Table of Contents

Executive Summary

E.1 The Current State of the TFPV Market
E.1.1 TFPV in the Downturn
E.1.2 What About the Recovery?
E.2 Key Opportunities in Absorber and Junction Materials
E.2.1 Materials Opportunities for Thin-Film Silicon Materials Suppliers
E.2.2 Materials Opportunities for CdTe Materials Suppliers
E.2.3 Materials Opportunities for CIGS Materials Suppliers
E.3 Key Opportunities for Other TFPV Materials
E.3.1 Materials Opportunities for Substrate Suppliers
E.3.2 Materials Opportunities for Electrode Materials Suppliers
E.3.3 Materials Opportunities for Encapsulation and Antireflection Materials Suppliers
E.4 Metals Markets and Pricing: The Impact on TFPV
E.5 Firms to Watch
E.6 Summary of Eight-Year Forecasts of TFPV Materials Markets

Chapter One: Introduction

1.1 Background to this Report
1.1.1 Thin-Film vs. Crystalline Silicon Materials
1.1.2 Materials, BIPV and Flexible Modules
1.1.3 Thin-Film Silicon: The Old Way or Something New?
1.1.4 CdTe: Some Mice among the Elephants?
1.1.5 CIGS: Lowered Expectations
1.2 Objectives and Scope of this Report
1.3 Methodology of this Report
1.4 Plan of this Report

Chapter Two: Materials for Thin-Film Silicon Photovoltaics

2.1 Overview of Thin-Film Silicon PV
2.1.1 Evolution of Architectures, Cell Performance, and Cost Framework
2.1.2 Hybrids: Thin-Film Silicon on Crystalline Silicon
2.1.3 Silicon Supply and Silicon Prices
2.2 Silicon Absorber Layer Materials
2.2.1 Silicon Materials
2.2.2 Silicon-Germanium Materials
2.2.3 Microcrystalline Silicon Materials
2.2.4 Nanocrystalline Silicon Materials
2.2.5 Printed Silicon PV and Silicon Inks
2.3 Substrates, Electrodes, and Other Materials for Thin-Film Silicon PV
2.3.1 Substrates
2.3.2 Transparent Electrode Materials
2.3.3 Nontransparent Electrode and Reflector Materials
2.4 Silane and Chemical Safety Issues
2.5 Key Suppliers of Thin-Film Silicon Materials
2.6 Key Points Made in this Chapter

Chapter Three: Materials for CdTe Thin-Film Photovoltaics

3.1 Overview of CdTe PV
3.1.1 Evolution of Architectures, Cell Performance, and Cost Framework
3.2 CdTe Absorber Layer Materials
3.2.1 CdS Junction Layer Materials
3.2.2 Next Generation Absorber Materials Developments
3.3 Substrates, Electrodes, and Other Materials for CdTe PV
3.3.1 Substrates
3.3.2 Transparent Electrode Materials
3.3.3 Nontransparent Electrode Materials
3.4 Metals Concerns: Cadmium and Tellurium
3.4.1 Cadmium
3.4.2 Tellurium
3.5 Key Suppliers of CdTe Materials
3.6 Key Points Made in this Chapter

Chapter Four: Materials for CIGS Thin-Film Photovoltaics

4.1 Overview of CIGS PV
4.2 Evolution of Architectures and Materials
4.3 CIGS Absorber Layer Materials
4.3.1 Absorber Layer Composition: CIS vs. CIGS
4.3.2 Other Absorber Layer Compositional and Structural Features
4.4 CIGS Deposition and Raw Materials
4.4.1 Vacuum Deposition
4.4.2 Printing and CIGS Inks
4.4.3 Electrodeposition
4.5 Other Materials Specific to CIGS PV
4.5.1 Substrates, Rigid and Flexible
4.5.2 Transparent Electrodes
4.5.3 Non-Transparent Electrodes
4.5.4 Junction Layer Materials
4.5.5 Antireflection Materials
4.5.6 The Encapsulation Issue
4.6 Indium and CIGS
4.7 Key Suppliers of Materials Unique to CIGS PV
4.8 Key Points Made in this Chapter

Chapter Five: General Purpose Material Considerations

5.1 Substrates
5.1.1 Rigid Substrates
5.1.2 Flexible Substrates and BIPV Products
5.1.3 Key Suppliers of TFPV Substrates
5.2 Transparent Electrode Materials
5.2.1 TCOs for TFPV: FTO, ITO, and AZO
5.2.2 Future Approaches: CNTs, Other Nanomaterials, and Composites
5.2.3 Key Suppliers of Transparent Electrode Materials for TFPV
5.3 Nontransparent Electrode Materials
5.3.1 Key Suppliers of Nontransparent Electrode Materials for TFPV
5.4 Encapsulation and Antireflection Materials
5.4.1 Key Suppliers of Encapsulation and Antireflection Materials
5.5 Key Points Made in this Chapter

Chapter Six: Eight-Year Forecasts of Thin-Film PV Materials Markets

6.1 Forecasting Methodology
6.1.1 Data Sources
6.1.2 Scope of Forecast
6.1.3 Alternative Scenarios and Other Factors Taken Into Consideration
6.2 Absorber Material Revenues by TFPV Technologies
6.3 Forecasts of Materials Specific to Thin-Film Silicon PV
6.3.1 Thin-Film Silicon PV Materials Overview
6.3.2 Major Thin-Film Silicon Absorber Materials
6.3.3 Thin-Film Silicon PV Substrate Materials
6.3.4 Back Electrode Materials for TF Si PV
6.3.5 Printed Silicon Hybrid Cells
6.3.6 Printing for Thin-Film Silicon Cells
6.4 Forecasts of Materials Specific to TF CdTe PV
6.4.1 CdTe PV Materials Overview
6.4.2 Tellurium and CdTe Absorber Materials
6.4.3 CdTe PV Deposition Methods
6.4.4 CdTe PV Substrate Materials
6.4.5 Back Electrode Materials for CdTe PV
6.5 Forecasts of Materials Specific to Thin-Film CIGS PV
6.5.1 CIGS PV Materials Overview
6.5.2 CIGS Absorber Layer Materials
6.5.3 CIGS Deposition Methods
6.5.4 CIGS PV Substrate Materials
6.5.5 Back Electrode Materials for CIGS PV
6.6 Forecasts of Materials Shared by the Thin-Film PV Technologies
6.6.1 Transparent Electrode Materials
6.6.2 Encapsulation and Antireflection Materials
6.7 Summary of Market Forecasts
Acronyms and Abbreviations Used In this Report
About the Author