Mike Allison, executive VP of Edwards, describes how solar photovoltaics (PV) manufacturers are looking to up productivity and drive the cost curve down, ever hunting the lowest cost/Watt.

LayTec will unveil the in-line metrology system PearL at Intersolar Europe 2011. The optical in-line monitoring system measures photoluminescence spectra of CIGS thin-film modules in production lines, and a product option for CdTe absorbers is also available.

SolarEdge Technologies will debut next-gen power optimizers at Intersolar Europe. The optimizers combine module-level maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and monitoring, a new ASIC chipset, and 32% fewer parts than prior iterations.

King's New Energy Co. (KNE), solar mounting system manufacturer, will launch an Automatic Cleaning System for solar panels at Intersolar North America 2011.

The new SF-1136SX SolFocus concentrated photovoltaics (CPV) array produces more power than prior products and cuts field assembly time in half, according to the company.

United Solar, a wholly owned subsidiary of Energy Conversion Devices, achieved 16.3% efficiency for its thin-film silicon solar photovoltaics technology, up from a previous record of 15.4%.

Navigant's Paula Mints reviews last week's Intersolar North America, a solar conference which has come into its own, and has some harsh words about domestic support for solar -- and why China's a role model now.

Speaking at Intersolar in Munich Germany, Dr. Axel Metz, director of solar cell R&D for SCHOTT Solar AG (Mainz, Germany) made a case for inline wafer processing, saying it is best suited to new throughput and yield challenges. He said that, by 2020, wafer through is expected to increase to 7200 ...