Photovoltaic technologies for flexible solar cells: beyond silicon

Abstract For the previous few decades, the photovoltaic (PV) market was dominated by silicon-based solar cells. However, it will transition to PV technology based on flexible solar cells recently because of increasing demand for devices with high flexibility, light weight, conformability, and bendability. In this review, flexible PVs based on silicone developed using the emerging technology are introduced. The technological limitations of traditional solar cells have been overcome, which will give rise to the new paradigm of solar energy conversion systems and flexible electronic devices. In this review, in terms of flexible PVs, we focus on the materials (substrate and electrode), cell processing techniques, and module fabrication for flexible solar cells beyond silicon.