltage and improving the quality of power generated from the PV system. There has been a growing trend of developing hybrid control techniques in recent years.
There was a combination of fuzzy control and sliding mode control with an adaptive exponential reaching law presented in¹⁹. This allows for high robustness in terms of uncertainty and variation in power flow. The combination of fuzzy control with sliding mode control provides fast dynamic response, as well as excellent stability in the system. A hybrid MPPT strategy was developed in²⁰, combining Incremental Conductance (IncCond) control with a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) to obtain better accuracy in the tracking of maximum power points while varying irradiance and load conditions, therefore allowing for the optimisation of MPPT. Ref²¹. demonstrated how to design a fuzzy controller for an inverter. Through simulation results and results obtained from dSPACE hardware, the designed controller was able to eliminate fluctuations in the raw output voltage, and produce a stable output and low Total Harmonic Distortion (THD). The paper in²² designed a second-order fuzzy controller for a Unified Power Quality Conditioner (UPQC) inverter associated with photovoltaic (PV) systems. This design has shown to improve the quality of power, especially with the presence of nonlinear loads. This is an excellent example of how fuzzy logic can be used to manage complex power quality issues. A dynamic adjustment with fuzzy logic in combination with MPPT of the solar panel’s tilt angle was introduced in²³, an innovative approach that increases energy generation by about 20% compared to a fixed-angle system and especially in unbalanced irradiation conditions, therefore proving adaptability and effectiveness in fuzzy logic for optimization of photovoltaic output. In²⁴, a self-adaptive fuzzy-PID controller optimized using an improved fitness-guided optimization algorithm (IFGO) was proposed for active power filter applications, showing significant improvement in harmonic compensation. Similarly, type-2 fuzzy logic combined with discrete wavelet transform techniques has been employed for harmonic mitigation in distribution systems²⁵. Moreover, advanced fuzzy-based optimization methods have been applied to nonlinear power systems, demonstrating superior dynamic response and robustness compared to conventional controllers²⁶. In addition, hybrid fuzzy and evolutionary control techniques have been reported to enhance system stability and tracking accuracy in complex nonlinear environments²⁷. These recent works confirm the effectiveness of fuzzy-based intelligent controllers and motivate the adoption of the Firefly Algorithm in the present study for optimizing the membership functions of the fuzzy logic controller.
Table 1 shows a summary of some of the recent studies on inverter control using traditional and intelligent controllers. As can be seen in Table 1, most of the previous studies have focused on optimizing fuzzy controllers for particular or certain types of load conditions. In this study, however, the Firefly Algorithm is used to optimize both input and output membership functions of a fuzzy logic controller for a three-phase inverter, improving mean squared error (MSE), total harmonic distortion (THD), and response time for variable types of resistive, inductive, and nonlinear loads. This further proves the practical originality and superiority of this study compared to previous ones.
Even though a number of research studies have been carried out with significant advances in optimizing fuzzy controllers using GA, PSO, and FA, most of the previous works have limited system performance evaluation to specific load conditions or purely resistive loads. For this work, the Firefly Algorithm will be employed for optimizing the input and output membership functions of the three-phase inverter fuzzy controller in order to improve system performance for variable load conditions, including resistive, inductive, and nonlinear loads. The approach simultaneously optimizes MSE, THD, and dynamic response, hence making it practical and different from the earlier works.
Different control methods for the inverters in the photovoltaic systems have been presented to obtain an AC voltage from the generated DC voltage. Each of these methods has certain merits and demerits. In this paper, a fuzzy logic-based control is applied. The most important and critical part for this kind of approach lies in the design of the fuzzy controller’s membership functions. Poorly designed membership functions lead to deterioration in system performance or even instability. For that reason, optimization of these membership functions should benefit from expert knowledge and intelligent algorithms.
Fuzzy logic was first introduced in the 1960s by Dr. Lotfi Zadeh, a Professor in the Computer Science Department of the University of California, Berkeley. His classic work on fuzzy sets, published in 1965, opened an entirely new direction in systems engineering and computer science. Fuzzy logic explicitly expresses the fact that most of the problems that have been related to scientific and engineering areas are ambiguous. While the conventional approach tries to reduce uncertainty to aim for higher accuracy and efficiency, Zadeh proposed the development of models, which explicitly introduce ambiguity as an integral part of the system itself.
Usually when designing and implementing a Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) designers depend significantly on personal knowledge and experience or that of able engineers/environmental science specialists. This helps establish a working draft or initial Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) concept. The next phase utilizes control engineering concepts. Similar to designing conventional controllers, one can develop the design for an FLC. Both rely on results from the choice of parameters and subsequent controller performance. Currently there is work being done on establishing similarities between FLCs and PID controllers and also how to enhance these devices.
Fuzzy controllers use “fuzzy logic” (based on heuristics) rather than traditional mathematical techniques to achieve desired results through a variety of techniques including fuzzification, membership functions, fuzzy rules, and programmed inference mechanisms. In FLCs, input variables include error and change in error. These are used as inputs to the fuzzy controller in the context of “closed loop control”, in which a feedback mechanism continually compares output to reference input. The four main parts to a fuzzy logic controller are as follows²⁸:
Fuzzification.
Fuzzy Rule Base,
Inference Mechanism,
Defuzzification.
Continuous signals are converted into fuzzy whole numbers and back again through fuzzification and defuzzification. The inference process provides the mapping from the fuzzy input variables to the corresponding output control actions. The structure of a typical fuzzy controller is shown in Fig. 1.
Fuzzy Controller²⁸.
At this stage of the fuzzy system, it is necessary to establish what are the inputs and outputs that come from real life. To accurately create the if–then rules for the fuzzy system, the raw data were referenced to create the fuzzy membership functions. Once the membership functions have been established, the information can be used to apply fuzzy logic to the appropriate fuzzy system or network. A few examples of traditional fuzzifiers are listed below [29]:
Singleton fuzzifier.
Triangular fuzzifier.
Gaussian fuzzifier.
To convert fuzzy set A in U into fuzzy set B in V using fuzzy inference subsystem, fuzzy logic maps set A into B using the relationship between the fuzzy sets represented by if–then rules defined within the Rule Base. Several different types of inference engines exist such as [29]:
Mamdani inference engine.
Lukasiewicz inference engine.
Product inference engine.
Min inference engine.
Once the inputs are fed into the inference engine, all the if–then rules will be processed to determine their degree of truth for the given input; if there is no complete match between the input and any of the rules, the inference engine will generate an appropriate output based on those rules which provided partial matches. Various methods exist to associate a partial match with an output.
An if-then fuzzy rule set comprises the main component of the fuzzing algorithm. This is the rule set that lays the foundation for the fuzzy system and provides a basis on which the other parts of the fuzzy system can operate and take action based on the results obtained through inference. The combination of these results from the inference engine will yield a final output, and because of differing consequences that all come from using each of the several ambiguous rules, all of the rules should be taken into consideration when making a decision.
This stage converts the fuzzy output obtained from the previous step into a usable crisp value. Converting a fuzzy set into a usable value in this step is rather complicated, as a fuzzy set cannot be directly interpreted as a usable value. Defuzzification represents a major step in the FIS because most controllers of physical systems require discrete signals. Some common methods of defuzzification are [30]:
Maximum (Maxima) method.
Center of average method.
Center of gravity (Centroid) method.
Fireflies tend to group together in nature, with the less luminescent fireflies gravitating towards those with more luminescence. The Firefly Algorithm (FA) includes three fundamental assumptions concerning this behavior of fireflies [31]:
Female and male fireflies are similar in appearance; therefore, they do not distinguish between one another.
The more luminescent the firefly, the more attractive it is to other fireflies.
The brightness of a firefly serves as a measure of the Firefly Algorithm’s (static) objective function value in the optimization process.
For a maximization problem, the light intensity I of a firefly at position x is determined by (:Ileft(xright)propto:fleft(xright)). The attractiveness β is a relative measure, because it has to be seen and perceived by other fireflies within a neighborhood. Therefore, the attractiveness is a function of the distance r_ij between firefly i and firefly j. Furthermore, the intensity of light decreases with distance from its source. As light is also absorbed by the medium, the attractiveness needs to be decreased by the absorption coefficient as well.
The above-defined distance r is not restricted to Euclidean distance, though other forms of distance measures can be defined in multidimensional spaces depending on the problem. In the case of a scheduling problem, for example, r can be treated as time delay or temporal distance. For complex networks, such as the Internet or social networks, r can be defined as a combination of local clustering degree and average proximity of nodes. Generally speaking, any feature that effectively represents the degree of attraction can be treated as the distance r in firefly algorithms.
where I_s is the source light intensity. In a medium with a constant light absorption coefficient γ, the light intensity I varies with distance r according to:
The parameter I₀ denotes the initial light intensity. In order to remove the singularity at r = 0 in expression (:frac{{I}_{s}}{{r}^{2}}), one may approximate the combined effects of the inverse-square law and of the medium absorption by the following Gaussian form:
Since the attractiveness of a firefly is proportional to the light intensity perceived by its neighboring fireflies, the attractiveness β can be defined as follows:
where β₀ indicates attractiveness at r = 0. In practical implementations, the attractiveness function β(r) can be represented by any monotonically decreasing function, such as the general form presented below:
A characteristic distance ({{varvec{Gamma}}}=1/sqrt gamma) can be defined such that the attractiveness decreases significantly from β₀ to({beta _0}{e^{ – 1}}). For a constant absorption coefficient γ the characteristic length becomes:
The characteristic scale Γ should be related to the relevant scale in an optimization problem. If Γ is a fixed scale for a given optimization problem, and if the number of fireflies is large enough such that (ngg m) (where mmm is the number of local optima), the initial locations of these n fireflies should distribute relatively uniformly throughout the entire search space. During the iterations, fireflies are expected to move into the regions of all local optima. After comparing the best solutions among these local optima, the global optimum can be found efficiently. Recent studies show that the Firefly Algorithm can find the global optimum accurately when n→∞ and the number of iterations (tgg 1). On the other hand, for a characteristic length Γ in an optimization problem, the parameter γ can be used as an appropriate initial value [31].
The distance between any two fireflies, i and j, located at positions (:{x}_{i})​ and (:{x}_{j})​ can be defined as a Cartesian distance:
where, (:{x}_{i,k})​ denotes the k-th component of the position vector (:{x}_{i}) of firefly i. In two-dimensional space, this distance can be determined as:
The movement of a firefly i towards a more attractive firefly j is defined as follows:
In Eq. (10), the second term describes the attractiveness and may be considered as the movement of firefly i towards the more attractive (brighter) firefly j, while the third term is the randomization component. where, (:{:epsilon}_{i})is a vector of random numbers drawn from either a Gaussian or a uniform distribution. For example, the simplest form of (:{:epsilon}_{i})can be written as rand – ½, where rand generates a uniformly distributed random number in the interval [0,1]. In most implementations, it is convenient to set β₀ = 1 and (alpha in [0,1]). The parameter γ controls the type of attractiveness and influences the convergence rate and overall behavior of the Firefly Algorithm. Though theoretically γ can range from 0 to infinity, in practice, γ is usually around O(1), which relates to the characteristic length Γ. Thus, for most applications, γ usually varies between 0.1 and 10.
There are two special cases when γ→∞ and when γ→0. In the case of γ→0, the attractiveness becomes constant, i.e., β = β₀, and the characteristic length Γ→∞. This essentially means that the light intensity never drops to zero in an ideal environment; therefore, any flashing firefly can be seen anywhere within the domain. This implies that the global optimum can easily be reached if a flashing firefly occurs. Furthermore, if the inner loop over j is removed and x_j is replaced by the current global best g, the Firefly Algorithm becomes a special case of PSO. The performance of this special case is similar to the performance of the standard PSO.
In other words, the case of γ→∞ leads to Γ→0 and β(r)→δ(r), where δ(r) is the Dirac delta function. Thus, at the point that Γ approaches zero, that means that fireflies will have little or no attractiveness to each other. This forms the basis for that case where fireflies are wandering around in a foggy area with no ability to view one another; therefore, every firefly will be moving around haphazardly and totally at random. Thus, this definition represents a completely random means of searching. Consequently, at the end of this section if we use the previous mathematical relationship supply us with a means to increase the effectiveness of covered areas by altering the parameter α and reduce this by a gradual amount as it nears the optimal search locations. For instance, the following equation can be used to supply a similar methodology:
where t∈[0,t_max] is approximately the time of simulation, and t_max denotes the maximum number of generations. The variable α₀ in the equation denotes the parameter of randomization at the beginning, while α_∞ denotes the final value. An analogous function could, in principle, be applied in the situation concerning scheduling or feedback optimization:
Where θ∈(0,1] represents the constant affecting the speed of reduction of the randomization process. The process of the Firefly Algorithm in finding the optimal parameters of the new controller can be seen in the flowchart in Fig. 2.
Flowchart of the proposed method.
The Firefly Algorithm (FA) is used to optimize the parameters in the design of the proposed fuzzy control system based on the Mean Squared Error (MSE) function. The procedure can be briefly described as follows:
Decide on the model of photovoltaic system to investigate. The elements required in such a model are the photovoltaic panel inverter, DC-DC converters, and so on.
To start with, there are parameters to be determined in terms of the firefly algorithms. These parameters include the number of fireflies and the upper limit.
It creates the group of fireflies, which occurs randomly in such a manner that all fireflies represent the solution and create the membership function.
For every firefly, calculations in function (MSE) are performed through simulations.
Determine the global-best or g_best​ solution based on the value of the objective function.
Next, the locations of fireflies are moved based upon attractiveness and the global optimal solution obtained so far.
If the end conditions are not satisfied, return to Step 4.
End the algorithm.
In other words, this process further optimizes the membership functions so that there is optimal performance in terms of voltage error, dynamic performance, and total harmonic distortion.
In the optimization process, the firefly algorithm considers the parameters of the fuzzy controller’s membership functions as control variables. More specifically, these control variables are the positions, widths, and shapes of all input and output membership functions. In this way, the firefly algorithm seeks to minimize the mean squared error of the output voltage, decrease the total harmonic distortion, and improve the dynamics of the inverter under various load conditions such as resistive, inductive, and nonlinear loading.
This section presents the results obtained from simulations performed in the MATLAB environment. For the simulations, the photovoltaic system shown in Fig. (3) is selected as the test system. The system consists of a solar array whose output voltage is boosted using a DC–DC boost converter, and the boosted voltage is then converted to AC using a three-phase inverter. A three-phase output filter is employed at the inverter side to reduce harmonic components, as illustrated in the circuit model of the designed filter in Fig. (4). Finally, the regulated AC power is supplied to three-phase loads.
Studied photovoltaic system.
LC filter circuit model.
The equivalent circuit of the designed boost converter is shown in Fig. 5.
Boost converter circuit model.
The parameters of the three-phase PWM inverter in the simulation are shown in Table 2.
The inverter controller uses fuzzy logic. Figure 6 illustrates the circuit model of the fuzzy controller.
Fuzzy inverter control circuit.
Input and output membership functions of the fuzzy controller for V_d.
Input and output membership functions of the fuzzy controller for V_q.
The sampled voltage is transformed into the dqo reference frame using the Park transformation. The inputs of the fuzzy controller are the error and the derivative of the error; therefore, the outputs of these are transmitted to the pulse generator circuit in order to produce the corresponding voltages. Note that the d and q fuzzy controller input and output membership functions are presented in Figs. 7 and 8, respectively.
The design of the fuzzy logic controller is based on careful selection of input and output variables, specifically the voltage error and its derivative as inputs, and the corresponding control signals as outputs. The shape, number, and range of membership functions significantly influence the controller’s ability to capture the nonlinear dynamics of the inverter system. Triangular and Gaussian membership functions were used to provide smooth control transitions, while the number of linguistic levels was chosen to balance computational complexity and control resolution. Optimizing these membership functions using the Firefly Algorithm ensures that the controller can accurately track the reference voltage, minimize voltage fluctuations, and maintain low total harmonic distortion (THD) across varying load conditions. Poorly designed membership functions would lead to slower response, higher overshoot, and increased harmonic content, highlighting the critical impact of proper membership function tuning on overall system performance.
In this study, Firefly Algorithm (FA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), and Genetic Algorithm (GA) are employed to optimize the membership function designs of the controllers. The parameters of these algorithms are shown in Table 3.
The parameters of GA, PSO, and FA algorithms in Table 3 are based on the common values of the parameters reported in the literature. The parameters of the GA algorithm are based on the values reported in [7,13], the parameters of the PSO algorithm are based on the values reported in [28,29], and the parameters of the FA algorithm are based on the values reported in [31].
In the process of optimization, the Mean Squared Error (MSE) measure is used, as shown in Eq. (13).
In the equation, l represents the number of sample points. The experiments were performed under different loading conditions. To begin with, the 50 kW resistive load was applied to the system. At time t = 0.1 s, the 50 kW load was turned off, and the RL load was connected to the inverter with active power of 50 kW and inductive reactive power of 5 kVAR. Later, at t = 0.2 s, the load was turned off, and the nonlinear load was applied. The proposed load model is shown in Fig. 9. Three different controllers—conventional PI controller, non-optimized fuzzy controller, and optimized fuzzy controller—were applied separately to the proposed controller and compared. For the conventional PI controller, the parameters K_p​=0.4 and K_i​=1.7 were applied.
Simulated load model.
To evaluate the performance of the control systems, the three-phase voltage waveforms for each designed controller are presented. Figure 10 illustrates the inverter output voltage when the fuzzy controller, optimized using the Genetic Algorithm (GA), is employed.
Load voltage using the GA-optimized fuzzy controller.
Under different loading conditions, the voltages in all three phases vary, especially when the nonlinear load is applied to the power system at time t = 0.2 s. To ensure the quality of the inverter output waveforms, Fast Fourier Transform analysis was performed, and the value of Total Harmonic Distortion was obtained. The quality of the inverter output waveform varies inversely with the percentage value of the THD. To meet standards specified by IEEE 929–2000, the value of the output waveform distortion should not exceed 5% in all cases. The THD in the voltages of all three phases using the GA-optimized fuzzy controller is presented in Fig. 11.
Fourier expansion of voltage signals for GA-optimized fuzzy controller: (a) Phase A, (b) Phase B, and (c) Phase C.
The total harmonic distortion (THD) in the voltages was determined after the 15th cycle. The data obtained reveal that the THD in the phase B voltage is 5.72%, which exceeds the specified THD limitation in distribution networks. The THD in Phases A and C voltages stands at 4.39% and 4.52%, respectively, which are somewhat high. Later, the fuzzy inverter was developed employing Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and connected to the inverter controller circuit. Three-phase voltages at the load end are shown in Fig. 12.
Load voltage using the non-optimized fuzzy controller.
At the moment when the load changes from the resistive to the R_L load at t = 0.1 s, there are small fluctuations in the phase voltages, but they rapidly stabilize at their nominal values. At t = 0.2 s, due to the connection of the nonlinear load, there are oscillations in the phase voltages, but these persist for less than a quarter of a cycle and rapidly decay. The amplitude level of the voltages remains the same, and the inverter output frequency is retained at 50 Hz. Later, the total harmonic distortion (THD) of the voltages applied to the loads, using the non-optimized fuzzy controller, is depicted in Fig. 13. It needs to be mentioned that the calculation of the THD is performed after 15 cycles.
Fourier expansion of the voltage signals for non-optimized fuzzy controller: (a) Phase A, (b) Phase B, and (c) Phase C.
Figure 14 above illustrates that the output voltage of the inverter is insensitive to changes in the load current. It can be observed that despite changes in the load current, there are transient changes in the output voltage, but its amplitude and frequency are constant with a phase shift of 120° between the phases. The controller has good reference voltage tracking characteristics and maintains proper performance criteria. The total harmonic distortion (THD) in the output voltage at the load bus using the optimized fuzzy controller developed using the Firefly Algorithm is shown in Fig. 15. Similar to the previous two controllers, the THD calculation considers 15 cycles.
Load voltage using the FA-optimized fuzzy controller.
Figure 14 illustrates that the output voltage of the inverter is insensitive to changes in the load current. It can be observed that despite changes in the load current, there are transient changes in the output voltage, but its amplitude and frequency are constant with a phase shift of 120° between the phases. The controller has good reference voltage tracking characteristics and maintains proper performance criteria. The proposed FA-based fuzzy logic controller has ensured an outstanding performance under non-linear loads and disturbances. When abrupt changes are caused on the system, from a resistive load to an RL load and then to a non-linear one, the controller keeps the three-phase output voltages at their nominal amplitude and frequency with a constant 120° phase shift. Similarly, the transients developed in the system due to the sudden variation in the applied loads are settled rapidly, i.e., in less than one-fourth of the cycle. Also, the Fast Fourier Transform analysis of the output voltages verifies the level of THD, which is kept at a definite and optimized value, i.e., 2.92%, 2.89%, and 3.95% for phases A, B, and C, respectively, in direct compliance with the IEEE 929–2000 standards, as these values are less than or equal to 5%. Also, the MSE of the optimal controller is significantly reduced to 0.0071, as compared to the results obtained by using non-optimized fuzzy techniques, i.e., to 0.0075, and to the results obtained by using non-optimized traditional PI control techniques, i.e., to 0.0112, affirming their high level of accuracy in reference voltage tracking.
The total harmonic distortion (THD) in the output voltage at the load bus using the optimized fuzzy controller developed using the Firefly Algorithm is shown in Fig. 15. Similar to the previous two controllers, the THD calculation considers 15 cycles.
Fourier expansion of the voltage signals for FA-optimized fuzzy controller: (a) Phase A, (b) Phase B, and (c) Phase C.
Besides the results of voltage regulation, MSE, and THD, the convergence of the optimization algorithms has also been assessed. Table 4 shows the number of iterations taken by the Firefly Algorithm (FA), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), and Genetic Algorithm (GA) to converge to the optimal fuzzy controller design parameters. From the results, it is clear that the FA converges faster to the optimal solution while still producing a high-quality solution.
This section presents a detailed simulation analysis of the proposed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller, evaluating its performance under different load conditions and its impact on voltage regulation, dynamic response, and total harmonic distortion (THD). The total harmonic distortion at the load section is 2.92%, 2.89%, and 3.95% in phase A, phase B, and phase C, in that order. Next, the comparison analysis of the performance of these algorithms based on the result of the simulation analysis can proceed. For clarity, the mean squared error of these algorithms shall first be determined through the following calculations and represented in the bar chart in Fig. 16.
Mean Squared Error (MSE) values of different control methods.
From the obtained result, the optimized fuzzy controller gives the smallest MSE value of 0.0071, whereas the inverter using the conventional PI controller gives an MSE value of 0.0112. In addition, the non-optimized fuzzy controller gives the objective function value of 0.0075. It can be deduced from these results that the smallest MSE value indicates the best controller performance. Table 5 is used to represent the quantitative comparison of all three optimization techniques. In Table 5, it is observed that the Firefly Algorithm has the least value of MSE and optimizes the system within less iteration; i.e., FA converges faster compared to other optimization techniques. While optimizing the system by the FA method, the least average value of THD is obtained compared to other optimization techniques used for improving power quality in the system.
The firefly algorithm has inherent benefits that make it more desirable for optimization of fuzzy logic controller membership functions. The attraction of the candidate solutions towards better solutions in the search space, following the attractive feature of the firefly algorithm, has been found to offer a wider window of convergence. This feature has significantly improved the level of global search while minimizing the chances of convergence to local optima. Furthermore, the exploration-exploitation of the search space, following the factor of randomization and the factor of absorption of the firefly algorithm, has considerably improved efficiency in the optimization of output membership functions as well as input membership functions. These benefits have impacted a remarkable performance of the fuzzy controller designed using the firefly algorithm optimization. The MSE has reduced to desirable values, the voltage regulation is improved, percent THD is reduced to acceptable values, and the responses to varying nonlinear load have been improved. The benefits have impacted considerably on reducing the instability of the stand-alone PV system.
The robustness of the proposed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller is clearly demonstrated. The simulation results for the resistive, RL, and non-linear loads are presented in Table 6. The table shows that the output voltage amplitude is maintained within a range of ± 1% of the reference voltage level. Moreover, the output voltage level is maintained even if the load is changed from resistive to RL or non-linear types. The voltage level is restored within less than a quarter cycle. This shows the damping ability of the proposed controller. The total harmonic distortion (THD) level of the three-phase voltages is low. The mean squared error (MSE) is very low. This shows that the proposed controller is capable of efficiently controlling the voltage level.
In order to assess system stability and reliability even further, more simulations were carried out with sudden changes in system loads and parameters. The system load changes suddenly from 50 kW to 70 kW. The simulation results show that the proposed controller provides a stable voltage regulation without any oscillations and quickly returns the output voltage to its reference value. Moreover, consistent performance under different operating conditions demonstrates high reliability. From a maintainability viewpoint, the modular structure of the fuzzy controller and the offline optimization using the Firefly Algorithm allow easy re-tuning of membership functions, reducing maintenance complexity and facilitating practical implementation.
The effects of the FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller on power quality are substantial. As indicated in Table 7, the FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller ensures that the total harmonic distortion (THD) is less than 5% for all phases and satisfies the IEEE 929–2000 standard. Compared with the conventional PI controller and the non-optimized fuzzy logic controller, the proposed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller has better voltage regulation, faster dynamic response, and smaller MSE. This verifies that the proposed method not only improves the inverter’s performance but also provides high-quality AC power.
The proposed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller is seen to have better performance in comparison with traditional PI control and unoptimized fuzzy logic control in terms of voltage regulation, response, and reduced THD. In traditional PI control, high sensitivity is observed for parameter variations, and in traditional unoptimized fuzzy logic control, tuning is performed in a manual way, which is not an easy task. However, in the case of the proposed controller, the intelligent optimization is performed, which is advantageous. Disadvantage in using the proposed controller is that in offline optimization, complexity is observed in computation, but in actual time, it is seen to have low complexity.
The results presented in Tables 5, 6 and 7 show that the FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller outperforms the conventional PI and non-optimized fuzzy controllers in terms of performance, efficiency, and power quality. The MSE value is minimized, convergence is achieved quickly, voltage is regulated properly, and THD is reduced.
In order to further stress the originality and efficiency of the proposed method, a comparative study with some of the existing works is provided in Table 8. The comparison is conducted based on system configuration, control method, optimization technique, type of loads taken into consideration, and performance metrics. From the table, it can be noted that most of the existing works have been conducted on limited types of loads or on optimizing the controller partially, whereas the proposed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller performs better with resistive, inductive, and nonlinear loads.
The presented work offers an optimized fuzzy controller design for a three-phase inverter in standalone photovoltaic (PV) power systems using the Firefly Algorithm (FA). The main objective of designing the controller is to optimize the input/output membership functions in order to reduce the mean squared error (MSE) of the output voltage, maintain stable voltage amplitude and frequency, and reduce the total harmonic distortion (THD) due to variable loads. Simulation outputs reveal that the FA-optimized fuzzy controller demonstrates stable performance and fast dynamic reaction with respect to resistive, inductive, and non-linear loading patterns. When compared with conventional proportional-integral (PI) controller designs and fuzzy controller designs optimized using Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithms, the FA methodology gives the smallest MSE value, maintains constant output voltage amplitude and frequency under varying loads, and quickly damped the transient level of load changes. In addition, the output voltages in all three-phases maintain less than 5% standard THD specifications and demonstrate significant improvements compared to other designs in order to support high power quality. Therefore, applying the Firefly Algorithm in the optimization of membership functions in the fuzzy controller makes less use of advanced mathematical modeling while improving tracking performance of the reference voltages and system stability. The presented approach presents an efficient and optimal solution in real photovoltaic power applications related to the control of three-phase inverters in standalone photovoltaic power systems. The obtained data from the presented work indicates the reliability and applicability of the presented design in real-world photovoltaic power applications. The simulation results validate that the proposed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller enhances the performance of the standalone PV inverter, achieving a minimum THD of 2.89% and an MSE of 0.0071, thus ensuring better power quality and control accuracy than the existing methods.
In addition, future research will mainly focus on the real-time implementation of the developed FA-optimized fuzzy logic controller on various real-world hardware platforms like DSP and FPGA-based control systems. The robustness of the system will be tested by conducting experimental analysis on real-world environmental conditions like changes in solar irradiance, temperature changes, and uncertain loads. Moreover, the effect of sensor noise, delays, and inverter switching will also be considered. In addition, to enhance the real-world implementation of the presented control strategy, some online optimization methods can be considered for adjusting the membership functions based on changes in system parameters and aging.
All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article.
Photovoltaic
Fuzzy Logic Controller
Genetic Algorithm
Particle Swarm Optimization
Firefly Algorithm
Total Harmonic Distortion
Mean Square Error
Voltage Source Inverter
Pulse Width Modulation
Space Vector Pulse Width Modulation
DC-link voltage
Three-phase output voltage
Three-phase output current
Error signal
Change in error
Output power
Fundamental frequency
Resistive load
Resistive–Inductive load
Membership function
Objective (cost) function
Number of fireflies
Attractiveness coefficient
Light absorption coefficient
Randomization parameter
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Department of Electrical Engineering, Sar.C., Islamic Azad University, Sari, Iran
Pegah Nouri, Tohid Nouri & Mehdi Radmehr
Department of Electrical Engineering, Jo.C., Islamic Azad University, Jouybar, Iran
Mehrdad Ahmadi Kamarposhti
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Pegah Nouri: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data Curation, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization.Mehrdad Ahmadi Kamarposhti: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data Curation, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project Administration.Tohid Nouri: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data Curation, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project Administration.Mehdi Radmehr: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data Curation, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization.
Correspondence to Mehrdad Ahmadi Kamarposhti.
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Nouri, P., Kamarposhti, M.A., Nouri, T. et al. Optimization of fuzzy logic controller in the converter of a standalone solar power system using the firefly algorithm. Sci Rep 16, 10248 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-41508-0
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Kaneka Corp is expanding its thin-film solar cell and premium nutrition ingredients businesses, drawing attention from US investors via its Tokyo listing.
Kaneka Corp is broadening its footprint in advanced thin-film solar cells and high?end nutrition ingredients, two growth areas that are increasingly relevant for US investors tracking Japanese industrial and health?tech exporters. The company’s ultra?thin perovskite solar cells, reported to reach about 10??m thickness with around 20?percent conversion efficiency, are among the thinnest in the world and are positioned for niche applications in building?integrated photovoltaics and lightweight power solutions, according to a 2026 market report on the thin?film solar cell sector.OpenPR as of 05/09/2026
At the same time, Kaneka Nutrients, a subsidiary of Kaneka Corp, continues to supply premium?quality ingredients such as Kaneka Ubiquinol to the global nutraceutical and food & beverage industries. The brand’s ubiquinol product recently won a Vitafoods Europe innovation award, underscoring its positioning in the high?end supplement segment and highlighting the company’s focus on differentiated, science?backed nutrition solutions.Nutraceuticals World as of 05/09/2026
As of: 09.05.2026
By the editorial team – specialized in equity coverage.
Kaneka Corp operates as a diversified Japanese chemical and advanced?materials group with activities spanning basic chemicals, polymers, electronic materials, and specialty nutrition ingredients. The company’s business model centers on developing proprietary technologies in polymer chemistry, biotechnology, and thin?film electronics, then licensing or commercializing these technologies across industrial, consumer, and healthcare?related markets.Kaneka IR as of 05/09/2026
Within this framework, Kaneka targets high?value niches where technical differentiation can support premium pricing and long?term customer relationships. Examples include specialty resins for automotive and electronics, biodegradable and high?performance plastics, and advanced solar?cell films that combine light weight with relatively high efficiency. This focus on technology?driven segments helps insulate parts of the business from pure commodity?price cycles, even though the group still faces exposure to global chemical demand and energy costs.Kaneka IR as of 05/09/2026
Chemicals and polymers remain a core revenue pillar for Kaneka, supplying resins, foams, and specialty plastics to automotive, construction, and packaging customers. These products benefit from ongoing demand for lightweight, durable materials in vehicles and buildings, as well as from regulatory trends favoring higher?performance insulation and packaging solutions.Kaneka IR as of 05/09/2026
Advanced materials and electronics?related products, including thin?film solar cells and electronic?grade films, represent a smaller but strategically important segment. The company’s ultra?thin perovskite solar cells are designed for applications where weight and flexibility matter more than absolute peak efficiency, such as curved surfaces, portable devices, and certain building?integrated systems. As the global thin?film solar market is projected to grow at a high compound annual growth rate through 2026, this segment could contribute incremental growth if Kaneka succeeds in scaling production and securing commercial partnerships.OpenPR as of 05/09/2026
The nutrition and health?ingredients segment, anchored by Kaneka Nutrients, focuses on premium coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinol) and related compounds used in dietary supplements and functional foods. Recognition such as the Vitafoods Europe innovation award for Kaneka Ubiquinol reinforces the brand’s reputation for quality and may support higher margins in the nutraceutical channel, particularly in North America and Europe where consumer demand for science?backed supplements remains strong.Nutraceuticals World as of 05/09/2026
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Additional news and developments on the stock can be explored via the linked overview pages.
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Kaneka Corp’s combination of established chemical and polymer businesses with emerging thin?film solar and premium nutrition?ingredients segments offers a diversified industrial profile that may appeal to investors seeking exposure to Japanese technology?driven exporters. The company’s ultra?thin perovskite solar cells and high?end ubiquinol products highlight its ability to target niche, higher?margin markets rather than competing solely on price.OpenPR as of 05/09/2026Nutraceuticals World as of 05/09/2026
For US investors, Kaneka’s Tokyo listing provides indirect access to Japanese industrial and health?tech trends, though currency and regional macro risks remain relevant. The stock’s performance will likely depend on how effectively the group balances cyclical chemical demand with growth in advanced materials and nutrition, while managing capital intensity and technology?transition risks in the solar and biotech segments.Kaneka IR as of 05/09/2026
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The modules will be showcased at Intersolar 2026 in Munich.
German researchers have developed a technique for applying realistic designs to photovoltaic (PV) modules that allow them to imitate roof tiles, and blend more seamlessly into buildings.
The new method, called ShadeCut, was invented by a research team at Freiburg’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), one of the largest solar energy research institutes in the world.
It enables complex visual patterns while also retaining approximately 95 percent of the power output of an uncoated module. The novel approach builds on the institute’s MorphoColor technology, a bio-inspired coating for solar panels.
It produces color through microscopic structures rather than traditional pigments, and uses specially colored films with transparent cutouts to build designs that can resemble roof tiles, masonry or even custom graphics.
“The technology is particularly interesting for modules intended for integration into facades, roof-integrated PV, or even railings, especially on historic buildings,” Martin Heinrich, PhD, a researcher at Fraunhofer ISE, as well as group leader for encapsulation and integration of photovoltaics, said.
Driven by the iridescent wings of the Morpho butterfly, the MorphoColor method uses 3D photonic structures that manipulate light to generate vivid, angle-stable colors with minimal energy loss.
Marco Ernst, PhD, a researcher at Fraunhofer ISE and developer of the ShadeCut concept, emphasized that by structuring and cutting a color-producing film, the team can embed color effects and complex patterns directly into solar modules and facades.
“Additionally, there is the option to add further layers with cutouts to create structures or additional colors,” Ernst continued.
Following this biological model, scientists at the institute have also succeeded in applying a similar surface structure to the back of the cover glass of photovoltaic modules using a vacuum process.
Elaborating on the technology, Heinrich noted that ShadeCut uses laser or CAD-controlled processes to cut patterns into films carrying MorphoColor coating 
Heinrich explained that ShadeCut modules can mimic masonry or roof tiles and match surrounding colors seamlessly. “It also allows for the customization of PV systems, for example with logo lettering or patterns,” he added.
According to the team, the MorphoColor technology has surpassed its biological model in performance. Independent tests have shown that such coatings retain about 95 percent uncoated panels’ power. This makes the technology superior to comparable solutions on the market.
It moreover makes it attractive for applications where aesthetics have traditionally limited the adoption of solar panels. The scientists can apply the films to standard photovoltaics and solar thermal modules.
“Depending on the microstructure, cover glasses can thus be produced in various colors,” the researchers revealed in a press release.
Such adaptability could help expand the role of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), where solar panels are used directly into the structure of a building rather than just mounted on top.
In addition, traditional black or blue panels often face resistance in historic areas or design-conscious projects. Color-matched or patterned modules could make solar installations more acceptable, and even desirable.
The ShadeCut modules will be showcased at The Smarter E / Intersolar Europe 2026 in Munich, the world’s leading exhibition for the solar industry. It will be held between June 23 and 25.
Based in Skopje, North Macedonia. Her work has appeared in Daily Mail, Mirror, Daily Star, Yahoo, NationalWorld, Newsweek, Press Gazette and others. She covers stories on batteries, wind energy, sustainable shipping and new discoveries. When she's not chasing the next big science story, she's traveling, exploring new cultures, or enjoying good food with even better wine.
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Solar photovoltaic installations in India hit a record 14.4 gigawatts during the first quarter of 2026, according to a report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
This figure nearly doubled the 7.7 gigawatts added in the same period a year earlier. Data from analysts JMK Research and Mercom India, released earlier this year, indicated that 2025 was already a record year for solar PV in India, with approximately 37 gigawatts of new installations.
The recent growth in solar PV has been fueled by a rise in rooftop solar installations under the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana program. That initiative, which aims to equip ten million households with rooftop solar systems, has added nearly 10 gigawatts of rooftop PV capacity between the first quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2026 since its launch in 2024.
Solar PV was the leading technology for new capacity additions in the first quarter of 2026, accounting for 76 percent of all new power generation capacity. With the record additions in the first three months of the year, India surpassed a cumulative installed solar PV capacity of 150 gigawatts and now ranks third globally in installed PV capacity.
According to IEEFA, the current momentum for solar PV reflects a sustained build-out driven by better project execution and supported by an expanding pipeline of hybrid solar-wind projects. However, IEEFA noted that the rapid expansion of renewables has begun to strain grid integration capabilities.
Despite continued growth in solar PV, renewable energy investments in the first quarter of 2026 dropped sharply from $9.8 billion to $3.3 billion, a year-on-year decline of 65.8 percent. IEEFA attributed this decline to growing caution over grid integration challenges, curtailment risks, and transmission constraints, adding that the pace of renewable growth is outstripping transmission and grid infrastructure.
Among the most notable investments in the first quarter of 2026 were Premier Energies‘ $1.17 billion expenditure to add 7.4 gigawatts of solar cell manufacturing capacity in Andhra Pradesh and 6 gigawatts of module manufacturing capacity in Telangana, as well as equity financing by Inox Clean Energy in January 2026 to expand its independent power production portfolio and manufacturing capacity.
Interactive table based on the Store Companies dataset for this report.
This report provides a comprehensive view of the solar cells and light-emitting diodes industry in India, tracking demand, supply, and trade flows across the national value chain. It explains how demand across key channels and end-use segments shapes consumption patterns, while also mapping the role of input availability, production efficiency, and regulatory standards on supply.
Beyond headline metrics, the study benchmarks prices, margins, and trade routes so you can see where value is created and how it moves between domestic suppliers and international partners. The analysis is designed to support strategic planning, market entry, portfolio prioritization, and risk management in the solar cells and light-emitting diodes landscape in India.
The report combines market sizing with trade intelligence and price analytics for India. It covers both historical performance and the forward outlook to 2035, allowing you to compare cycles, structural shifts, and policy impacts.
This report provides a consistent view of market size, trade balance, prices, and per-capita indicators for India. The profile highlights demand structure and trade position, enabling benchmarking against regional and global peers.
The analysis is built on a multi-source framework that combines official statistics, trade records, company disclosures, and expert validation. Data are standardized, reconciled, and cross-checked to ensure consistency across time series.
All data are normalized to a common product definition and mapped to a consistent set of codes. This ensures that comparisons across time are aligned and actionable.
The forecast horizon extends to 2035 and is based on a structured model that links solar cells and light-emitting diodes demand and supply to macroeconomic indicators, trade patterns, and sector-specific drivers. The model captures both cyclical and structural factors and reflects known policy and technology shifts in India.
Each projection is built from national historical patterns and the broader regional context, allowing the report to show where growth is concentrated and where risks are elevated.
Prices are analyzed in detail, including export and import unit values, regional spreads, and changes in trade costs. The report highlights how seasonality, freight rates, exchange rates, and supply disruptions influence pricing and margins.
Key producers, exporters, and distributors are profiled with a focus on their operational scale, geographic footprint, product mix, and market positioning. This helps identify competitive pressure points, partnership opportunities, and routes to differentiation.
This report is designed for manufacturers, distributors, importers, wholesalers, investors, and advisors who need a clear, data-driven picture of solar cells and light-emitting diodes dynamics in India.
The market size aggregates consumption and trade data, presented in both value and volume terms.
The projections combine historical trends with macroeconomic indicators, trade dynamics, and sector-specific drivers.
Yes, it includes export and import unit values, regional spreads, and a pricing outlook to 2035.
The report benchmarks market size, trade balance, prices, and per-capita indicators for India.
Yes, it highlights demand hotspots, trade routes, pricing trends, and competitive context.
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Concise View of Market Direction
Market Size, Growth and Scenario Framing
Commercial and Technical Scope
How the Market Splits Into Decision-Relevant Buckets
Where Demand Comes From and How It Behaves
Supply Footprint and Value Capture
Trade Flows and External Dependence
Price Formation and Revenue Logic
Who Wins and Why
How the Domestic Market Works
Commercial Entry and Scaling Priorities
Where the Best Expansion Logic Sits
Leading Players and Strategic Archetypes
How the Report Was Built
Major integrated solar manufacturer
India's largest solar module manufacturer
Part of Adani Group, integrated manufacturing
Leading manufacturer, part of Tata Group
Major PV module and cell producer
Historical leader in solar manufacturing
Makes solar cells, modules, encapsulants
Module and cell manufacturer
Solar PV module manufacturer
Solar panel manufacturer and distributor
Manufactures solar modules and inverters
Solar panel manufacturer
Solar panel manufacturer
Solar panel manufacturer
Solar cell and module manufacturer
Major LED lighting products manufacturer
Leading electrical goods co, major LED player
Major manufacturer of LED lights and fixtures
Major player in LED lighting segment
LED lighting manufacturer
Manufactures LED displays and lighting
Indian subsidiary, major LED mfg in India
Manufactures LED lights and fixtures
Major Indian electrical brand, produces LEDs
LED lighting products manufacturer
Manufactures LED bulbs and lighting
Major player in consumer LED lighting
Leading LED lighting solutions provider
Manufactures LED lights under Finolex brand
Wires & cables major, also manufactures LEDs
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Posted on May 9, 2026 at 10:49 pm (GMT+8)

Concord New Energy Group Limited Announces RMB198 Million Photovoltaic Power Equipment Acquisition

Key Points for Investors

• Major Purchase Contract Signed: Concord New Energy Group Limited, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Tianjin Huaxing, has entered into a purchase contract with China Construction Eighth Bureau Development Construction Corp., Ltd. (CCEB) for advanced photovoltaic power equipment.
• Total Consideration: The transaction is valued at approximately RMB197.93 million, split into two components:
  • Consideration A: RMB123.21 million for photovoltaic power modules (Equipment A)
  • Consideration B: RMB74.72 million for inverters, mounting structures, electrical equipment, and other materials (Equipment B)
• Project Details: The equipment will be used for a large-scale 120MW photovoltaic power project in Huai’an, Jiangsu Province, PRC.
• Payment Terms: Payments will be made in structured instalments, including advance, delivery, acceptance, and warranty payments, with additional guarantees required from CCEB.
• Performance and Quality Guarantee: CCEB must provide an irrevocable performance guarantee equal to 10% of the consideration, and quality warranties are specified for all equipment components.
• Listing Rules Implications: The transaction constitutes a discloseable transaction under Hong Kong Listing Rules as it exceeds 5% but is less than 25% of relevant ratios, requiring public disclosure.
• Timeline: Equipment delivery is expected by the end of October 2026.

Detailed Overview of the Transaction

Concord New Energy Group Limited, headquartered in Singapore and listed on both Hong Kong and Singapore exchanges, continues its strategic push into renewable energy with this significant acquisition. The RMB197.93 million contract with CCEB, a subsidiary of the prominent China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited (Shanghai Stock Exchange: 601668), is intended to support the development of a 120MW solar power plant in Jiangsu Province.

Payment Structure and Guarantees

The payment for Equipment A (solar modules) and Equipment B (inverters, mounting structures, etc.) will be made in instalments, including advance payments, delivery payments, acceptance payments, and warranty-related deposits. Notably, the contract includes:

• Advance payments (10% of each consideration) upon provision of a performance guarantee by CCEB.
• Delivery payments (70% for Equipment A, 40% for Equipment B) after successful delivery and document verification.
• Acceptance payments (10% for Equipment A, 20% for Equipment B) upon passing inspection.
• Warranty payments (10% for both) to be released after one year, subject to bank guarantee and satisfactory performance assessment.

These structured payments and guarantees are designed to mitigate risk and ensure delivery and quality, a key point for shareholders monitoring execution risk.

Price Adjustment Clause

The contract includes a price adjustment mechanism: should the market price of the equipment fall below the contract price before the advance payment date, the total consideration will be adjusted to reflect the lowest market price. This protects the company from overpaying in a volatile market.

Warranty Terms

CCEB is obligated to provide warranties for all equipment:

• Equipment A and inverters: 12 years and 5 years respectively.
• Other equipment and materials: 2 years.

Upon expiry of one year after initial acceptance, warranty payments may be replaced with a bank guarantee, enhancing security for Concord New Energy.

Strategic Implications

This acquisition aligns with Concord New Energy’s mission to advance sustainable energy infrastructure and supports its growth as a provider of clean energy and AI-powered solutions. The project will strengthen the company’s portfolio in solar power, complementing its wind and energy storage assets.

Shareholder Impact and Potential Price Sensitivity

This transaction is price sensitive and may affect share values:

• It represents a significant capital commitment and expansion in China’s renewable energy sector.
• The investment is expected to be funded by internal resources and/or borrowings, impacting liquidity and leverage metrics.
• The successful execution and profitability of the 120MW project could materially improve the company’s future earnings and market positioning.
• Structured payment and warranty terms reduce operational risk but require effective project management.
• Should equipment prices drop before advance payment, the company is protected from adverse market conditions.

Investors should monitor project progress, delivery timelines, and any market developments affecting photovoltaic equipment pricing or regulatory changes in China.

Corporate Governance and Transaction Transparency

The transaction has been evaluated based on public tenders, with directors affirming the commercial terms are fair, reasonable, and in the interests of shareholders. The contract satisfies disclosure requirements under Chapter 14 of the Hong Kong Listing Rules, ensuring transparency.

Board Composition

The board overseeing the transaction comprises experienced executives, including Chairman Liu Shunxing, Vice Chairperson Liu Jianhong, CEO Niu Wenhui, and several independent non-executive directors, providing strong governance oversight.

Conclusion

Concord New Energy Group’s RMB198 million investment in photovoltaic power equipment for a major solar project marks a significant step in its renewable energy strategy. The contract’s terms, payment structure, and risk-mitigating clauses are designed to secure shareholder value and support long-term growth. This news is highly relevant for investors and may influence share price, contingent on project execution, market conditions, and regulatory developments.

Disclaimer: This article is based on public disclosures and is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice. Investors should conduct their own due diligence and consult with professional advisors before making investment decisions. The author and publisher accept no liability for any investment decisions made based on this article.

View CONCORD NE Historical chart here

Concord New Energy Group Limited, headquartered in Singapore and listed on both Hong Kong and Singapore exchanges, continues its strategic push into renewable energy with this significant acquisition. The RMB197.93 million contract with CCEB, a subsidiary of the prominent China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited (Shanghai Stock Exchange: 601668), is intended to support the development of a 120MW solar power plant in Jiangsu Province.
The payment for Equipment A (solar modules) and Equipment B (inverters, mounting structures, etc.) will be made in instalments, including advance payments, delivery payments, acceptance payments, and warranty-related deposits. Notably, the contract includes:
These structured payments and guarantees are designed to mitigate risk and ensure delivery and quality, a key point for shareholders monitoring execution risk.
The contract includes a price adjustment mechanism: should the market price of the equipment fall below the contract price before the advance payment date, the total consideration will be adjusted to reflect the lowest market price. This protects the company from overpaying in a volatile market.
CCEB is obligated to provide warranties for all equipment:
Upon expiry of one year after initial acceptance, warranty payments may be replaced with a bank guarantee, enhancing security for Concord New Energy.
This acquisition aligns with Concord New Energy’s mission to advance sustainable energy infrastructure and supports its growth as a provider of clean energy and AI-powered solutions. The project will strengthen the company’s portfolio in solar power, complementing its wind and energy storage assets.
This transaction is price sensitive and may affect share values:
Investors should monitor project progress, delivery timelines, and any market developments affecting photovoltaic equipment pricing or regulatory changes in China.
The transaction has been evaluated based on public tenders, with directors affirming the commercial terms are fair, reasonable, and in the interests of shareholders. The contract satisfies disclosure requirements under Chapter 14 of the Hong Kong Listing Rules, ensuring transparency.
The board overseeing the transaction comprises experienced executives, including Chairman Liu Shunxing, Vice Chairperson Liu Jianhong, CEO Niu Wenhui, and several independent non-executive directors, providing strong governance oversight.
Concord New Energy Group’s RMB198 million investment in photovoltaic power equipment for a major solar project marks a significant step in its renewable energy strategy. The contract’s terms, payment structure, and risk-mitigating clauses are designed to secure shareholder value and support long-term growth. This news is highly relevant for investors and may influence share price, contingent on project execution, market conditions, and regulatory developments.
Disclaimer: This article is based on public disclosures and is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice. Investors should conduct their own due diligence and consult with professional advisors before making investment decisions. The author and publisher accept no liability for any investment decisions made based on this article.

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In a groundbreaking advancement in photovoltaic technology, researchers have unveiled a novel method that dramatically enhances the performance of inverted perovskite solar cells, achieving a record-breaking fill factor. This pioneering approach, described by Liu, Y., Kong, T., Zhao, Z., and their team, leverages a liquid-derived, solvent-free vapor-mediated dimensional reconstruction technique to manipulate the morphology and crystallinity of the perovskite layer with unprecedented precision. Published in Nature Communications in 2026, their findings not only push the boundaries of solar cell efficiency but also open new pathways for scalable and environmentally friendly fabrication processes.
The fill factor—a critical parameter in solar cell efficiency that measures the quality of the solar cell’s current-voltage characteristics—has historically stubbornly plateaued due to intrinsic material and interface limitations within perovskite architectures. Traditional methods involving wet solvent processing often introduce defects or unwanted ion migration, which degrade device performance. The new vapor-mediated reconstruction method elegantly overcomes these challenges by eschewing solvents entirely, thereby eliminating solvent residue and associated structural instabilities.
This technique exploits the vapor phase of carefully selected precursors to induce controlled dimensional restructuring of the perovskite crystals. By modulating the vapor environment, the researchers achieved a finely tuned nucleation and growth mechanism that promotes quasi-two-dimensional crystallization patterns while preserving the inverted solar cell configuration—typically favored for its stability and compatibility with flexible substrates. The result is a perovskite film with superior homogeneity, fewer grain boundaries, and markedly reduced defect densities, all contributing factors to enhanced electronic properties.
Beyond morphology control, the solvent-free vapor approach inherently mitigates ion migration—a notorious problem responsible for hysteresis and long-term instability in perovskite devices. Without residual solvents, ion mobility within the lattice is drastically reduced, resulting in improved operational stability and reproducibility. The repair of sub-surface defects through vapor-mediated recrystallization also contributes to prolonged device lifespan, addressing a major hurdle in the commercialization of perovskite photovoltaics.
From a device engineering perspective, the inverted architecture benefits significantly from this refined layer. The dimensional reconstruction not only enhances charge carrier diffusion pathways but also optimizes band alignment between the perovskite absorber and the adjacent electron and hole transport layers. This synergistic interface tailoring ensures minimal charge recombination, increased open-circuit voltage, and ultimately, superior power conversion efficiency.
Importantly, the liquid-derived vapor treatment employs environmentally benign precursors and avoids toxic solvents, marking a crucial step towards sustainable manufacturing processes. This aspect aligns with global pushes for green energy technologies that emphasize both performance and ecological responsibility. The method exhibits broad compatibility with existing fabrication workflows, suggesting that integration into industrial-scale production lines could be achieved with minimal disruption.
The research team conducted comprehensive characterization of the reconstructed films using advanced electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and spectroscopic techniques, which revealed uniform crystallite size distribution and enhanced crystallographic orientation. Time-resolved photoluminescence and impedance spectroscopy further confirmed reduced non-radiative recombination and superior charge extraction dynamics, corroborating the macroscopic performance improvements observed in the devices.
Moreover, accelerated aging tests under continuous illumination and thermal stress demonstrated remarkable stability improvements compared to conventional solvent-processed inverted perovskite solar cells. This resilience underscores the practical viability of the vapor-mediated approach for real-world applications, especially in environments where temperature fluctuations and prolonged exposure to light typically degrade device performance.
The record fill factor achieved by this method drastically narrows the gap between perovskite-based technologies and traditional silicon photovoltaics. Given the lower cost potential and tunable material properties of perovskites, this breakthrough propels them closer to market readiness in high-efficiency, flexible, and lightweight solar panels, expanding their potential applications from rooftops to portable electronics and even building-integrated photovoltaics.
In the broader context of solar energy research, this work exemplifies the power of innovative processing strategies that rethink material synthesis at the microstructural level. It challenges the conventional wisdom that solvent-based fabrication is indispensable for quality perovskite films and instead demonstrates that vapor-phase reconstruction can offer superior performance metrics.
Looking forward, the research invites further investigation into the vapor chemistry and kinetic parameters that govern dimensional reconstruction, paving the way for even more refined control over film properties. Potential combinations with multijunction architectures and tandem devices offer an exciting horizon where this solvent-free method might confer efficiency gains beyond current single-junction limits.
Furthermore, the approach’s adaptability to a variety of perovskite compositions, including less toxic lead-reduced or mixed-cation systems, could accelerate efforts to develop environmentally sound solar technologies without sacrificing performance. This adaptability underscores the method’s versatility and its potential impact across diverse photovoltaic research trajectories.
In sum, the liquid-derived, solvent-free vapor-mediated dimensional reconstruction represents a transformative leap in perovskite solar cell technology. By delivering a record fill factor in inverted configurations, this innovative approach not only sets new performance benchmarks but also charts a sustainable, scalable path for next-generation solar energy solutions. As the global demand for clean and efficient energy intensifies, such advances underscore the promise of perovskite photovoltaics to revolutionize how we harness the sun’s power.
Subject of Research:
Perovskite Solar Cells
Article Title:
Liquid-derived, solvent-free vapor-mediated dimensional reconstruction yields a record fill factor in inverted perovskite solar cells
Article References:
Liu, Y., Kong, T., Zhao, Z. et al. Liquid-derived, solvent-free vapor-mediated dimensional reconstruction yields a record fill factor in inverted perovskite solar cells. Nat Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-72790-1
Image Credits:
AI Generated
Tags: enhanced perovskite morphology controlenvironmentally friendly solar cell productionhigh-efficiency perovskite solar devicesimproved crystallinity in solar cellsinverted perovskite photovoltaic technologyliquid-derived perovskite fabricationovercoming ion migration in perovskitesquasi-two-dimensional perovskite crystallizationrecord fill factor in perovskite solar cellsscalable perovskite manufacturing methodssolvent-free vapor-mediated reconstructionvapor phase dimensional restructuring
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Caroline Owens of Owens Farms in Sunbury opens the gate to her trailer and watches sheep run to graze at a solar farm at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove on Thursday, April 9, 2026.
Caroline Owens of Owens Farms in Sunbury opens the gate to her trailer and watches sheep run to graze at a solar farm at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove on Thursday, April 9, 2026.
 
THE ISSUE
A debate over solar panels is pitting farmland preservationists in Lancaster County against proponents of renewable energy and farmers seeking ways to help sustain their family farms. At issue is whether the installation of solar panels on farm property is considered an agricultural use.
Farming in the United States — even in the prized soil of Lancaster County — has always been a tough occupation.
It’s been made tougher by the escalation in the prices of fertilizer and diesel fuel.
In recent years, some farmers have turned to solar power. To make money or reduce energy costs, they’ve welcomed onto their farmland what are called solar arrays — collections of solar panels installed together to generate electricity from sunlight.
As LNP | LancasterOnline reported, “In 2023, Boston-based solar developer New Leaf Energy and property owners Gerald and Jewel Gruber sought permission from the West Lampeter Township Zoning Hearing Board to build a 25-acre installation of solar panels on their farmland. … The property owners tried to argue that the solar array qualifies as agriculture because of the plan to raise sheep underneath them.”
The property owners lost at the township zoning board and lost in a ruling from the Court of Common Pleas, affirmed in January by the Commonwealth Court on appeal. The ruling concluded that a solar array on top of a sheep pasture did not conform to West Lampeter Township’s rules for agricultural land use.
This pleased Jeff Swinehart, Lancaster Farmland Trust’s president and CEO.
“When we’re sitting on the most productive nonirrigated soils here in Lancaster County and we’re within a day’s drive to large metro areas with big populations, it just seems that the best use (of that land) is food or fiber rather than producing energy,” Swinehart told this newspaper.
Daniel Dotterer, a Clinton County farmer who testified in the case as the shepherd who would have grazed sheep on the property, was not so pleased. He said that putting solar arrays on agricultural land offers an opportunity for multigenerational family farmers to sustain their businesses, while also preserving farmland.
“Ninety-nine percent of all development is permanent,” Dotterer noted. “You put in a house, you put a Walmart, a Dollar General, that land is gone forever. The beauty of solar is it’s all removable.”
Both sides in this debate share the admirable aim of preserving farmland while sustaining family farms. Farmland preservation is particularly critical in Lancaster County, where vast acres of arable land have been lost to development.
But we were struck by this statistic: Pennsylvania ranks 49th in the nation when it comes to how much of its total energy production comes from renewable energy, according to Department of Energy data.
This is shockingly poor, especially as Pennsylvania was the first state to adopt modern renewable energy standards.
Renewable energy has been aggressively discouraged by the pro-fossil fuel Trump administration. From its perspective, concerns about climate change are gone with the wind, and the windmills.
This is a complete denial of reality.
The fact is that whether we acknowledge it, the climate is changing. And our reliance on fossil fuels is accelerating that change. The hot-one-day-cold-the-next temperature swings we’re experiencing this spring are yet more evidence of this.
Jennifer Francis, senior scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center in Massachusetts, recently told the Bloomberg Green Daily newsletter that studies suggest these “whiplash events” will “become more common in the future.”
Farmers have had to deal with the extreme weather brought by climate change in recent years. And they’ll have to deal with whatever it brings — drought, flooding, shifting growing seasons, vector-borne diseases, etc. — in the years to come.
Even if they don’t acknowledge climate science, farmers tend to be practical people. They see rising energy costs spurring some of the increasing demand for solar power.
This is why some Lancaster County farmers have installed roof-mounted solar arrays on barns and other buildings to offset their energy bills, a practice dubbed “net-metering.” The solar power generated is calculated against their energy bills; excess energy can be sold off through the grid.
This is a sensible and climate-friendly way to reduce energy costs. And yet some people object to solar arrays because they think solar panels are ugly. Or folks have been led, inaccurately, to believe that solar panels cause cancer. Such myths have been perpetuated by some within the fossil fuel industry and its lobby.
We’d like to see Lancaster County farmers, preservationists and other residents find some middle ground; perhaps that would mean determining, with zoning officials, what percentage of a farm’s acreage could hold solar arrays. Because fossil fuels are harming the planet. And the overwhelming demand for artificial intelligence is leading to the construction of energy-sucking data centers. That energy has to come from somewhere. Why not the sun?
In a letter to the editor published this weekend, Lancaster farmer Aidan Fife makes a case for agrivoltaics, the use of land for both agriculture and solar energy generation.
“I would argue that solar grazing is one of the easiest environmental and economic win-wins for preserving farmland and producing energy,” Fife wrote. “Solar farms require mowing and maintenance to keep the grass down. Sheep require grass! And sheep also benefit from the shade of solar panels during hot months. Agrivoltaics … isn’t opposed to farmland preservation; it supports it.”
He added: “At a time when data centers will start taking over vast amounts of (Lancaster County’s) energy, and farmland is under threat, why close off an avenue to locally grown energy, food and additional farm revenue to keep land from being developed?”
As LNP | LancasterOnline reported, it may be difficult at this point to grow crops under solar panels — cost-effectiveness and commercial viability remain in question — but grazing sheep under solar panels seems like a reasonable way for a farmer to earn additional revenue.
Lancaster County isn’t likely to be blanketed in solar panels because land here is pricey and farms tend to be smaller than elsewhere. So we think some flexibility is called for in cases in which solar arrays make sense for farmers.
In 1986, a song by the English indie band The Housemartins contained the lyric, “It’s sheep we’re up against.”
In 2026, it’s not sheep we’re up against. It’s old ideas about energy and land use. It’s time for some fresh thinking to save our planet and our farmland.
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Nature Communications volume 17, Article number: 4193 (2026) Cite this article
The performance of all-perovskite tandem solar cells is critically hindered by the defective and high-roughness surfaces of lead-tin narrow-bandgap subcells, which induce non-radiative recombination and impede carrier extraction. Herein, we report a robust and multifunctional strategy to convert the above narrow-bandgap perovskite surface into an efficient and smooth one by a picosecond ultraviolet pulsed laser polishing technology combined with surface reconstruction. The polished surface is decoded as [PbI₆]⁴⁻/[SnI₆]⁴⁻ octahedral frameworks with metastable A-site vacancies. By screening guanidinium bromide as an A-site passivator, the polished surface is reconstructed into a guanidinium-cesium-based perovskite phase, substantially enhancing carrier extraction and suppressing ion migration. The resulting single-junction lead-tin and tandem solar cells, fabricated via an antisolvent-free method, achieve efficiencies of 23.47% (certified) and 29.80%, respectively, alongside exceptional operational stability. This versatile interface engineering paradigm surmounts a pivotal barrier in the advancement of next-generation photovoltaic technologies.
Tandem solar cells (TSCs) offer the potential to reach over 43% power conversion efficiency (PCE) by minimizing thermalization losses, thereby surpassing the Shockley-Queisser limit (33%) of single-junction solar cells^1,2. Currently, all-perovskite TSCs have achieved 30.1%³ certified PCE in less than two decades, ascribing to unique photoelectrical properties, demonstrating as promising candidates for the next generation of photovoltaic (PV) technology.
As the bottom subcell of all-perovskite TSCs, the narrow-bandgap (NBG) perovskite (~1.25 eV) one plays the vital role in driving the efficiency of tandem cells to new heights⁴. The present NBG perovskite SC performance suffered from serious open-circuit voltage (V_OC) deficit and relatively low fill factor (FF), primarily induced by the NBG-perovskite/C₆₀ interface defects related non-radiative recombination⁵. They were introduced from asynchronous crystallization process from SnI₂ and PbI₂ reaction with organic halides^6,7,8,9, resulting in Sn-rich surface with Sn²⁺ oxidation-based self-doping defects¹⁰. Moreover, for scalable commercial production technology, vacuum/gas-assisted crystallization methods for NBG perovskite fabrication feature a solvent extraction rate that is roughly four orders of magnitude slower than antisolvent-assisted quenching¹¹, further worsening asynchronous crystallization related defects^12,13. On the other hand, high-quality polycrystalline perovskite film typically shows large grains, yet inevitably parasitizes high surface roughness¹⁴, leading to critical interfacial issues. One is non-uniform contact between electrodes and perovskites, leading to local shunting risk⁵. The other exacerbates carrier scattering, hindering the carrier extraction^10,15,16.
To address above challenges, many studies regulated the crystallization rate of Pb-based and Sn-based perovskite through solvent engineering⁹ or additive strategies⁴ to realize a synchronized crystallization process. Instead of controlling the crystallization rate, surface chemical polishing strategies have also been developed to remove severe phase segregation surface by polishing agents, such as 1,4-butanediamine¹⁷ and 1,2-diaminopropane¹⁸. However, these polishing agents have to meet the target-selective etching and avoid damage to underlying perovskite. Thus, a universal and controllable polishing strategy is essential for addressing above challenges. Different to chemical polishing methods, physical strategies have also been developed such as tape stripping¹⁹ and mechanical nano-polishing²⁰. While all the above removal methods are in contacting style, which leads to the application limits due to the high sensitivity of perovskite films. Inspiringly, laser processing technology is characterized with non-contact style, high robustness and high precision, widely applied in polishing, additive manufacturing, annealing^21,22 etc.
Herein, we firstly develop a high-resolution and robust laser polishing strategy to remove defective Pb-Sn perovskite surface. The newly exposed surface is decoded with [PbI₆]⁴⁻/[SnI₆]⁴⁻ octahedral frameworks, rich in A-site vacancies (V_A). By utilizing this distinct opening platform, we further screen guanidine hydrobromide (GABr) to reconstruct the polished surface. The resulting NBG perovskite SCs achieve a PCE of 24.07% (certified 23.47%), and its TSCs obtain a top 29.80% efficiency based on antisolvent-free method. And the optimal device can retain 80% of its initial efficiency after 650 h under operational conditions.
The Pb-Sn perovskite films prepared by vacuum-driven percrystallization (VDP) technology face a defective and high-roughness surface⁹. The resulting interface between perovskite layer and electron-transport layer (ETL, C₆₀) hinders interfacial charge extraction and poses local shunting risks, thereby inducing severe non-radiative recombination¹⁴ as schematically described in Fig. 1a. In order to solve the above challenges, we devised a picosecond ultraviolet pulsed laser polishing technology (PLPT) (Fig. 1b), which was expected to remove and smooth the defective surface to enhance carrier extraction with negligible thermal effect.
a, b Schematic diagram illustrating carrier extraction behavior in control (a) and PLPT-treated (b) perovskite solar cell devices. The red region represents perovskite, and the blue region represents the electron transport layer. c Schematic diagram of PLPT. d 3D-AFM images of control (top) and PLPT-treated (bottom) NBG perovskite films. Scale bar: 500 nm. e The thickness statistics of Pb-Sn perovskite films with different PLPT recipes. f Atomic ratio values of Sn, Pb, and I of control and PLPT-treated films with different polishing depths. g ToF-SIMS of control and PLPT-treated perovskite films with 50 nm polishing depth. h Sn 3d XPS spectra of control and PLPT-treated perovskite films surface with different polishing depths.
The fabrication process of Pb-Sn perovskite films was described via VDP technology as shown in Supplementary Fig. 1. The annealed VDP film was denoted as control sample. To remove the low-quality surface layer, the control film was treated by laser polishing (Fig. 1c). A picosecond ultraviolet pulsed laser was screened for present work to mitigate laser-induced damage to the interior film. The polishing recipe was optimized for power and scanning speed as shown in Supplementary Table 1.
Firstly, we investigated the evolution of the surface morphology and chemical information for the picosecond-ultraviolet-pulsed-laser-treated Pb-Sn perovskite films (PLPT). Their atomic force microscopy (AFM) images directly illustrated that the average roughness decreased from 29.8 nm to 10.2 nm (Fig. 1d). A series of characterizations and simulations confirmed that the PLPT-treated perovskite films exhibited an overall uniform and flat surface on a large scale (Supplementary Figs. 2–6). Figure 1e statistically analyzes the thickness of Pb-Sn perovskite films with different PLPT parameters. The polishing resolution and depth could be conveniently adjusted by varying the laser power and scanning speed. It has been demonstrated that present PLPT strategy was capable of achieving ~0.90 nm nanoscale-precision in a non-contact manner. Hundreds of polishing batches further verified the strong reliability (Supplementary Fig. 7) and high compatibility (Supplementary Fig. 8) of present strategy comparing with reported results^19,20.
The surface and interior chemical information of control and PLPT-treated Pb-Sn perovskite samples were further investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS). As shown in Fig. 1f, the ratio of I/(Pb + Sn) for the top surface of the control sample is 1.64:1, obviously deviating from the stoichiometric ratio of 3:1 (dashed line). And its Sn/Pb ratio reaches ~2.9 showing a Sn-accumulated surface state much larger than stoichiometric ratio of 1:1 (dashed line). It is noted that the above two kinds of atomic ratios gradually return to its ideal values after PLPT treatment with increasing polishing depth. When polishing to a thickness more than 50 nm, both the Sn/Pb and I/(Pb + Sn) values met ideal values. The atomic proportion profiles were further investigated by ToF-SIMS. In Fig. 1g, the element content of control film surface exhibits a gradient distribution. And it gradually stabilizes at a depth of approximately 50 nm. The oxidized Sn⁴⁺ content plays crucial role in device performance, thus it was further analyzed for different polishing depth films. XPS spectra of Sn 3d of perovskite samples were shown in Fig. 1h, and the ratio of Sn⁴⁺ in the control film surface is 20.2%. This may be attributed to the accumulation of Sn²⁺ readily oxidized to Sn^4+ 23. The surface characteristics strongly indicated the subpar surface quality of the control film with Sn-rich and I-deficient surface states, leading to the serious non-radiative recombination losses⁴. When precisely polishing the top surface more than 50 nm, the surface percentage of Sn⁴⁺content was significantly decreased to 5.2%. Thus, the polishing thickness was selected as 50 nm for optimal recipe.
To assess PLPT effect to device performance, Pb-Sn NBG PSCs were fabricated based on the control and PLPT-treated films. The device structure utilized a typical inverted structure. In Fig. 2a, the PLPT-treated device without post-passivation held a V_OC of 0.852 (0.852) V, a short-circuit current density (J_SC) of 31.72 (31.70) mA cm⁻² and a FF of 80.14% (79.01%), yielding a PCE of 21.65% (21.33%) under reverse (forward) scanning. And the control device achieved a V_OC of 0.841 (0.842) V, a J_SC of 31.02 (30.98) mA cm⁻², and an FF of 75.32% (70.89%), yielding a PCE of 19.64% (18.49%) under reverse (forward) scanning. It demonstrated an obvious improvement of the J_SC and FF values of PLPT-treated devices compared with the control ones (Fig. 2b and Supplementary Fig. 9). More interestingly, the hysteresis index (HI) decreased from 8.42% to 1.17% (Supplementary Fig. 10).
a J–V curves of control, PLPT-treated Pb-Sn NBG PSCs without post-passivation. b Statistical photovoltaic parameters of control and PLPT-treated Pb-Sn NBG PSCs. Box-plot elements: center line, median; box limits, upper and lower quartiles; whiskers, 1.5× interquartile range; data points, individual values from 9 independent devices. Error bars represent the standard deviation (SD) values. c, d The GIXRD results of the control and PLPT-treated film. e Fitted line of 2θ-sin²ψ from GIXRD results for the control and PLPT-treated film. f TRPL measurements of the PLPT-treated perovskite films with thickness varying from 250 to 850 nm. g Thickness dependence of the TRPL lifetime with analysis to extract the bulk carrier lifetime and the surface recombination velocity. h τ_b–S_rv curves. i The dynamic interaction process of the perovskite surface structure during laser polishing (E_p: The energy was received by atoms per mole in perovskite.).
After PLPT treatment to remove the defective surface, the corresponding devices demonstrated a PCE improvement from 19.64% to 21.65%. To understand PLPT-treated working mechanism, we aimed to decode its surface information. Grazing-Incidence X-ray Diffraction (GIXRD) measurements were utilized to investigate the residual stress and thermal effects of PLPT treatment. As illustrated in Fig. 2c, d, at different tilt angles ψ, PLPT-treated films obtain much smaller systematic shift (0.04°) than control (0.13°). By fitting the relationship between 2θ and sin²ψ, the residual tensile strain of the PLPT-treated perovskite film was 21.78 MPa, one third of the control film (72.59 MPa) (Fig. 2e and Supplementary Note 1). For comparison to present UV-laser-treated film, the infrared laser treated ones showed obvious thermal effects (Supplementary Fig. 11) and large residual tensile strain (125.06 MPa). (Supplementary Fig. 12). Thermal effect of PLPT was further simulated by COMSOL software on the perovskite film, indicating a little thermal effect from PLPT process (Supplementary Figs. 13, 14 and Supplementary Note 2). Besides, XRD results showed that the main peak intensities of the PLPT-treated film increased (Supplementary Fig. 15) and the full width at half maximum (FWHM) values decreased (Supplementary Table 2) compared with the control samples. It was noted that the PbI₂ impurity peak at 2θ = 12.71° of control was completely eliminated^24,25. And the bandgap remained unchanged ~1.242 eV after PLPT treatment (Supplementary Fig. 16). Thus, PLPT treatment could release the surface stress, change the stoichiometric ratio to the ideal one with little thermal effects.
Next, the thickness dependence of time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) decay kinetics was examined to decouple the quality diagnosis for surface and bulk. Figure 2f and Supplementary Fig. 17 show the normalized TRPL decay curves with varied thickness values for control and PLPT-treated films with a step of 200 nm. The TRPL lifetimes (τ_TRPL) of the PLPT-treated films were longer than those of the control film at approximately the same thickness level. And the TRPL decays became faster with reduced film thickness for both samples (Supplementary Table 3). In general, the measured τ_TRPL are composed of the surface recombination velocity (S_rv) and bulk recombination lifetime (τ_b) by the following equation²⁶:
where d is the film thickness. According to the fitting relationship between 2/d and 1/τ_TRPL (Eq. (1)), S_rv and τ_b values were obtained using the extracted slope and intercept parameters (Fig. 2g). The extracted τ_b value of PLPT-treated film reached approximately 3.0 μs, notably surpassing the value of the control film (2.2 μs) (Fig. 2h). Nonetheless, the S_rv value of PLPT-treated films ~ 5.3 cm s⁻¹ did not exhibit an obvious decrease compared to the control one (5.5 cm s⁻¹). Thus, the enhanced τ_TRPL values of the PLPT-treated perovskite films were primarily attributed to the increase in bulk lifetime. Combining the detailed analysis (Supplementary Notes 3, 4), we have decoded the dynamic interaction between PLPT-treatment and perovskite. According to laser power attenuation, the laser polishing process could be roughly delineated into two distinct stages (Fig. 2i). At initial stage (stage Ⅰ), the laser energy (E_p) was much greater than the desorption energy of B-site ions (E_B), where E_B was the highest one among the desorption energies of A-site ions (E_A), E_B and X-site ions (E_X). All atoms were etched away indiscriminately into ions fragments and clusters²⁷. At ending stage (stage Ⅱ), E_p value attenuated to around E_B, insufficient for perovskite etching instead of surface ion releasing¹⁹. And the surface ions with lower bond desorption energies demonstrated a greater probability of being dissociated²⁸. Thus, PLPT-treated film showed rich of A-site vacancies (V_A) according to our experimental testing and reported work results²⁷.
According to the above decoding and experimental analysis, the PLPT-treated perovskite film surface was mainly composed of V_A arrays (PLPT, Fig. 3a). By utilizing these V_A arrays, it helped to support an opening platform to reconstruct polished surface with new A-site ions in order to achieve the synergistic effect of defect elimination and stability enhancement. By screening A-site library, guanidinium (GA⁺) can form effective hydrogen bonds two times larger than normal A-site cations (FA⁺, MA⁺)²⁹ (Supplementary Fig. 18), possessing the ability to enhance stability and suppress ion migration^29,30,31. Hence, GABr was prioritized for reconstructing the polished surface. Hereafter, the PLPT films reconstructed by GABr treatment were marked as target ones (Target, Fig. 3a). The optimization GABr concentration was 1 mg/mL and the details can be found in Supplementary Figs. 19, 21.
a Schematic diagram illustrating the evolution routes of the perovskite surface structure from control to target. b Atomic ratio data of A-site ions of PLPT-treated and target films surface after 5 nm, 10 nm, and 20 nm Ar-etching. c The A-site (FA⁺, Cs⁺, MA⁺ and GA⁺) ions distribution of PLPT-treated and target films. d Enlarged and normalized GIXRD spectra collected from the surface of the PLPT-treated and target perovskite films. The blue peak represents the V_A-rich phase. e, f High-angle annular dark-field TEM images for the different regions from PLPT-treated and target samples. Scale bars are 2 nm. The second row shows the calculated interplanar spacing for each lattice.
The target sample was investigated by XPS with Ar-etching to survey the A-site and iodide atomic percentage. A-sites atomic ratio of PLPT-treated film surface (the top part of Fig. 3b) was 0.53 (Supplementary Note 5), while it stabilized around 1.00 after Ar-etching for over 10 nm. In contrast, the A-site atomic ratio of target film kept constant with uniform distribution in increasing depth via Ar-etching (the bottom part of Fig. 3b). Additionally, X-site atomic ratios of the target film surface showed slight increase compared with PLPT-treated film after GABr surface reconstruction (Supplementary Fig. 22). We further used ToF-SIMS to investigate the A-site cation composition after GABr treatment. A distinct signal of GA⁺ was clearly observed on the film surface comparing with PLPT-film (Fig. 3c). Through XPS and SIMS results, it can be confirmed that GA⁺ had entered the crystal lattice and obtained a new GA_1−xCsₓ-based perovskite surface.
To study target surface information, GIXRD technology was employed to detect the crystal structure for PLPT and target samples (Fig. 3d). For the PLPT-treated surface, the characteristic peak localized at around 28.3°, which was indexed for the (200) plane of perovskite. When the incident angle was lower than 0.1° approaching surface, there was a new shoulder peak at around 28.8°. These emergent shoulder peak gradually weakened with an increase of the incident angle and ultimately vanished, attributed to substantial A-site vacancies causing lattice distortion^32,33. After surface reconstruction with GABr, the shoulder peaks were completely eliminated, directly demonstrating that GA⁺ effectively incorporated into the crystal lattice and thereby resolved the structure distortion (the right part of Fig. 3d). Notably, when the incident angle was 0.05°, the diffraction peak of the (200) plane exhibited a slight shift (~0.01°) toward the lower angle. Moreover, Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images were collected to further survey the newly recontruction surface. For the PLPT-treated film, the d values of interplanar spacing were measured to be about d =  3.48 Å (Fig. 3e), lower with the values reported in the literature attributed to partial A-site ions loss³⁴. In contrast, the target film shows a d value of 3.57 Å (Fig. 3f), slightly higher than the literature³⁴, attributed to larger radius of GA⁺ ion²⁹. Thus, GA⁺ incorporation filled in A-site vacancies and reconstructed the surface composition of PLPT samples according to GIXRD and TEM results.
We further investigated the film quality and stability for target samples. Figure 4a shows enhanced (100) and (200) plane intensities of the target sample compared with the control and PLPT-treated ones, and the PbI₂ peak at 2θ = 12.71° was completely eliminated. The absorption spectra of target sample remained unchanged (Supplementary Fig. 23). While new characteristic peaks were observed at 6.5° and 11.7° with a high concentration of GABr, attributed to the formation of GA₂PbSnI₄ phase³⁵ (Supplementary Fig. 24). The steady-state photoluminescence (PL) and TRPL measurements were conducted to investigate the defects intensity and carrier dynamics for the perovskite films. As shown in Fig. 4b and Supplementary Fig. 25, the steady-state PL intensity for target sample is significantly enhanced comparing with the control and PLPT-treated ones from both top and bottom incidence, indicating improved film quality and reduced non-radiative recombination. The average carrier lifetime of the target film reached 2.82 µs longer than that of the PLPT film (2.44 µs) and the control sample (1.97 µs), indicating a reduced defect density (Fig. 4c and Supplementary Table 3). Furthermore, large-area PL-mapping was employed to characterize the film uniformity. The emission spectra of the control sample exhibited lower intensity and larger peak intensity fluctuation with a standard deviation (SD) of ~0.18 compared to the PLPT-treated sample (SD = 0.05) (Fig. 4d, e). In contrast, the target film displayed significantly higher emission intensity and smaller SD (0.04) relative to the PLPT-treated and control samples (Fig. 4f). This distinct difference directly confirmed that the target film possessed substantially improved lateral homogeneity, a key advantage for scalable optoelectronic application³⁶.
a XRD patterns of perovskite films. The star mark represents the characteristic peak of PbI₂. b Steady-state PL spectra of perovskite films excited from the top surfaces. c TRPL measurements of perovskite films. d–f PL intensity imaging of perovskite films deposited on glass substrates (2.5 × 2.5 cm²). The color bar shows the normalized PL intensity. g Band alignment of control, PLPT-treated and target films compared with C₆₀. h PLQY data from control, PLPT-treated and target films, with and without C₆₀. i The density values of mobile ions of the control, PLPT-treated and target films were obtained by BACE measurements in dark.
The obtained perovskite/C₆₀ interfaces were further investigated by ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS). Figure 4g and Supplementary Fig. 26 display obvious p-type behavior for the control film surface due to the self-doping effect of Sn⁴⁺, leading to the emergence of an energy offset with C₆₀. This led to minority carrier accumulation at the perovskite/C₆₀ interface, and an approximately 140 meV band offset between perovskite and C₆₀. This misalignment hindered carrier transport and aggravated defect-assisted carrier recombination losses at the interface³⁷. The Fermi level of the target perovskite film showed a significant upshift from −4.75 eV to −4.64 eV relative to the control film. The band offset was reduced with 50 meV for perovskite/C₆₀ interface, facilitating charge extraction. To verify the suppression of non-radiative recombination, photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) was carried out to assess the perovskite/ETL interface properties (Fig. 4h). The PLQY of the perovskite samples were gradually improved from 1.88% (control), to 2.72% (PLPT) and further to 4.71% (target). Upon contact with the C₆₀ ETL, the PLQY value at the control interface dropped markedly to 0.91%, which testifies to the non-radiative recombination and energy loss at the perovskite/C₆₀ interface. In contrast, the PLQY values of the PLPT-treated and target perovskite/C₆₀ samples reached 1.15%, and 3.26%, respectively. Thus, the target surface reconstruction could remove the interfacial defects, favor energy level alignment, which synergistically suppressed carrier trapping and non-radiative recombination losses.
To study the defect distribution of Pb-Sn NBG PSCs, three kinds of devices from control, PLPT and target films were fabricated and analyzed by drive-level capacitance profiling (DLCP) and electroluminescence (EL)-mapping. The surface defect density for the target film was reduced by two-thirds compared to that of the control (Supplementary Fig. 27). EL-mapping of control, PLPT-treated, and target PSCs (Supplementary Fig. 28) further demonstrated that target PSCs had a higher and more uniform EL intensity at the same applied current. Therefore, the combination of DLCP and EL mapping results verified the effective suppression of trap density and carrier recombination by the present strategy.
Next, target perovskite film stability with GA_1−xCsₓ-based surface was further investigated by quantifying the density of mobile ions. The density of mobile ions and their extraction time could be obtained by bias-assisted charge extraction (BACE) measurements in dark^38,39 (Supplementary Fig. 29).
The amount of diffused charges (({Q}_{{{{rm{dif}}}}})) was obtained by integrating the displacement current ({I}_{{{{rm{tran}}}}}) with time t (Eq. (2)), then the density of mobile ions (ρ) was calculated by Eq. (3), where ({Q}_{{{{rm{dif}}}}}) was divided by active volume (({A}_{{{{rm{act}}}}})) and elementary charge e. For the PLPT-treated film, the (rho) value was measured to be about 1.08 × 10¹⁷cm⁻³ (Fig. 4i), lower with the value of the control film (1.81 × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³). After GABr reconstruction, (rho) value further decreased to 0.72 × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³. The efficient suppression of ion diffusion contributed to the obvious improvement of device hysteresis⁴⁰. We then compared the formation energy of Pb-Sn perovskite with different A-site ions. The density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrated that GA_1−xCsₓ-based perovskite exhibited a smaller formation energy compared with Pb-Sn perovskite with other calculated A-site ions (Supplementary Fig. 30), confirming an pronouncedly improved surface stability⁴¹.
We then fabricated a series of Pb-Sn NBG PSCs for control, PLPT-treated and target devices in typical inverted structure. The champion device was obtained from target device with a V_OC of 0.882 (0.881) V, a J_SC of 33.25 (33.04) mA cm⁻² and an FF of 82.11% (81.82%), yielding a PCE of 24.07% (23.82%) under reverse (forward) scanning (Fig. 5a and Supplementary Table 4). And the target PSCs achieved a record efficiency of 24.07% (certified 23.47%) by antisolvent-free technology (Fig. 5b, Supplementary Fig. 31 and Supplementary Table 5). Compared with control devices, the target devices showed improved values in all photovoltaic parameters (Supplementary Fig. 32). It was noted that the target devices exhibited much smaller hysteresis index (0.72%), compared with the control device (8.44%), primarily attributed to the reduction of defects acting as channels for ion migration (Supplementary Fig. 33A). The target PCEs also demonstrated a narrow distribution as shown in Supplementary Fig. 33B. The steady-state output (SPO) efficiency at the maximum power point reached 23.01%, while the control one was only 16.74% (Supplementary Fig. 34).
a J–V curves of control, PLPT-treated and target Pb-Sn NBG PSCs. b A summary of reported PCEs of Pb-Sn NBG PSCs fabricated by antisolvent and antisolvent-free methods. c EQE spectra of control, PLPT-treated and target Pb-Sn NBG PSCs. d TPV decay curves of control, PLPT-treated and target Pb-Sn NBG PSCs. e, f The analysis of V_OC and FF losses of control, PLPT-treated and target Pb-Sn NBG PSCs. g Cross-sectional SEM image of a representative tandem device. Scale bar: 1 μm. h J–V curves of the target TSC and device architecture (inset). i MPPT curves of the control and target tandem devices with encapsulation under continuous 1 sun illumination.
The integrated J_SC values derived from external quantum efficiency (EQE) curves of the control and target PSCs were 30.99 mA cm⁻² and 32.10 mA cm⁻² (Fig. 5c), respectively. The main EQE improvement stemmed from photons beyond 750 nm (dashed rectangle), which could be converted more efficiently by target device. Interestingly, the thinner target (50 nm less) absorber achieved a higher J_SC value compared with the control. On one hand, it was ascribed to the improvement of perovskite film quality (Fig. 4). On the other hand, the target film surface improved the utilization yield of light. Compared with control device, when light illuminated from the ITO glass side, the smoother perovskite surface and smoother Ag electrode led to stronger specular reflection of the initially unabsorbed light (Supplementary Fig. 35), which ultimately obtained a longer optical path within the perovskite film (Supplementary Fig. 36), thereby decoupling the high requirements for both carrier lifetime and mobility of NBG film³⁵. As shown in Fig. 5d, transient photovoltage (TPV) characterizations confirm a longer decay lifetime for the target device (761 μs) relative to the control device (342 μs), verifying the significant suppression of carrier trapping and nonradiative recombination. This could be further corroborated by light intensity-dependent photovoltage, where the ideality factor (n) of the target device (1.53) was much smaller than those of the control (1.97) and PLPT-treated (1.67) devices (Supplementary Fig. 37). Excitingly, the present strategy was not only efficient for present absorber bandgap (~1.25 eV), but also applicable to other bandgap PSCs for p-i-n and n-i-p structures, such as ~1.75 eV, ~1.55 eV, ~1.33 eV (Supplementary Fig. 38).
A quantitative loss analysis for V_OC and FF was performed by referencing device performance from the ideal Shockley–Queisser limit (Supplementary Notes 6–7). Based on quasi-Fermi level splitting (QFLS) results, V_OC losses were ascribed to bulk, ETL-interface, and HTL-interface loss components (Fig. 5e and Supplementary Table 6). The target film presented notably lower bulk and ETL-interface losses than control, verifying that surface polishing and reconstruction gave rise to the V_OC improvement. In addition, FF losses are mainly induced by non-radiative recombination and transport loss (series resistance)⁴². The control device indicated high non-radiative recombination and transport loss, while PLPT-treated devices primarily reduced transport loss, explaining the FF increase. And target devices further suppressed the above two kinds of losses with negligible transport loss by GABr surface reconstruction (Fig. 5f).
Two-terminal all-perovskite TSCs were fabricated based on the target NBG perovskite device. The top subcell had an absorber composition of DMA_0.1Cs_0.4FA_0.5Pb(I_0.75Br_0.25)₃ with 5 mol% MAPbCl₃ additives. The detailed information of the wide-bandgap (WBG) top cells can be found in Methods. The tandem devices utilized a typical inverted structure (Fig. 5g and the inset of Fig. 5h). Ultimately, our champion device obtained a PCE of 29.80% (29.52%) under reverse (forward) scanning, with a V_OC of 2.16 (2.16) V, a J_SC of 16.60 (16.62) mA cm⁻² and an FF of 83.12% (82.24%) (Fig. 5h and Supplementary Table 7). The present PCE value represented a notable advancement for antisolvent-free methods, one percent net PCE higher than previous work⁹. The integrated J_SC values of the WBG and NBG subcells from EQE spectra (Supplementary Fig. 39) were 16.11 and 16.04 mA cm⁻², respectively, in good agreement with the J_SC value from J–V measurements. The device demonstrated a SPO efficiency of 29.18% at the maximum power points (MPP, Supplementary Fig. 40). Based on the advantages of high uniformity and robustness of laser processing, we further fabricated 1 cm²-size and 20.07 cm²-size TSCs. The 1 cm² device yielded a V_OC of 2.15 (2.15) V, a J_SC of 16.28 (16.15) mA cm⁻², and an FF of 81.90% (81.82%), corresponding to a PCE of 28.67% (28.41%) under reverse (forward) scanning (Supplementary Fig. 41). The 20.07 cm² mini-modules, yielded a PCE of 24.38% (24.27%) under reverse (forward) scanning, with a V_OC of 17.00 (17.01) V, a J_SC of 1.83 (1.82) mA cm⁻², and an FF of 78.39% (78.41%) (Supplementary Figs. 42, 43 and Supplementary Table 8). The encapsulated small-area TSC retained 80% of its initial PCE for approximately 650 h of MPP tracking under AM 1.5 G in N₂ ambient condition at room temperature (Fig. 5i), top value among reported data^1,18, whereas the control device decayed to lower than 80% after only 172 h.
In summary, our work has demonstrated a robust strategy for converting the defective and rough surface of NBG film into an efficient and smooth one. PLPT is first developed to precisely remove the defective surface of NBG perovskite films, thereby improving surface compositional uniformity and flatness. By further decoding the treated surface, we screen GABr for reconstructing the newly exposed surface into GA_1−xCsₓ-based perovskite, achieving enhanced carrier extraction efficiency and stability. The smooth perovskite surface obtains a substantial increase in optical path length, which results in a higher photocurrent. Impressively, the target Pb-Sn PSC yields a record PCE of 24.07% (certified 23.47%) and exhibits negligible hysteresis via an antisolvent-free approach. In contrast, the control device attains a PCE of only 21.58%. The target two-terminal all-perovskite TSC achieved an efficiency of 29.80%, one percent net PCE higher than previous work, demonstrating exceptional operational stability. The present surface conversion strategy effectively eliminates the key surface-effect bottleneck across various perovskite compositions, paving the way for universal performance improvement.
All raw materials were not purified and were used as received. PbI₂ (99.999%), SnI₂ (99.999%), PbBr₂ (99.99%), PEAI (99.5%) and NiO nanocrystal (99.999%) were purchased from Advanced Election Technology Co., Ltd. FAI (99.5%), MAI (99.5%), MACl (99.5%), Pb(SCN)₂ (99.5%), FABr (99.5%), CsBr (99.9%), CsI (99.999%), PbCl₂ (99.9%), DMAI (99.5%), EDAI₂ (99.5%), PDADI (99.5%), GAI (99.5%), GABr (99.5%), GASCN (99%), PEDOT:PSS, C₆₀ and PC₆₁BM were purchased from Xi’an Yuri Solar Co., Ltd. SnF₂ (99%) was purchased from Aladdin Co., Ltd. 4PADCB was purchased from Vizuchem Co., Ltd (Shanghai, China). Bathocuproine (BCP) was purchased from TCI. Tin Powder (99.999%), N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF, 99.8%), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO, 99.9%), chlorobenzene (CB, 99.9%), toluene (TL, 99.5%) and isopropanol (IPA, 99.5%) were purchased from Sigma Aldrich.
The mixed Cs_0.1FA_0.6MA_0.3Sn_0.5Pb_0.5I₃ narrow-bandgap perovskite precursor with a concentration of 1.8 mol L⁻¹ was prepared by mixing CsI (46.8 mg, 0.180 mmol), FAI (185.7 mg, 1.08 mmol), MAI (85.8 mg, 0.540 mmol), SnI₂ (335.3 mg, 0.900 mmol), PbI₂ (414.9 mg, 0.900 mmol), SnF₂ (14.1 mg, 0.090 mmol), and Pb(SCN)₂ (2.7 mg, 0.036 mmol) in mixed solvents of 0.25 mL DMSO and 0.75 mL DMF.
The wide-bandgap perovskite precursor with a concentration of 1 mol L⁻¹ was prepared by mixing CsBr (42.56 mg), FABr (31.24 mg), DMAI (17.30 mg), MACl (3.38 mg), Pb(SCN)₂ (3.25 mg), PbCl₂ (13.90 mg), PEAI (2.5 mg), FAI (42.99 mg), CsI (51.99 mg), PbBr₂ (55.05 mg), and PbI₂ (391.85 mg) in mixed solvents of 0.2 mL DMSO and 0.8 mL DMF. The precursor solution was filtered through a 0.22 μm PTFE filter before using.
The pre-patterned indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates underwent a cleaning process involving ultrasonication in deionized water, isopropanol, and ethanol for 30 min in succession. poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) which was diluted by n-propyl alcohol (1:5) was coated on the cleaned ITO substrate at 2,000 r.p.m. for 30 s and then heated at 125 °C for 20 min. After cooling, the substrates were transferred to an N₂-filled glovebox quickly, and perovskite films were spin-coated onto the substrate at 3,500 r.p.m for 10 s. The wet films were then directly transferred into a vacuum chamber (100 mL). After the vacuum pump was turned on, the vacuum level dropped to 3 Pa within 4-5 seconds. The total vacuum quenching time was about 12 s. Subsequently, the perovskite films were annealed at 100 °C for 10 min. After cooling, the perovskite films were post-treated by spinning a solution of EDAI₂ (0.5 mg mL⁻¹) in 1:1 IPA:CB solvent at 4,000 r.p.m. for 20 s, followed by heating at 100 °C for 5 min. After cooling down to room temperature, 20 nm fullerene (C₆₀) film and 7 nm bathocuproine (BCP) were subsequently deposited by thermal evaporation at a deposition rate of 0.15 Å s⁻¹. Finally, 150 nm Ag electrode was deposited by thermal evaporation at a deposition rate of 0.5 Å s⁻¹.
For the narrow-bandgap perovskite solar cell with PLPT and GABr surface passivation. After annealing NBG perovskite films at 100 °C for 10 min, the films were polished with a picosecond ultraviolet pulsed laser. GA⁺ surface reconstruction solution was prepared by adding GABr (GASCN and GAI) into IPA at concentrations of 0.5, 1, 2, and 5 mg mL⁻¹. GABr was further dissolved in mixed solvents of IPA and TL with different ratios (IPA:TL = 1:0, 3:1, 1:1, 1:3). After PLPT, GABr solutions were spin-coated onto the perovskite at 4,000 rpm for 20 s, then the film was annealed at 100 °C for around 5 min. The subsequent process is the same as above.
NiO nanocrystal dissolved in deionized water (4 mg mL⁻¹) was spin-coated onto the ITO substrates at 5,000 r.p.m. for 30 s, followed by an annealing process at 150 °C for 10 min. After cooling, oxygen plasma was used to treat the substrate for 5 min, and then the self-assembled monolayer 4PADCB dissolved in ethanol (0.5 mg mL⁻¹) was spin-coated onto the substrates at 3,000 r.p.m for 30 s, followed by heating at 100 °C for 10 min. After cooling, 45 µL of wide-bandgap perovskite precursor was dropped on the substrate and spin-coated through a two-step process: 1,000 r.p.m. for 5 s and 4,500 r.p.m. for 40 s. At the twentieth second, hot gas flow (70 m s⁻¹, 50 °C) started, the gas flow was maintained for 4–6 seconds, resulting in the film turning dark brown. After gas purging, the samples were then annealed at 100 °C for 10 min. After cooling to room temperature, the perovskite films were post-treated by spinning PDAI₂ solution (1 mg mL⁻¹ in 1:1 IPA: toluene) at 5,000 r.p.m. for 30 s, followed by heating at 80 °C for 5 min. Then, 20 nm C₆₀ was deposited on top of the perovskite films by thermal evaporation at a rate of 0.15 Å s⁻¹. The samples were then transferred to an ALD system to deposit 30 nm SnO₂. After that, 1 nm Au was thermally evaporated. After that, NBG subcells were fabricated using the abovementioned methods.
The mini-modules were fabricated on the 6.0 cm × 6.0 cm sized glass/ITO substrate using a 355 nm nanosecond laser scribing with a power of 0.1 W (P1), isolating into 8 subcells with a width of 5.6 mm. All the spin-coated layers in mini-modules were spin-coated at the same spin-coating speed as that used for small-area devices. The power of P2 scribing is 0.12 W. The effective monolithically inter-connected modules were formed by laser scribing (0.5 W) to form P3 lines.
The active area of small-area devices, including narrow-bandgap, wide-bandgap, and tandem devices, was 0.0768 cm². For the PCE measurements conducted in our laboratory, the aperture area of mask was 0.0395 cm². For the certification tests performed at the third-party laboratory, the aperture area of the mask was 0.0401 cm². The film surface and cross-section morphology were characterized using a Hitachi S4800 SEM. The XPS spectra for powder and film samples were conducted using the AXIS SUPRA+ instrument from Shimadzu-Kratos (Japan). The ToF-SIMS measurement (Helios 5 HX/Helios 5 UX/Helios 5 FX DualBeam) was performed with a BiMn primary ion beam (3-lens 30 keV) for the analysis. A 50 × 50 µm² area was analyzed with a 256 × 256 primary beam raster. Sputtering depth was acquired with 1 keV Cesium ion beam (6 nA sputter current) with a raster of 150 × 150 microns. The AFM height images were obtained in the ambient atmosphere using a Bruker Dimension Icon XR AFM. UV-Vis absorption was measured by a SolidSpec-3700 spectrophotometer. XRD were recorded using Rigaku D-MAX 2200 equipment. The theta/2theta modes were conducted with a Cu Kα radiation and an anode operating at 40 kV and 250 mA. Film morphology and cross-sectional structures of devices were measured by a field-emission scanning electron microscope (ZEISS Gemini 300). Steady-state PL was measured using a laser confocal Raman spectrometer (LabRAM HR800, Horiba JobinYvon). The light was illuminated from both the top and bottom surface of the perovskite films (excited by 532 nm). Time-resolved PL was measured using a spectrofluorometer (QuantaMaster 8000 series fluorometers, Horiba), samples were excited by a 532 nm pulsed laser.
The measurements of EL-mapping were obtained by combination of lock-in amplifier (SR830), electric-meter (Keithley 2000, Keithley 2400), and photodector (Thorlabs PDA100A). The J–V characteristics were measured using a Keithley 2450 sourcemeter and a solar simulator (EnliTech, Class AAA, AM1.5 G). The AM 1.5 G was calibrated with NREL reference solar cells (KG-5 and KG-0 reference cells were used). Bias voltages for J–V measurements of single-junction NBG perovskite solar cells were scanned from −0.1 V to 1 V (forward scanning) and from 1 V to −0.1 V (reverse scanning) with a scanning step of 0.05 V. The active area was determined by the aperture shade masks (3.95 mm²) placed in front of the solar cells. Bias voltages for J–V measurements of tandem cells were scanned from −0.1 V to 2.2 V (forward scanning) and from 2.2 V to −0.1 V (reverse scanning) with a scanning step of 0.05 V. EQE measurements were performed in ambient air using a QE system (EnliTech) with monochromatic light focused on a device pixel and a chopper frequency of 20 Hz. For EQE measurements of tandem solar cells, two light-emitting diodes with emission wavelengths at 450 nm and 850 nm were used as the bias lights to measure NBG and WBG subcells, respectively. The operational stability tests were carried out under multicolor light-emitting diode illumination in N₂. No UV filter was used during the stability tests.
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All data are available in the main text and Supplementary Information or upon request from the corresponding authors.
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This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 62374065, 62574096), the Wuhan Key Research and Development Program (2025010602030106), Project for Building a Science and Technology Innovation Center Facing South Asia and Southeast Asia (202403AP140015), the Innovation Project of Optics Valley Laboratory (No. OVL2021BG008, OVL2024ZD002), Shenzhen Science and Technology Program (JCYJ20250604190827037), the International Science and Technology Cooperation Projects of Hubei Province (GJHZ202500083), Natural Science Foundation of Wuhan (2025040601020188), Hubei Optical Fundamental Research Center (HBO2025TQ003). The authors thank Engineer Jun Su from the Center of Optoelectronic Micro and Nano Fabrication and Characterizing Facility, WNLO of HUST for the support in the SEM test.
These authors contributed equally: Tianjun Ma, Dingfu Luo.
Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics (WNLO), Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
Tianjun Ma, Wenjiang Ye, Jun Yan, XuKe Yang, Mingyu Li, Yuheng Li, Salman Ali, Shiwu Chen, Haisheng Song & Jiang Tang
School of Optical and Electronic Information (SOEI), Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
Dingfu Luo, Xinzhao Zhao, Hao Wang, Ruiheng Gao, Sifan Liu, Ying Zhou, Chao Chen, Haisheng Song & Jiang Tang
China-EU Institute for Clean and Renewable Energy (ICARE), Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
Qilin Guo & Haisheng Song
Hubei Key Laboratory of Optical Information and Pattern Recognition, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, P. R. China
Bingxin Ding & Pingli Qin
Houston Technology Research Center, CNPC USA Corporation (CNPCUSA), Houston, TX, USA
Michael Wang & Chris Cheng
Optics Valley Laboratory, Wuhan, China
Chao Chen, Haisheng Song & Jiang Tang
Shenzhen Huazhong University of Science and Technology Research Institute, Shenzhen, China
Haisheng Song
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H.S. and J.T. conceived the idea and directed the overall project. T.M. and D.L. fabricated all the devices by PLPT and conducted the characterizations. W.Y, X.Z., Y.Y., H.W., X.Y., and M.L. helped to set up laboratory equipment and optimize the vacuum-assisted devices. Y.L., S.L., A.S, R.G., and S.C. performed maximum power points tracking measurement. B.D., S. H., M.W, C.C.(Chris), Y.Z., C.C., and P.Q. helped to discuss and analyze data. T.M. and H.S. wrote the manuscript. All authors discussed the results and commented on the paper.
Correspondence to Haisheng Song or Jiang Tang.
The authors declare no competing interests.
Nature Communications thanks Han Chen, Jiangang Liu and the other anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work. A peer review file is available.
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Ma, T., Luo, D., Ye, W. et al. Non-contact laser polishing and reconstruction towards high-efficiency all-perovskite tandem solar cells. Nat Commun 17, 4193 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71017-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71017-7
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Home – Tech – A floating solar plant in Southeast Asia will be built on water rather than land, with batteries capable of powering factories and data centers
A man-made lake in Malaysia’s Terengganu state is about to do double duty. The Hydro Hybrid Floating Solar (HHFS) plan at Kenyir Lake is moving into a major construction phase after a 595 MWac floating solar and battery contract was awarded, with completion targeted for late September 2028.
Local officials say the first phase could bring the state about RM10 million a year ($2.5 million) once it is fully running. That mix of climate goals and hard cash is why floating solar is catching fire across Asia, where most of the world’s floating PV capacity has been built so far.
The core contract is for engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning of a 595 MWac floating solar photovoltaic plant with a battery energy storage system at Kenyir Lake. Sunview says the contract price is RM1.962 billion ($250 million), work starts June 2, 2026, and the target completion date is September 29, 2028.
On the ground, the project is also a political and economic story. Terengganu Incorporated’s CEO, Datuk Burhanuddin Hilmi Mohamed, said the state expects RM10 million annually once Phase 1 is fully completed, and framed it as a way to reduce reliance on oil royalty income.
The same briefing pointed to the jobs angle, with about 5,000 workers expected in the first phase and more than half described as local labor. Phase 2 and 3 could push total capacity as high as 2.5 GW within five to ten years, according to the same reporting.
Solar overall is having a blockbuster run, with global additions in 2024 estimated in the hundreds of gigawatts. (iea-pvps.org) Floating solar is still a niche, but it has scaled quickly, with IEA PVPS estimating cumulative floating PV capacity at 7.7 GW by the end of 2023, and noting that almost 90% sits in Asia.
The business logic is simple. Reservoirs already have grid connections nearby, and using water surfaces can ease land pressure that would otherwise pit projects against farms, forests, or housing.
The World Bank’s floating solar handbook also highlights potential benefits like reduced land needs and possible evaporation reductions, though it stresses site-by-site design and monitoring.
Hybridizing with hydropower is the real twist at Kenyir. TNB describes the concept as using daytime solar while hydropower continues operating, with reservoir operations helping smooth supply when sunlight fades, and it has already run a Kenyir floating solar pilot tied to dam operations.
Floating solar is often pitched as “low impact,” but the lake is still an ecosystem. A 2024 Nature Communications Earth & Environment study on water-surface PV systems found changes that included lower water temperature and dissolved oxygen saturation, alongside shifts in plankton and bird communities.
On the other hand, the science is not one-note. A 2025 Frontiers in Water study across several sites reported minimal discernible impacts on common water-quality indicators under some conditions, and the IEA PVPS report warns that environmental effects depend heavily on the water body, climate, design, and coverage.
This is where monitoring stops being a box-checking exercise and starts being the whole project. TNB says its Kenyir pilot includes an environmental monitoring system tracking weather and operating conditions, and it positions that data as useful for designers and authorities planning larger deployments.
Big renewable plants are not just panels and cables anymore. They are software-heavy systems built around inverters, sensors, remote maintenance, and digital controls, which means cybersecurity becomes part of “keeping the lights on,” not an IT afterthought.
NIST has published cybersecurity guidance for smart inverters, flagging practical issues like secure logging, update integrity, and remote access pathways. That matters because inverters are the gatekeepers between solar generation and the grid, and a weak link can become a real operational headache.
Energy infrastructure is increasingly treated as national security infrastructure, even when it is “green.” NATO says it is working to support national authorities in protecting critical energy infrastructure, reflecting how modern power systems sit closer to security planning than they used to.
In the United States, federal law explicitly ties military readiness to energy security and energy resilience, which is part of why microgrids and backup power systems keep showing up in defense planning documents.
When grids get more digital and more distributed, resilience is not automatic, and that is true whether the asset is a gas pipeline or a solar lake.
For residents and investors, the next two years are about execution. Watch the schedule, local hiring promises, and how clearly developers explain lake coverage, boating and fishing access, and long-term monitoring plans, because public trust is much easier to lose than to rebuild.
For everyone else, the question is performance in real life, not just on a slide deck. Will the battery and hybrid operations actually reduce curtailment and smooth supply when demand spikes during sticky evening heat, and will the lake’s health indicators stay stable as the footprint grows?
The official statement was published on Insage.

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24/7 Renewables Outcompete Fossil Fuels on Costs  International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
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MOORHEAD — The city of Moorhead is looking to the sun to reduce energy costs.
The city plans to install solar panels to two city buildings: one of Moorhead’s fire stations and The Loop, the new community center and public library.
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The panels are part of a host of energy efficiency projects the city plans to execute at various city facilities in the next couple years. Other projects include installing energy-efficient lighting and improving building exteriors to reduce energy use.
Moorhead Assistant City Manager Mike Rietz said the city plans to pay for the projects with money saved by reducing utility costs.
“It basically reduces the cost of our utilities in such a way that we can fund the improvements over time out of that savings, and make it budget neutral, so we don’t have to increase our budget to pay for these items,” Rietz said.
The financing arrangement is part of an agreement recently approved by the Moorhead City Council. On April 27, council members approved an agreement with McKinstry, a business that helps municipalities identify and build energy efficiency projects.
The estimated cost of improvements is $4 million. However, the council approved up to $6 million worth of improvements. Rietz said the next step in the process will be an investment grade audit to determine a final cost for the project.
“In doing this little bit deeper dive, they might find some additional projects that could be worth doing that could be more than the initial $4 million,” Rietz said.
According to McKinstry’s presentation at the City Council meeting, the city spends a little more than $1 million per year in energy costs. The proposed improvements could reduce energy costs by $165,000 to $240,000 per year, or by 16% to 23%.
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The solar panel portion of the larger project identified buildings with newer roofs where panels could generate most of the power used in the building.
The Loop is the recently opened Moorhead Public Library and community center. It features a large, flat south-facing roof. Panels there would offset 94% of energy costs, Rietz said.
The fire station identified as a potential location for solar panels is Fire Station No. 2. The station is on 20th Street, just north of Minnesota State Community and Technical College. At the fire station, solar panels would offset 92% of energy costs.
As council members approved the McKinstry agreement, some voiced concerns about placing solar panels on the fire station.
In a City Council workshop on March 10, Moorhead Fire Chief Jeff Wallin said Station No. 2 will require significant repairs in the future. The facility was built in 1971, and has seen multiple additions to accommodate larger fire crews. Issues include the building’s water and sewer infrastructure.
Rietz said he does not yet know how the city will proceed with putting solar panels on Station No. 2.
“The next step in the process is to do a deeper dive into these proposed projects, and really tighten up the numbers,” Rietz said. “So we’ve got some time to make that decision.”
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Rietz said he expects that deeper dive to wrap up sometime in July, with projects starting after. The city has a goal to finish projects by the end of 2027.

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A bird appears to smoke after flying through concentrated solar beams, known as "solar flux," at the Ivanpah Solar Power Plant in 2016, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. (U.S. Geological Survey)
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – Regulators are allowing an Obama-era “clean energy” solar plant to continue operating even as its reflected solar beams kill thousands of birds each year, with no fines or enforcement action taken since it opened, a Fox News Digital investigation has found.
The Ivanpah Solar Power Plant, a sprawling facility built with taxpayer support in the Mojave Desert near the California–Nevada border, remains in compliance under existing regulations, even as birds are burned, injured or killed after flying through the beams which reflect sunlight onto the plant’s three central towers.
Regulators were aware of those risks before approving the project as part of a broader push to expand renewable energy. Today, it remains in compliance, meaning the wildlife deaths documented at the site fall within limits set under its environmental approvals. That framework allows the plant to continue operating even as thousands of birds are killed each year.
OBAMA-ERA ‘CLEAN ENERGY’ SOLAR POWER PLANT STILL USES FOSSIL FUELS – AND KILLS THOUSANDS OF BIRDS ANNUALLY
The Ivanpah Solar Power Facility near the California–Nevada border in the Mojave Desert. The solar thermal plant has faced scrutiny over environmental impacts, including bird deaths linked to its concentrated solar energy system. (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
“Staff is not aware of any formal enforcement actions or fines issued by either the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or the California Department of Fish and Wildlife related to avian or wildlife mortality at the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System,” the California Energy Commission, which oversees large energy projects in the state, told Fox News Digital.
The commission also said it knows of no special regulatory exemptions for renewable energy projects related to wildlife impacts. Instead, the project was approved as long as monitoring and mitigation requirements would be carried out, meaning some level of wildlife mortality was anticipated.
The futuristic-looking facility, known for its three large towers that glow brightly when powered on, was approved during the Obama-era push to rapidly expand renewable energy following the 2008 financial crisis — part of a broader effort to cut emissions and reduce reliance on fossil fuels in the name of climate change.
At the time, it was hailed as the future of “clean energy” technology, and the federal government provided a $539 million grant for its construction, along with a separate $1.6 billion loan.
But its technology quickly became outdated by conventional solar panels that absorb sunlight directly and convert it into electricity, making Ivanpah’s energy more expensive to produce. The plant also relies on natural gas to start up each day – producing tens of thousands of metric tons of carbon dioxide annually.
CALIFORNIA’S GREEN NEW SCAM COULD COST YOU $20,000
A composite image shows a tower at the Ivanpah Solar Power Plant alongside a bird found with burn injuries linked to concentrated solar heat exposure, according to federal wildlife research. (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Researchers say birds are drawn to the bright towers, then fly through the plant’s concentrated solar beams — known as solar flux — where they can be injured or killed. Researchers dubbed the phenomenon “streamers,” and a video released by the U.S. Geological Survey shows a bird trailing smoke as its feathers burn. Songbirds, doves, warblers and other migratory species have been found dead at the plant.
Environmental reviews examined by Fox News Digital show that regulators were aware before construction that the project could kill birds, either by being burned by the plant’s concentrated sunlight or colliding with the tens of thousands of mirrors that surround the three towers like lakes. They also raised concerns about damage to the 4,000-acre physical desert habitat it was going to occupy, as well as to protected species that roam the barren terrain, such as the endangered desert tortoise, dozens of which went unaccounted for during early operations.
The project’s Final Environmental Impact Statement warned that climate efforts could come “at the expense of reducing the native biodiversity.”
Even with those warnings, regulators approved the project, allowing it to move forward on the basis that ongoing monitoring and mitigation requirements would be carried out, rather than requiring those risks to be resolved.
A 2016 congressional review raised similar concerns, finding no clear evidence that federal agencies had pursued penalties for bird deaths at Ivanpah — a pattern that appears to have continued.
A peregrine falcon wing shows severe feather damage consistent with exposure to concentrated solar heat, according to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service study of the Ivanpah solar plant. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Burned feathers from a peregrine falcon show damage patterns linked to concentrated solar beams at the Ivanpah solar plant, according to federal research. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
The plant is regulated under a system that tracks wildlife deaths but does not automatically trigger fines or shutdowns.
Monitoring reports show hundreds of birds are found dead at the site each year, with some estimates putting the total in the thousands.
Responsibility for enforcement is shared across multiple agencies, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Bureau of Land Management, each of which has authority over different aspects of the project, the CEC said.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said it reviews monitoring data and provides technical input but did not indicate enforcement action tied to bird deaths at the site.
NRG Energy, which operates the facility, said in a previous statement it remains committed to providing renewable electricity but declined to provide additional comment regarding environmental issues.
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The Ivanpah Solar Power Facility operates in the Mojave Desert near the California–Nevada border, using thousands of mirrors to focus sunlight onto a central tower to generate electricity. (MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
Instead of being treated like a typical environmental violation, the project is governed through a permitting system that emphasizes monitoring and mitigation rather than penalties.
In practice, that means harm can be documented without triggering enforcement action even though federal authorities have pursued penalties for bird deaths in other industries.
Under federal law, violations involving protected migratory birds can carry fines of up to $15,000 per bird.
Such prosecutions of industry have become rare in the United States, however. In 2017, the Department of the Interior reinterpreted the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to apply only to intentional killings — not “incidental” deaths caused by industrial activity such as oil pits, power lines or wind turbines. Federal courts, including the Fifth Circuit, have since reinforced that narrower reading, limiting the government’s ability to penalize companies for equipment-related bird deaths.
But even efforts to reduce harm — including deterrents, lighting changes and operational adjustments — have not eliminated the problem at Ivanpah, with monitoring reports continuing to document annual wildlife deaths.
More than a decade later, Ivanpah shows what that system looks like in practice: a project approved as clean energy that kills wildlife, relies on fossil fuels and continues operating without penalties.
WATCH: Experts weigh in on future of $2.2B Obama-era Ivanpah solar plant as regulators keep it open
This is part 3 of a series on California’s troubled Ivanpah Solar Power Plant in the Mojave Desert
Part 1 – Obama-backed $2.2B green energy ‘boondoggle’ leaves taxpayers on the hook
Part 2 – Obama-era ‘clean energy’ solar power plant still uses fossil fuels – and kills thousands of birds annually
Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.
You can send tips to michael.dorgan@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @M_Dorgan.
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Argentina’s distributed generation sector is rapidly expanding due to higher electricity tariffs, lower equipment costs, and shorter solar project payback periods of around 3–4 years. Growth has accelerated since 2019, reaching over 4,000 user-generators and 143 MW installed, with strong private-sector-driven adoption.
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Image: Mario Ame, Unsplash
From pv magazine Latam
Argentina’s distributed generation (DG) sector is experiencing strong growth, driven by recent electricity tariff adjustments and improving project economics.
“As of today, the wind is at our backs in Argentina,” Argentinean electrical engineer and PV specialist Martín Ponsá told pv magazine.
He explained that electricity tariffs “were frozen in 2019” and that subsequent rate increases have significantly altered the economic equation for photovoltaic projects. He added that “equipment prices—specifically for inverters and panels—are at historic lows” and that there is “significant competition in the labor market,” factors that have considerably reduced project payback periods. “Previously, when you calculated the amortization, it came out to seven, eight, or ten years; today, it hovers around three or four years,” he noted.
Ponsá began working in the distributed generation sector in 2019, following the implementation of Law 27,424. As he recalled, at that time “there were no professionals available to officially certify” projects, and “nobody knew anything—neither they nor we did”—referring to utility companies such as Edenor and Edesur. He explained that he learned the necessary procedures alongside the utilities themselves and has since specialized exclusively in the bureaucratic and technical management required to authorize user-generators. “I act as a partner to the installers; I work hand-in-hand with them,” he stated.
The specialist indicated that he has already participated in nearly 400 user-generator authorizations, spanning both residential and industrial installations. He estimated that these projects represent approximately 7 MW of cumulative installed capacity. “In the context of distributed generation, that is a substantial amount,” he asserted. He also noted that around 70% of these installations belong to residential users and that, while initial growth was concentrated in gated communities and private residential estates, “the industrial sector is now recognizing the opportunity to enter the market, and they are indeed entering.”
Regarding the evolution of the Argentine market, Ponsá highlighted that in 2019 there were barely 67 registered user-generators; by March 2026, that figure had risen to 4,253 users, with a total installed capacity of 143 MW. He clarified, however, that the actual figure is likely higher, as off-grid installations and systems that never completed the formal grid connection process are not included in official statistics. “There could be more than 40% of installations that go completely unnoticed,” he asserted.
Regarding the role of electricity distribution companies, he observed that some firms still view distributed generation “as a bogeyman,” although he maintained that the sector also presents new business opportunities. “Every change compels us to reinvent ourselves,” he said, noting the possibility that cooperatives and distributors could develop their own solar farms to reduce supply costs.
Ponsá also highlighted that Argentina has begun implementing tax incentive programs for energy efficiency and renewable energy. As he explained, the recently enacted Decree 242 provides incentives for investments in solar panels, energy storage, and energy-efficient equipment aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). “That also aids in the amortization process,” he stated.
The engineer argued that Argentina’s market development still lags behind countries such as Brazil, Chile, and Colombia; however, he praised the fact that local growth has been driven “purely by private effort,” within a context of limited financing and a historical lack of incentives.
Finally, he noted that one of the models he is keen to promote in Argentina involves on-site power purchase agreements (PPAs) for industrial clients, similar to those he observed while working in Spain. Although he acknowledged that “economic hurdles” remain, he maintained that the model could be successfully replicated locally. “There are plenty of things we can copy and emulate that are already working elsewhere in the world,” he concluded.
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FLASH: Jinko Solar hits 400 GW cumu…  Mysteel
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This photo taken with a mobile phone shows Ned Ekins-Daukes, head of the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering at the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney), speaking at the 64th Smart Energy Council Conference and Exhibition (Smart Energy 2026) in Sydney, Australia, May 6, 2026.  (Xinhua/Xue Yanwen)
SYDNEY, May 8 (Xinhua) — China’s photovoltaic (PV) industry has achieved many innovative breakthroughs, and its development experience is worth studying by other countries, said a leading Australian expert on PV.
Ned Ekins-Daukes, head of the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering at the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney), made the remarks in an interview with Xinhua on Wednesday at the 64th Smart Energy Council Conference and Exhibition (Smart Energy 2026) in Sydney.
Even for someone who has visited China many times to tour PV facilities, Ekins-Daukes said he is still astonished by the speed of innovation, adding that he is impressed by China’s strides in the production of silicon photovoltaics feedstock, the automation of manufacturing, and the consolidation of the supply chain.
“The first thing Western countries can learn from China’s approach to scaling clean energy technologies is stability of policy,” he said. “The second thing is the clustering of capability. When they decide to build a factory, it’s not just one building, it’s a whole ecosystem, a whole supply chain built at scale.”
“From outside of China, we should pay more attention to how innovation and technical development take place. We should learn from what is happening inside China rather than just standing outside saying ‘somehow it’s really hard to make solar panels.’ We need to understand why,” he said.
The professor also noted that Chinese PV companies are heading in a new direction under the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan, which emphasizes high-quality development. “For photovoltaics, that means thinking about how we can get more value from the solar panel,” he said.
The energy market volatility triggered by the current Middle East conflict will further promote Australia-China cooperation in the photovoltaic sector, he added.
During the event, Ekins-Daukes also joined industry leaders from Australia and China at the Australia-China Smart Energy Partnership Forum, where discussions focused on the future of bilateral cooperation in photovoltaics. ■

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FLASH: Jinko Solar to sell 75.1% st…  Mysteel
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Why India curtailed solar energy during peak summer power demand  The Indian Express
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The latest bulletin from Generadoras de Chile highlights the continued expansion of BESS systems linked to solar plants, with over 2.5 GW in operation and an additional 6.3 GW under construction, amid rising renewable energy curtailment and transmission grid congestion in southern Chile.
A PV plant operated by Engie in Chile
Image: Engie Energía Chile
From pv magazine Latam
Solar photovoltaic energy generated 2,141 GWh in Chile’s National Electric System (SEN) in March 2026, equivalent to 28.7% of total monthly generation, according to the latest bulletin from Generadoras de Chile, the trade association representing electricity generation companies. During the month, solar output reached an instantaneous peak share of 75.1% on March 14 at noon.
Operational photovoltaic capacity stood at 11,999 MW at the end of March, with an additional 10,203 MW of renewable capacity under construction, primarily solar projects and storage systems.
The report shows that renewable energy sources supplied 62% of the SEN’s monthly generation, with the renewable share exceeding 50% throughout all 31 days of March. On March 1 at 2:00 PM, renewables reached an instantaneous peak of 92.6%.
Regionally, Antofagasta contributed 35% of total solar generation, followed by Atacama with 22% and the Metropolitan Region with 7%.
Total installed capacity in the SEN reached 38,005 MW in March 2026, of which 26,553 MW corresponded to renewable technologies or 69.9% of the total. Solar PV remained the largest renewable source with 11,999 MW, followed by wind power at 5,965 MW and run-of-river hydropower at 4,005 MW.
In terms of development, Generadoras de Chile reports 10,474 MW under construction in the SEN, of which 2,753 MW corresponds to solar PV and 6,358 MW to battery energy storage systems (BESS), including standalone projects and hybrid solar-storage facilities. Renewable projects account for 97.4% of all capacity under construction.
Energy storage continues to expand alongside solar development. Chile currently has 2,529 MW / 8,786 MWh in operation, 6,361 MW / 22,479 MWh under construction, and 10,560 MW / 52,833 MWh in environmental assessment. A significant share of operational systems consists of BESS units co-located with photovoltaic plants, designed to shift solar generation to evening hours and reduce curtailment.
In the environmental permitting pipeline, 14,587 MW of renewable capacity is under review, including 10,366 MW of solar PV (57.5% of the total), 4,005 MW of BESS, and 1,957 MW of hybrid solar-wind projects.
The report also highlights operational challenges associated with high renewable penetration. In March, curtailment reached 595.8 GWh, or 20% of total solar and wind generation. Of this, 430.3 GWh corresponded to solar and 165.5 GWh to wind.
Generadoras de Chile attributes the curtailment primarily to grid security constraints and transmission congestion, particularly along the Charrúa–Puerto Montt corridor, which experienced congestion during 39.7% of hours in March.
This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
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A recent study published in Materials Advances describes how an international research team enhanced perovskite indoor photovoltaics by adjusting the absorber bandgap to align with the emission spectrum of indoor LED lighting. According to the source, this tuning facilitates improved spectral matching under low-light conditions, with devices reaching efficiencies of up to 37.44% and maintaining stability for over 2,000 hours.
The researchers fabricated three devices using a conventional mesoscopic n-i-p architecture. The structure included a fluorine-doped tin oxide substrate, layers of compact and mesoporous titanium oxide for electron transport, a perovskite absorber on the mesoporous scaffold, a Spiro-OMeTAD hole transport layer, and a gold back contact. Only the perovskite absorber composition was varied by changing the iodide-to-bromide ratio to control the bandgap. The first device, with 2% bromide, had a bandgap of 1.55 eV; the second, with 45% bromide, achieved a 1.72 eV bandgap; and the third, with 85% bromide, produced a 1.88 eV bandgap.
Each device was tested under multiple light intensities—1,000, 500, and 250 lux—and LED color temperatures of 3,000 K, 4,000 K, and 5,500 K. Performance metrics included power conversion efficiency, open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density, and fill factor, measured across all nine conditions. Additional characterization involved photoluminescence spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and long-term stability testing under indoor illumination for up to 2,000 hours.
The study revealed that the 1.72 eV composition performed consistently well across varied light intensities and color temperatures. The corresponding author noted that its reduced sensitivity to spectral changes challenges the conventional belief that wider bandgaps lead to narrow operating windows. The 1.88 eV device achieved a peak efficiency of 37.44% under low-intensity (250 lux, 5,500 K) illumination, showing that near-perfect spectral alignment can offset material limitations in specific indoor conditions.
The research concluded that there is no single optimal bandgap for indoor photovoltaics, as device performance depends heavily on illumination conditions. The next phase of the study will focus on addressing trap-assisted recombination in high-bandgap perovskites through defect passivation and interface engineering, with the goal of integrating these devices into functional Internet of Things systems for real-world validation. Scientists from King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, King Saud University, Taibah University, the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas, Hellenic Mediterranean University, and the University of Crete participated in the study.
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