LONGi Goes In For Patent Agreement On Gallium-Doped Tech

LONGi Solar’s parent company LONGi Green Energy Technology has acquired a global, non-exclusive, patent and cross-licensing agreement on Gallium-doped technologies with Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. of Japan that holds patents on doping Ga in silicon crystals. There isn’t much that LONGi gives away in its official statement about the agreement except mentioning that ‘all applications of LONGi’s products using the patents related to Gallium-doped technologies are lawfully recognized globally’.

The Chinese company stated, “The specific terms of this agreement are confidential. The use of licensed intellectual property rights with reasonable paid royalties is essential in promoting innovation, technological advancement and industrial development.”

LONGi’s official statement does not throw any light on how it plans to use the technology. It is less meaty than information JA Solar shared last year in October 2019 when it secured intellectual property rights from Shin-Etsu over Ga-doped silicon wafers for JA Solar to use in solar cell applications and which will be valid in various nations (see JA Solar Secures IP Rights For Ga-Doped Silicon Wafers).

Gallium can be used an alternate to boron as impurity in making p-type silicon material. Wafers produced from gallium doped silicon ingots, when processed into cells are not prone to potential induced degradation (PID). The Director of Key Cusomer Services YC Wang of LONGi Silicon, the wafer manufacturing part of the LONGi group commented on LinkedIn, “Cheers! Cannot wait anymore minute for offering this high-efficiency and low degradation wafer to PERC globally.”