Project description
As one of the world's largest solar energy research institutes, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE makes a significant contribution to a sustainable, economical, secure, and socially equitable energy supply worldwide. Our goal is to advance the energy transition by providing concrete, implementable technological solutions through excellent research results, successful industrial collaborations, and spin-offs. To this end, our ~1,300 employees conduct research in four key areas: energy supply, energy distribution, energy storage, and energy utilization. Fraunhofer ISE's state-of-the-art R&D infrastructure, with 22,300 m² of laboratory space, enables cutting-edge research at an international level. Be part of change Would you like to play an active role in shaping the energy transition and write your master’s thesis in a research field relevant to the future? With us, you’ll find the academic expertise and technical infrastructure you need to achieve this goal. You will support our “Module Technology” department, which focuses on the development and manufacturing of innovative solar modules for various applications. These include, among others, vehicle-integrated solutions, roof-tile-like formats, as well as colored and high-performance solar modules. We use both single-junction silicon and III-V multi-junction solar cells. III-V multi-junction solar cells consist of several subcells stacked on top of one another, based on various compound semiconductors from Groups III and V, such as GaAs. Using triple-junction solar cells, we have already achieved a world-record-breaking module with an efficiency of 34.4%. The master's thesis described in this call for proposals is part of the WSS project (https://www.ise.fraunhofer.de/de/ press-and-media/news/2025/sustainable-energy-transition-werner-siemens-foundation-funds-research-on-highly-efficient-tandem-photovoltaics.html), in which we are further developing highly efficient III-V multi-junction solar cells and their module interconnections. To further enhance sustainability, cost-effectiveness, and module efficiency, ultra-thin solar cells are also to be used at the module level in the future. Due to their thinness, these cells exhibit film-like mechanical behavior, thereby presenting both new challenges and new opportunities for module development, which will be investigated and leveraged as part of this work. Our Module-TEC solar module production laboratory is equipped with industrial systems for cell interconnection and module fabrication, which are used to develop innovative interconnection concepts and optimize lamination processes. The goal of this master’s thesis is to develop and experimentally validate a wiring and lamination process that enables the reliable integration of ultra-thin III-V multi-junction solar cells into a solar module. For our group “Encapsulation and Integration”, we are looking for a student assistant to begin as soon as possible, with the opportunity to write a master's thesis, to perform the following tasks: Your goal is to develop an interconnection concept and a lamination process for manufacturing solar modules with ultra-thin cells. You will familiarize yourself with the current state of research on ultra-thin III-V multi-junction solar cells and their integration into modules. You will develop an suitable interconnection and lamination concept for ultra-thin solar cells based on the existing equipment. You will plan and conduct experimental work on equipment for cell interconnection and module manufacturing. You will build and characterize demonstrators. You will analyze and optimize process parameters to ensure reliable cell integration. You will evaluate and document the results and present them. You will perform electrical characterization of interconnected and laminated solar cells to investigate cell defects caused by interconnection and lamination.
Funding and compensation
Compensation not specified. See the original posting for amounts, duration and conditions.
Eligibility and application requirements
Review the qualifications, research interests and required documents in the description above. The employer or university's original posting is the source for complete eligibility requirements.
How to apply
Submit your application through Fraunhofer's official application process before 31 Oct 2026.
Source and listing information
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