This year, CalLab PV Cells, the calibration laboratory at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, celebrates its 30th jubilee. For the past three decades, precisely measured reference solar cells – and for almost 25 years reference modules – have been sent from Freiburg throughout the world. The cell reference provides a measure of comparison for photovoltaics on an international scale, allowing manufacturers and researchers to make efficiency values globally comparable and legally accepted. When the Fraunhofer ISE CalLab PV Cells began operation in 1986, it was the only facility of its kind in Europe. Since then, the lab enjoys international prestige. At CalLab PV Cells today, thirty employees are busy calibrating around 2500 solar cells and 5000 solar modules per year.
“Our ambition is to measure as precisely as possible just how much electricity is converted from sunlight,” says Dr. Jochen Hohl-Ebinger, team leader of CalLab PV Cells. Round robins carried out with the four leading calibration laboratories in the world confirm the high precision of our measurements which ranges between 0.7 and 2 percent. “A short time ago, we visited a renowned calibration laboratory to discuss shadowing by contacting on location,” explains Hohl-Ebinger. “At the end of our discussion, we were able to convince him of our concept!”
Besides highest quality measurements, we assure our clients absolute confidentiality. Although we make use of the in-house expertise at Fraunhofer ISE, we ascertain that no confidential information flows from our labs to them. “In fact, my supervisor first found out that his world record was surpassed while listening to a colleague’s talk at a conference, even though the measurements verifying the results were carried out at CalLab PV Cells,” relates Hohl-Ebinger.
