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| Basel Photovoltaic Laboratory | |
|---|---|
| Name | Basel Photovoltaic Laboratory |
| Established | 1959 |
| Location | Basel, Switzerland |
| Type | Research institute |
| Affiliations | University of Basel; ETH Zurich |
Basel Photovoltaic Laboratory The Basel Photovoltaic Laboratory is a research institute in Basel focused on solar energy conversion, semiconductor photovoltaics, and materials science. The laboratory connects to institutions such as the University of Basel, ETH Zurich, Paul Scherrer Institute, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne and collaborates with industrial partners like ABB, Roche, Novartis and Siemens. It has contributed to advances in photovoltaic cell architectures, thin-film technologies, and reliability testing adopted across Europe and North America.
Founded in the late 1950s during a period of rapid development in semiconductor research, the laboratory emerged amid contemporaneous advances at Bell Laboratories, IBM Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems. Early work was influenced by research at Bell Labs on silicon diodes, innovations at General Electric, and developments at University of Cambridge and Imperial College London. The lab expanded during the 1970s oil crisis alongside programs at European Commission initiatives and national efforts at Swiss Federal Office of Energy, drawing collaborations with CERN, Max Planck Society, and École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. During the 1990s and 2000s the laboratory partnered with projects linked to the International Energy Agency, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and consortia led by Shell and BP to advance thin-film and concentrator photovoltaics.
Research at the laboratory spans silicon photovoltaics, III–V semiconductor cells, perovskite materials, and organic photovoltaics, intersecting with studies at Stanford University, Harvard University, California Institute of Technology, and Tokyo Institute of Technology. Work includes device physics informed by concepts from Shockley–Queisser limit research, modelling approaches used at Princeton University and University of California, Berkeley, and degradation studies comparable to those at Fraunhofer ISE and NREL. The group has published joint studies with teams from University of Cambridge, ETH Zurich, Imperial College London, and University of Oxford, addressing topics central to initiatives by European Research Council and frameworks set by Horizon 2020.
Facilities include cleanrooms, vapor deposition systems, molecular beam epitaxy chambers, and characterization labs comparable to infrastructure at Paul Scherrer Institute and Fraunhofer ISE. Instrumentation encompasses solar simulators traceable to standards from International Electrotechnical Commission, electroluminescence imaging systems akin to those used at TÜV SÜD, and spectral response equipment similar to gear at National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The laboratory's metrology is interoperable with calibration services offered by Swiss Federal Institute of Metrology (METAS), and testbeds mirror setups used in projects at European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference venues.
The laboratory contributed to early demonstrations of high-efficiency silicon heterojunction cells in collaboration with groups from University of New South Wales, and to tandem architectures alongside researchers from EPFL and Helmholtz Association. It participated in multi-institution consortia that included NREL, Fraunhofer ISE, and CEA-Leti on perovskite/silicon tandems and stability protocols promoted by International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme. The lab has been part of technology transfer initiatives with industrial partners such as ABB, Siemens, and Meyer Burger and engaged with standardization efforts involving IEC and CEN.
Collaborations include academic partnerships with University of Basel, ETH Zurich, EPFL, University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, Stanford University, NREL, and Fraunhofer ISE; industrial links with ABB, Siemens, Roche, Novartis, Meyer Burger, and First Solar; and policy engagement with Swiss Federal Office of Energy, European Commission, and International Energy Agency. The laboratory has participated in European projects funded through Horizon 2020, cooperative research with Paul Scherrer Institute and joint ventures involving Shell and TotalEnergies.
Scientists and leaders associated with the laboratory have included faculty and researchers who also held positions at University of Basel, ETH Zurich, EPFL, Imperial College London, and visiting scholars from MIT, Stanford University, University of Tokyo, and Tsinghua University. Collaborating principal investigators have had links to grant programs from the European Research Council, fellowships from the Swiss National Science Foundation, and awards such as those given by the IEEE and Royal Society. Technical staff maintain accreditation compatible with METAS and engage with professional societies including European Solar Test Installation networks.
The laboratory's outputs influenced industrial adoption of heterojunction and tandem cell concepts championed by companies like Meyer Burger and First Solar, informed policy discussions at the European Commission and Swiss Federal Office of Energy, and fed standards development at IEC and CEN. Alumni have taken positions at EPFL, ETH Zurich, Fraunhofer ISE, and multinational firms such as Siemens and ABB, propagating methods and protocols to research centers including Paul Scherrer Institute and NREL. The laboratory's legacy persists in textbooks, curricula at University of Basel and ETH Zurich, and in collaborative networks spanning Europe, North America, and Asia.
Category:Research institutes in Switzerland Category:Photovoltaics Category:University of Basel