Photovoltaic and renewable energy engineering is an area of research, development, and demonstration in Australia. Two Australian Research Council Centres play a role.
School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering
The School of Engineering and Energy at Murdoch University offers a degree programs in physics, nanotechnology, engineering and energy.[2]
ARC Centre of Excellence for Advanced Silicon Photovoltaics and Photonics
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Advanced Silicon Photovoltaics and Photonics opened on 13 June 2003. The Centre is engaged in siliconphotovoltaic research and applying these advances to the related field of photonics. The Centre is made up of five research teams seeking ways of improving the efficiency and cost of silicon based photovoltaic and photonic devices.[3]
PERL Solar Cell
Passivated emitter rear locally diffused (PERL) solar cell developed at UNSW.
Semiconductor Fingers
Semiconductor finger technology was developed at UNSW. Fingers of heavily doped semiconductor running parallel to front surface electrical contacts reduce the effect of the dead layer of commercial solar cells.
CSG
Crystalline silicon on glass (CSG) solar cells developed at UNSW are thin-film silicon devices directly onto glass. The technology is now in commercial production in Germany being produced by CSG Solar AG.
Using a fraction of the costly and limited supply of silicon used in conventional solar panels while matching power, performance, and efficiency.[5] Professor Andrew Blakers, Director of the Australian National UniversityCentre for Sustainable Energy Systems, invented the technology with colleague Dr Klaus Weber and developed it with funding from energy supplier Origin Energy and the Australian Research Council. Blakers and Weber won the Australian Institute of Physics' Walsh Medal for their work.[6] Origin Energy is developing SLIVER modules for commercialisation at its pilot plant in Regency Park, South Australia.[citation needed]