World of Renewables - Renewable Energy News, Technology, Products, Finance, Companies, Events, Jobs and more: Applied Materials backs solar inspection and quality-control startup

Applied Materials backs solar inspection and quality-control startup
================================================================================
Pangea on 24/08/2010
 
But now it’s sinking money into a new business : solar inspection and quality
control. The company’s investment arm, Applied Ventures, joined a $3.8 million
first round of funding for BT Imaging, a startup that does just that.   The core
of BT’s business is its photoluminescence technology, which makes it possible
to electronically inspect mass amounts of solar wafers and cells on an
individual basis as they make their way down the assembly line. Lasers are used
to illuminate the material and the light is captured by a specialized camera —
dark parts of the wafers and cells will not produce as much electricity. The
process ensures high efficiencies and manufacturing yields — essentially
lowering bottom-line costs for photovoltaic makers. For more on this article:
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS42110333420100823 Source: Reuters