HyET, Kalpana and TNO forge perovskite partnership

Solar firm HyET Solar, equipment manufacturer Kalpana Systems and research institute TNO have announced a collaboration supporting HyET’s aim of manufacturing ‘Dutch’ solar cells by 2030. The partnership focuses on the incorporation of nickel oxide (NiO_x) layers in perovskite solar cells using spatial atomic layer deposition (ALD). NiO_x improves both the efficiency, reliability and stability of perovskite solar cells but is difficult to produce with high quality at an industrial scale. Kalpana’s spatial ALD technology is meant to remedy that.

ALD involves sequentially exposing a substrate to different gases, which react with the surface in a self-limiting fashion, thus ‘coating’ it atomic layer by atomic layer. Spatial ALD is a continuous version of the technique, supporting higher throughput. It’s become a bit of a Dutch specialty, with three companies offering spatial-ALD equipment: Kalpana, SALD and Sparknano.

The partners are targeting the integration of Kalpana’s systems in HyET Solar’s production line by mid-2027 and aim for full-scale production by 2030.