Source: Hanergy/Alta Devices

Hanergy Thin Film Power Group Limited reports that Fraunhofer ISE CalLab PV Modules, a German solar energy testing laboratory, has rated its U.S.-based subsidiary Alta Devices' newest solar production module as the highest efficiency single-junction solar module ever produced. The module, with a record-setting 25.1 percent conversion efficiency, can be used to power a range of products such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), electric vehicles and smart sensors that were previously limited by low efficiency solar solutions.

Alta's gallium arsenide modules perform at up to two times that of ordinary flexible solar cells, making them the current world leader in terms of module efficiency for thin film solar technology. Since 2010, Alta's GaAs single-junction cells have broken conversion efficiency records four times and still hold the world's highest (lab) conversion efficiency rate of 28.8 percent.

The company’s thin-film solar panels have been successfully applied to a range of different products. On the transportation side, Alta Devices has worked with European car makers to integrate solar cells into panoramic glass automobile roofs.

In terms of UAVs, Alta Devices has made strides toward solving one of the biggest "pain points" of traditional unmanned aerial vehicles by applying the highest-efficiency GaAs thin-film solar cell to develop a UAV with the longest flight time in the world. Extremely light and flexible, the thin-film panels were easily integrated into the drone without altering its aerodynamic profile.