Solar is the fastest growing source of renewable electricity in the world and in the United States, with a 40 percent global annual capacity growth between 2000 and 2011. But there are challenges for the future growth of solar such as cost effectiveness, grid integration, and storage of power for later use.
Todays leading PV (photovoltaic) cell manufacturers have reached the limits of conventional solar cell screen printing processes, and governments are cutting subsidies for rooftop solar panel installation, choosing to make huge investments in new solar technologies instead.
One Israeli startup, undaunted by the challenges, has developed an innovative printing method that does more with less materials. Utilight, based in Yavne, Israel, and founded in 2008, uses a printing technology called pattern transfer printing (PTP), which is specifically designed for high-volume manufacturing of solar PV cells.
