engineering the solar age - Suppliers for Photovoltaics

Innovative measurement technology for the PV industry

SENTECH develops, manufactures and sells instruments and automated systems for the measurement of crystalline silicon and thin-film solar cells. The company is a market leader for tools which measure antireflective coatings on crystalline silicon solar cells and the haze of rough TCO films on large glass sheets. Customized solutions are offered for R&D and quality control of production processes. SENTECH offers solutions and services worldwide based on its extended distributor network.

Antireflective and passivating coatings

The laser ellipsometer SE 400adv PV and the spectroscopic ellipsometer SE 800 PV, specially developed for measurement on rough surfaces, are offered for the characterization of antireflective and passivating films on textured monocrystalline and multicrystalline silicon solar cells. Single films and multiple layer stacks can be analyzed. Customized solutions are available for offline and inline applications.

Thin-film solar cells

The horizontally or vertically configured, computer-controlled multiple sensor mapping platforms, SenSol H and SenSol V, are offered for offline measurements of film properties on large area glass sheets. The tools are used for R&D and quality control of production processes, especially the manufacture of thin-film silicon solar cells, and CIGS solar cells can also be monitored. Sensors are provided for the measurement of film thickness, reflection, transmission, haze, sheet resistance, crystallinity, band gap, I(V), and external quantum efficiency.

Inline measurement tools

Reflection and transmission measurements are suitable for the inline control of the thickness of single films and layer stacks during the manufacture of thin-film solar cells. SENTECH offers the FTPadv Inline which allows one controller to control up to seven sensor heads. Measurements can be made in the UV–VIS–NIR spectral range.