IUCRC Phase III Colorado State University: Center for a Solar Powered Future (SPF2050)

能源可持续性是现代社会面临的重大挑战之一；太阳能是可再生能源的重要来源。光伏(PV)或太阳能电池是基于半导体的固态设备，可以将阳光直接转化为电能，在运行过程中不会产生污染、排放或温室气体。I/UCRC for Solar a Power Future专注于光伏研究。该中心通过该中心正在进行的研究和教育计划，促进科学，促进繁荣和福利。这些计划的重点是降低光伏系统成本，提高光伏系统效率，并推动光伏电力的广泛使用。该中心的研究愿景是使美国和世界在2050年前实现零碳足迹，利用太阳能作为一种资源。该中心目前有两个研究站点：科罗拉多州立大学(CSU)和德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校(UT Austin)。CSU的光伏培训方法以团队为基础：来自不同学科的学生，包括大量女性和退伍军人，彼此密切合作，与来自行业的工程师合作，在许多情况下，还与其他大学的学生合作。CSU的网站专注于通过提高薄膜光伏器件的性能、进行最先进的材料表征、简化制造、执行量子模拟和提高模块可靠性来降低太阳能成本。CSU网站的一个关键目标是通过设计具有更高效率的光伏器件结构、先进的模块封装设计以及先进的材料和材料表征来提升最先进的技术水平。一个关键的研究重点是证明更高的电池效率。量子模拟将有助于这项研究。降低模块制造和材料成本，同时提高可靠性和促进部署是另一个重点领域。这些进步已经在试验规模的系统上得到了展示，直接瞄准了工业制造。这些努力将导致较低的LCOE(统一电力成本)，并有助于实现2-3美分/千瓦时的目标。总体而言，该中心既有潜力增加数十亿美元的美国光伏产业的影响力，该产业正在快速增长，又有可能极大地扩大太阳能发电的应用。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Energy sustainability represents one of the grand challenges facing modern society; Solar power provides an important source of renewable energy. Photovoltaics (PV) or solar cells are solid-state, semiconductor-based devices that convert sunlight directly to electricity and do not generate pollution, emissions, or greenhouse gases during operation. The I/UCRC for Solar a Powered Future is focuses on PV research. The center promotes science and advances prosperity and welfare through the Center's ongoing research and education programs. These programs are focused on bringing down PV system costs, increasing PV system efficiencies, and enabling the widespread the use of PV electricity. The Center's research vision is to enable the US and the world achieve a zero-carbon footprint by 2050 using solar energy as a resource. There are currently two research sites in the Center: Colorado State University (CSU) and the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin). The PV-training approach at CSU is strongly team based: students from different disciplines including a significant number of women and veterans, work closely with each other, with engineers from industry, and, in many cases, with students at other universities. The CSU site is focused on reducing the cost of solar energy by advancing thin film PV device performance, performing state-of-the-art materials characterization, streamlining manufacturing, performing quantum simulation, and improving module reliability. A key goal of the CSU site is to advance the state of the art by designing PV device structures with higher efficiencies, advanced module package designs, and advanced materials and materials characterization. A key research thrust is to demonstrate still higher cell efficiencies. Quantum simulations will aid this research. Reducing module manufacturing and materials costs while improving reliability and facilitating deployment are additional areas of focus. These advances have been demonstrated on pilot scale systems with a direct line of sight to industrial manufacturing. The efforts will lead to lower LCOE (levelized cost of electricity) and help facilitate the goal of 2-3 cents/kWhr. Overall, center has the potential to both increase the impact of the multi-billion-dollar U.S. PV industry that is growing rapidly and greatly expand the application of solar electricity.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.