Unlocking the Future of Solar: Why Perovskites Could be a Game-Changer for the U.S.
by Dr. Joel Jean, Co-founder and CEO of Swift Solar
Solar PV is already the world’s fastest-growing energy source, beating predictions year after year.
But solar is still just scratching the surface of its immense potential. With super low-cost solar, energy could become a negligible cost input at the base of a zero-carbon economy, making all kinds of world-changing ideas possible or even inevitable—think direct air capture, clean synthetic hydrocarbons, the end of energy poverty and global warming, freshwater from large-scale desalination, environmental restoration, abundant energy in space, climbing the Kardashev scale, and more.
For the first time in the history of humanity, superabundant energy is within our reach.
To unlock the full potential of solar energy, we have to look beyond incremental improvements and embrace step changes. The industry consensus today is that the next step change is coming—perovskite tandem technology.
What Are Perovskites?
Perovskites are a family of materials that are insanely good at absorbing light and conducting current with minimal loss, making them ideal for solar PV. Perovskites are usually made as thin films (less than 1 micron thick) by depositing small amounts of abundant, low-cost materials onto a substrate. They can be lightweight, flexible, and crystallized at much lower temperatures than traditional silicon, which means they can be manufactured at a fraction of the cost and energy. However, the real breakthrough comes when perovskites are combined with silicon to make tandems.
A tandem solar cell is a stack of two cells—typically a perovskite cell on top of a silicon cell—where the top cell absorbs UV and visible light, and the bottom cell absorbs the remaining infrared light. Combining two cells boosts the sunlight-to-electric power conversion efficiency significantly.
Commercial silicon solar cells top out around 25% today, approaching silicon’s thermodynamic ceiling. Perovskite-silicon tandems raise the ceiling from 30% to 45% and have already reached over 34% in research labs. 30% mass-produced tandems are now on the horizon.
With silicon, it took almost two decades to go from 20% to 25%. Tandems will take us from 25% to 30% in just a few years. Since much of the cost of solar energy scales with efficiency, this improvement is significant and will—if it materializes—transform the solar industry.
High Risk, High Reward
Perovskites are the first new solar technology in seven decades that can both outperform and underprice incumbent technology.
This is not an incremental step. It’s a new S-curve—a technology reset that could reshape the global PV industry. With tandems, the U.S.—or any other country that moves decisively—can play a meaningful part in the future of solar manufacturing.
While the promise of perovskites is immense, so are the challenges. Perovskites have long been hampered by instability under various environmental conditions. But that’s changing fast. Researchers and companies have made major strides in perovskite stability in recent years.
Swift Solar is a pioneer in perovskite tandem technology and one of the U.S. companies leading the perovskite transition, including advancing stability and manufacturing speeds by orders of magnitude in the last few years.
Redefining Solar Economics With Tandems
The beauty of perovskite technology is that it doesn’t need to replace silicon—it can enhance it. Tandems offer a scalable pathway to higher efficiencies by building on existing, ever-improving silicon technology and infrastructure.
It’s well-known in the solar industry that “efficiency is king”. Many non-module costs associated with building a solar project—also called balance-of-system or BOS costs, which make up 70–90% of the total cost of solar in the U.S.—decrease proportionally with higher efficiency. For example, racking, labor, and even permitting costs don’t vary with panel efficiency, and therefore shrink on a $/W and $/kWh basis when efficiencies increase. Higher efficiency means lower upfront costs and shorter payback periods. That’s why solar developers are ready to pay a premium for even a marginal increase in module efficiency.
Unlocking New Applications and Markets
With perovskite tandems, solar can go where it has never gone before.
Higher efficiency is crucial for applications where space is limited, like urban rooftops, parking lots, and vehicles. Electric vehicles with perovskite solar cells lining their bodies and roofs could gain tens of miles of range per day. Satellites and other spacecraft could benefit from a tenfold reduction in solar array costs as well as improved radiation tolerance. With their low-cost potential, tandems could also unlock solar’s potential in regions with less sunlight, making solar PV viable in places that were previously unsuitable.
Perovskite technology can also unleash human creativity to harvest sunlight in new ways. Its lightweight and flexible nature means that perovskite cells made on thin glass, plastic, or metal foils could someday be used where rigid panels are impractical—including on flexible or curved surfaces. Imagine the possibilities of solar-enhanced building materials and everyday objects. Perovskites could integrate seamlessly into modern buildings, from domed roofs to canopies and facades, allowing buildings to harness solar energy without sacrificing architectural beauty. When the cost of integrating solar cells approaches zero, any surface can be turned into an active device, harvesting energy wherever the light touches.
A Call for Bold U.S. Action
Today over 80% of silicon solar manufacturing is concentrated in China and Southeast Asia. Perovskite tandems offer a fresh start. With the right investments, the U.S. can build a new industry around tandem technology.
Imagine a future where every new solar installation in America uses tandem technology to generate 30% more power.
Imagine the U.S. as the world’s leading exporter of high-efficiency solar modules, reclaiming the global market leadership we held in the 1990s and creating thousands of high-tech R&D and manufacturing jobs.
Imagine communities nationwide revitalized by new R&D hubs and cutting-edge factories dedicated to making next-generation solar products.
The DOE has prioritized perovskites for R&D funding, which is a good start. But we need more than just lab breakthroughs. We need a concerted effort to build a robust perovskite manufacturing ecosystem and supply chain clusters.
A “National Perovskite Initiative” would be a game-changer. Just as the CHIPS Act is revitalizing the U.S. semiconductor industry, targeted support for perovskites could accelerate commercialization and establish the U.S. as a leader in next-generation solar manufacturing. This initiative could include financing and tax credits for perovskite production, grants for pilot projects, and public-private partnerships to share the risks of early deployment. Establishing manufacturing hubs across the country—especially in states looking to revitalize their industrial base—would accelerate development and attract private capital. This is an opportunity to build a robust domestic supply chain for a technology that will likely dominate global markets in the coming decades.
The benefits of leading in perovskite technology go beyond economics, toward energy independence and national security. Producing high-efficiency PV domestically would reduce our reliance on China-dominated supply chains, protecting the U.S. from supply disruptions.
But the U.S. is not the only country thinking about perovskite tandems. China views perovskite technology as strategic for the nation’s future. Chinese companies, supported by both central and local governments, have been pouring capital into perovskite development and manufacturing scale-up.
In an era of growing geopolitical risk, this is a chance for the U.S. to regain control of its clean energy destiny and solidify its role as a global leader in solar innovation. We should not let it slip away.
The Time to Act is Now
Let’s be clear—investing in perovskites is not for the faint of heart. Perovskites are still new. They need to prove they can perform reliably over decades in the field. Investors are understandably wary. But this is precisely why the U.S. needs to act decisively.
For those willing to bet big, the potential returns are massive. Tandem technology will raise solar conversion efficiency to new heights, reduce costs by up to 30%, and enable new applications. This is not just a scientific curiosity—it’s a real solution that will help us meet our climate goals faster and more affordably. It’s also the step change that will help make solar the dominant energy source of the 21st century. Investing in perovskites is investing in the future of solar—and the future of energy.
Perovskite tandem technology is the key to unlocking solar’s full potential. The opportunity is here. The time to act is now.
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