Odersun was a German photovoltaic (PV) company that developed and manufactured CIGS cells on a flexible

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

backing, specifically designed for

building-integrated photovoltaics Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) are photovoltaic materials that are used to replace conventional building materials in parts of the building envelope such as the roof, skylights, or facades. They are increasingly being incorporated int ...

. The insolvent company went into administration on 1 June 2012 and filed for bankruptcy. Odersun employed more than 320 people in production, research and management in

Frankfurt an der Oder Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (), is a city in the German state of Brandenburg. It has around 57,000 inhabitants, is one of the easternmost cities in Germany, the fourth-largest city in Brandenburg, and the largest German ...

Fürstenwalde Fürstenwalde/Spree (; Lower Sorbian: ''Pśibor pśi Sprjewje'') is the most populous town in the Oder-Spree District of Brandenburg, Germany. Geography The town is situated in the glacial valley (''Urstromtal'') of the Spree river north of the ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

, Germany. In cooperation with partner and investor AT&M, the company was setting up a joint venture in Beijing, China. The company produced its flexible photovoltaic modules according to a proprietary and patented manufacturing process. These thin-film modules converted sunlight into electricity using a thin layer of a

copper indium gallium selenide Copper indium gallium (di)selenide (CIGS) is a I-III- VI2 semiconductor material composed of copper, indium, gallium, and selenium. The material is a solid solution of copper indium selenide (often abbreviated "CIS") and copper gallium selenide. ...

(CIGS)

semiconductor A semiconductor is a material which has an electrical conductivity value falling between that of a conductor, such as copper, and an insulator, such as glass. Its resistivity falls as its temperature rises; metals behave in the opposite way. ...

which was deposited on copper tape. These were cut, interconnected and built into different forms of modules depending on their application such as facades,

roof A roof ( : roofs or rooves) is the top covering of a building, including all materials and constructions necessary to support it on the walls of the building or on uprights, providing protection against rain, snow, sunlight, extremes of te ...

s, canopies or

louver A louver (American English) or louvre (British English; see spelling differences) is a window blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain and direct sunshine. The angle of the sla ...

s. In 2008, the company topped the inaugural Guardian/Library House "CleanTech 100" list, which showcased the then best companies in European clean technology.

References

Thin-film cell manufacturers Engineering companies of Germany {{europe-company-stub

See also

References