The high power of a shingled photovoltaic module can be attributed to its low cell-to-module loss. The production of high power modules in limited area requires high efficiency solar cells. Shingled photovoltaic modules can be made by divided solar cells, which can be produced by the laser scribing process. After dividing the 21% PERC cell using laser scribing, the efficiency decreased by approximately 0.35%. However, there was no change in the efficiency of the solar cell having relatively lower efficiency, because the laser scribing process induce higher heat damages in solar cells with high efficiency. To prove this phenomena, the J₀ (leakage current density) of each cell was analyzed. It was found that the J₀ of 21% PERC increased about 17 times between full and divided solar cell. However, the J₀ of 20.2% PERC increased only about 2.5 times between full and divided solar cell.

Recently, with the increase in the use of urban solar power, solar modules are required to produce high power in limited areas. In this report, we proposed the fabrication of a high-power photovoltaic module using shingles technology, and developed accurate string characteristic simulations based on circuit modeling. By comparing the resistance components between the interconnected cells and the cell strips, the ECA resistance was determined to be 0.003 Ω. Based on the equivalent circuit of the modeled shingled string, string simulation was performed according to the type of cell strip. As a result, it was determined that the cell efficiency of the 4-cell strip was the highest at 19.66%, but the efficiency of the string simulated with the 6-cell strip was the highest at 20.48% in the string unit.

Advances in laser technology have enabled ultra-high-speed ultra-precise processing, thus expanding potential applications to the semiconductor, medical, and photovoltaic industries. In particular, laser scribing technology has been applied to the production of shingled solar modules. In this work, we analyze the effect of laser scribing conditions, e.g., scribing depth, on the characteristics of the resulting divided solar cells. When the scribing depth was greater than 100 ㎛, the solar cells were well separated. In addition, the desired scribing depths were reached in fewer scans when the laser spot overlap was 100%. The efficiency of the divided cells decreased due to the high series resistance at scribing depths of less than 100 ㎛. However, at scribing depths of approximately 100 ㎛, the series resistance was low and efficiency reduction was minimized.