Introduction to PERC 

It stands for passivated emitter and rear cell, also known as passivated emitter and rear contact. PERC cell technology defines a solar cell architecture that contrasts from the standard cell that’s been used for three decades and that’s featured in  photovoltaic manuals. The objective of scientists is to get the most electrons out of the solar cells. The PERC architecture aims to improve light capture near the rear surface and to optimize electrons capture. Under the acronym PERC,they’re several solar cells technologies named PERL, PERT, PERF. They’re all considered as being part of the same family. 
 

Advantage of the PERC cell structure 

The main advantage of the PERC cell structure is that it enables manufacturers to fulfill higher efficiencies than with standard solar cells. Standard solar cells have their physical limits. With the current state of the technology, it could achieve up to 1% absolute gain in efficiency. The gain in efficiency at the system level and enables costs decrease. The ultimate goal in the solar industry is to improve efficiency while reducing costs at the same time. Solar cell efficiency improvement is a contributor to the reduction of costs.The PERC structure has been around for quite sometime.  The first technology traces back to Australia in 1983 and the first paper on PERC was published in 1989. 

There’s a gap between the performances achieved at the research level and in mass production at the industrial level. Its emerged now mostly due to economic reasons. It  constitutes a new viable platform to manufacture high power and high efficiency solar panels. 
 

Tech challenges  

The obstacles with the PERC technology is the capacity to scale up the technology while controlling the process. There’s a few susceptible variables that impact the panel equipped with this technology; The first one is Light Induced Degradation (LID)  that causes a module to lose a percentage of its power after first exposition to light. This is  why manufacturers with linear warranties never guarantee 100% of the power after the first year. Due to the higher doping levels commonly applied in PERC cells, the negative from LID is increased with PERC technology. The last obstacle relates to potential induced degradation. It’s a defect that can   damage the performances of a power plant. The best recommendation  is to ensure  that the modules are granted the certificate according to IEC TS 62804 for PID resistance. In addition, there should be a level of trust in the consistency the manufacturer applies to its material selection and  ensure its production is PID free.

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