Thin-Film Solar Panels (2024 Guide)

How Efficient Are Thin-Film Panels?

While thin-film solar panels are cheaper than monocrystalline and polycrystalline silicon panels, they are much less efficient and have lower power capacity. Efficiency has been these panels’ biggest challenge and varies between the types of thin-film photovoltaic panels, but it has improved over time.

In 2015, Solar Frontier, the world’s largest copper indium selenium (CIS) solar energy provider, achieved a 22.3% conversion efficiency. This was a 0.6% increase over the industry’s previous record, but most thin-film solar substrates range from 6% to 18% efficiency.

Though these aren’t available to consumers, Recent solar news explains researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems were able to achieve a record 68.9% efficiency of gallium arsenide (GaAs) panels under laser light. Here are the four most common types of thin-film solar panels and their efficiency ratings:

• Amorphous silicon (a-Si) panels: 7% efficient
• Cadmium telluride (CdTe) panels: 9% to 15% efficient, with the highest lab test hitting 18.3%
• Copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) panels: 12% to 14% efficient, with tests in Germany hitting 23%
• Organic photovoltaic (OPV) panels: 18.2% efficient

Check out this video to learn more about thin-film solar cells and how you could benefit from them.

Types of Thin-Film Solar Cells

As discussed, there are several types of thin-film solar panels. Each is made from different materials, which affect the overall cost and efficiency of the panels. However, all thin-film panels contain photovoltaic material, a conductive sheet and a protective layer. Let’s take a closer look at the four most common types of thin-film solar cells:

Amorphous Solar Panels

Amorphous silicon (a-Si) solar is the oldest film-thin technology, making it the most well-developed type of thin-film PV tech. This non-toxic panel uses a chemical vapor deposition to place a thin silicon layer onto the glass, plastic or metal base.

Amorphous panels absorb a wide range of the light spectrum and perform well in low light. They can also be bent, making them less susceptible to cracks.  The downside to amorphous panels is that they lose efficiency quickly. Efficiency for amorphous solar cells is around 6% to 8%.

Amorphous panels are an exciting look into the future of thin-film solar technology, but due to their low efficiency, they’re not effective for the average home. Currently, a-Si PV panels only produce a third of the energy a standard solar panel can. The tech can be found used in calculators, outdoor lights and small gadgets.

Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) Panels

While amorphous silicon solar cells are the most well-developed, cadmium telluride (CdTe) panels are the most common type of thin-film modules available.These panels are actually the second most used type in the world, after crystalline silicon (c-Si) cells.

Just as the name suggests, these cells are made with cadmium telluride, a chemical compound that is effective at capturing and converting sunlight into energy. CdTe panels are less expensive than standard silicon thin-film cells and have the quickest payback time of any other thin-film panels on the market today.

Another benefit is that the cadmium telluride panels have the smallest carbon footprint of all film-thin panels available to consumers. Unfortunately, the huge problem with these solar panels is that they contain a large amount of cadmium, which is a toxic element. Special precautions need to be taken in order to deal with that component.

The panels are not harmful to humans or the environment during the manufacturing process or when being used to generate electricity on rooftops, but disposal of old panels continues to be of concern. Telluride is also very rare to find, which makes it difficult to mass-produce the technology.

Copper Indium Gallium Diselenide (CIGS) Solar Panels

Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film panels (try saying that five times fast!) are made by placing layers of copper, indium, gallium and diselenide on top of each other within conductive layers to create a powerful semiconductor. It can go on top of glass, plastic, steel or aluminum, depending on the desired use.

With such flexible backings, the thin layers can be used in a variety of ways that typical solar technology can’t. CIGS thin-film is a very efficient technology, with some efficiencies exceeding 20% in lab tests.  Unfortunately, many CIGS panels also use cadmium — the toxic chemical found in cadmium telluride (CdTe) panels.

However, some current CIGS cells have swapped the chemical for eco-friendlier zinc oxides. Overall, the biggest disadvantage is found in the price tag. CIGS panels are still very expensive to produce, making it difficult for them to compete with CdTe or silicon solar panels.

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Organic Photovoltaic (OPV) Solar Panels

The final type of thin-film solar panel is the organic photovoltaic (OPV) panel, which uses conductive organic polymers or small organic molecules in order to produce electricity. In these photovoltaic cells, several layers of thin organic vapor or solutions are placed between two electrodes to carry an electrical current.

The organic materials used are abundant, which gives the technology a lower price tag from manufacturing to market cost. Due to the variability in absorbers, OPV panels can be a range of colors — including transparent — which makes it the go-to solar module for any aesthetic needs. Despite the excitement over its aesthetic possibilities, OPV solar struggles with efficiency.

Typical cell efficiency is around 11%, which hampers its ability to be used in larger-scale operations. OPV also has a shorter lifespan than traditional and other thin-film technology currently on the market, and cell degradation is an ongoing struggle for organic PV cells.

Thin-Film vs Traditional Solar Panels

The biggest difference between thin-film and traditional solar panels is that thin-film panels are not divided into cells like polycrystalline and monocrystalline modules. Instead of small silicon wafers, the entire surface has whole layers of photovoltaic material.

Since these panels use material layers instead of rigid cells, they can be manufactured to be low-cost, flexible and lightweight.  There are also adhesive thin-film panels, which can be used to stick onto windows and other vertical surfaces. These are popular for RV solar energy systems.

If you’re not sure which panels are right for your solar project, we recommend getting in contact with a local installer. After talking with a solar consultant, you’ll have a clear idea of which solar panels to purchase and how much they’ll cost.

Final Thoughts on Thin-Film Solar Panels

Solar thin-film panels are an exciting look into the future of flexible and mobile solar technology. While they are not yet competitive with traditional solar products, the cells are showing potential. Due to low efficiencies and larger coverage areas needed, the panels are recommended for commercial and small-scale applications as opposed to for homes.

And their low price points are appealing, but the toxicity of one of the chemicals commonly used to make them — cadmium — is a bit high and can cause environmental damage once the PV modules are disposed of.

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