Overview

A major societal challenge is to generate electricity with minimal environmental impact. One way to do this is by using the power of the sun. ASU has established itself nationally as one of the leaders in the solar electric field.

New technologies in third-generation photovoltaics (PV), combining ASU’s core competencies in energy and nanotechnology, are emerging as possible disruptive technologies. ASU has strong capabilities across materials science, physics, chemistry, and electrical engineering to realize breakthroughs in this area.

Major advances in battery technology based on work at ASU could lead to low-cost, long-distance electric vehicles, as well as affordable storage technologies for solar electric generation.

Novel developments in power electronics as well as smart grid could significantly reduce the grid connection cost, which is a major component of the price of solar electricity.

ASU can also play a role in new niche areas such as smart solar panels, leveraging our flexible electronics capability, our expertise in PV devices, and our expertise in low-power design and power electronics to integrate inverters and performance optimization circuitry on panels or even cells, to create smart arrays of solar panels, optimizing system performance through variable environmental conditions.

ASU has a world-recognized, core capability in energy reliability and testing through the Photovoltaics Reliability Lab (PRL) and TUV Rheinland Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory. Several manufacturers and power companies have approached PRL for long-term accelerated reliability research. Reliability research would address thermal, soiling, and mismatch losses of PV power plants, which are of great interest to Arizona homeowners and to utility companies.