News

21 October 2010

 

NYSERDA funds Magnolia for Phase II of nanostructured thin-film PV contract

Magnolia Solar Corp of Woburn, MA, USA says that its subsidiary Magnolia Solar Inc has received funding from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) for Phase II of an existing three-phase $1m development program (begun in March with Phase I) to demonstrate high-efficiency nanostructured thin-film solar cells.

Magnolia Solar Inc was founded in 2008 to commercialize nanotechnology-based, high-efficiency, thin-film technology that can be deposited on glass or other low-cost flexible polymer substrates. The firm says that its technology — which uses non-toxic nitride-based materials — can capture a broader spectrum of the sun's energy and incorporates a unique nanostructure-based anti-reflection coating to reduce energy losses, boosting the solar cell's efficiency and reducing the cost per watt.

The Phase II funding was approved after the Magnolia team met the Phase I milestones for the development of nanostructure-based thin-film solar cells. These included the demonstration of tunable anti-reflection coatings for solar cells on glass substrates and the development of nanostructured absorber materials to capture a larger part of the solar spectrum for the high-efficiency solar cell development. For the Phase II efforts, Magnolia will continue optimizing this unique solar cell technology.

Magnolia has also opened an office at the Albany Nanotech complex on the campus of the University of Albany (State University of New York), in order to allow staff to collaborate closely with the development team members at the SUNY Albany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) as well as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, NY, and to better capitalize on the characterization facilities available in the New York capital region.

“Progress to Phase II represents completion of an important milestone in our development program,” says Magnolia’s president & CEO Dr Ashok K. Sood. “We are committed to growing in the Albany region, leveraging the tremendous infrastructure at the Albany Nanotech Center,” he adds. “We intend to provide environmentally responsible, low-cost solutions for the solar power industry and to be part of the New York state's energy future.”

See related items:

Magnolia wins NYSERDA award to develop low-cost nano-based thin-film solar cells

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Visit: www.MagnoliaSolar.com

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