Hanwha Qcells to supply tandem cells for NASA-backed space solar power demonstration

Hanwha Solutions' Qcells division will take part in a space solar power demonstration that will send its next-generation perovskite-based tandem cells to the moon.

Hanwha Qcells announced Monday that its German subsidiary will join the Space Science and Technology Experiment Facility (SSTEF-1) project as a partner alongside the Georgia Institute of Technology, supplying tandem cell samples for the mission. The tandem cells carry a theoretical efficiency of 44 percent — 1.5 times the 29 percent theoretical limit of conventional silicon cells.

The SSTEF program is a space technology demonstration initiative funded by NASA and led by US-based Aegis Aerospace. The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), a nonprofit applied research arm of Georgia Tech, selected Hanwha Qcells' tandem cells as the demonstration product for a mission to evaluate solar cell performance in a space environment.

GTRI plans to mount Hanwha Qcells' tandem cell samples on the surface of a lunar lander and expose them to space conditions to collect demonstration data. Hanwha Qcells said it will use the data gathered through the demonstration to define its research and development direction for securing the most reliable space solar power technology possible.

The tandem cells supplied for the demonstration were developed independently at Hanwha Qcells' R&D center in Thalheim, Germany. The cells can achieve high efficiency comparable to existing space-grade cells while reducing weight relative to the same installed capacity. Hanwha Qcells is targeting 2029 for the commercial launch of ground-use tandem products and plans to pursue the expansion of tandem technology into the space solar power sector thereafter.

Meanwhile, Hanwha Qcells has obtained International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) certification for a ground-use perovskite-based tandem module it developed and manufactured in-house — the first time a perovskite-based tandem module has earned the certification.

In December 2024, Hanwha Qcells recorded a world-record efficiency of 28.6 percent on a large-area, commercially scalable tandem cell in the full-size M10 format, independently verified by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems CalLab in Germany. The result demonstrated the potential to generate more electricity from the same surface area.

The latest achievement carries added significance because it advances the technology from a laboratory record to a commercial product — a tandem module — and clears the long-term reliability evaluations required for international certification. Hanwha Qcells' tandem module passed all categories of solar module reliability testing conducted by global solar certification body TÜV Rheinland against IEC and UL international standards. Those test categories reproduce the extreme conditions modules face in real-world environments to verify durability and safety.

Hanwha Qcells is also validating tandem module performance in actual outdoor conditions in parallel. Tandem modules operating at the Thalheim R&D center and at a third-party demonstration facility — for roughly one year and six months, respectively — have maintained stable power generation performance to date.

"Building on the technological capabilities and market competitiveness we have accumulated since our origins in solar manufacturing, Hanwha Qcells will advance into a global renewable energy solutions company that opens the era of space solar power," Park Seung-deok, chief executive of Hanwha Qcells, said. "This project will mark an important turning point in extending the possibilities of sustainable energy all the way to space."