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5 Optoelectronics and Photovoltaics
Pages 29-36

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From page 29...
... At that point, China demonstrated a strong presence in the rare CRITICAL MATERIALS IN OPTOELECTRONICS earth market. However, in the 40 years since then, China's Rare earth elements are used widely in the field of opto- share of the world reserves of these elements fell to about electronics.
From page 30...
... nificantly reduce the prices of the other rare earth elements. Erbium accounts for about 0.5 percent of mined rare Shinar observed that rare earths can be separated into three earths, and the demand of 700 tons of oxide per year is balcategories -- surplus, balanced, and tight.
From page 31...
... ITO is essential to all of this work because it is the pre In fact, when researchers from the Universal Display ferred transparent conducting electrode in thin-film photo Corporation successfully fabricated phosphorescent OLEDs voltaics, and it is the only transparent conducting electrode using heavy metal chelates, they boosted internal quantum in all LCDs and OLEDs. Researchers are making advances efficiencies into the 90 to 100 percent range.
From page 32...
... In 2011, growth in the amount of PV installed returned to FIGURE 5-2 Between 1976 and 2009, the price of solar energy more normal levels, which accounts for the glut in supplies. power modules has declined as cumulative sales increased as a In terms of cumulative installations, PV now produces result of aggressive pricing for market share.
From page 33...
... "That transition was hard for traditional silicon purification companies to grasp." Other bottlenecks involve extraction of the elements Meeting Future Demand needed to meet growing demands from the solar industry. Zweibel listed a number of key technologies that will If there is not enough of a particular element available to play a major role in the future growth of PV as an electricity meet the immediate or short-term future demand, it may not source.
From page 34...
... to 0.67 microns with little difficulty in light absorption. Thin- For those reasons, there has been no backlash against the use ner copper indium selenide alloys -- 0.75 microns compared of very thin, very stable layers of cadmium telluride in PV.
From page 35...
... behavior of the materials themselves. The second area where It is "important to understand how that chemistry happens chemistry is important is in manufacturing, which is really both in terms of the processing and in terms of the nature a chemical engineering problem and relies heavily on the of the material itself." Chemists also are needed in the knowledge of chemical engineers.


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