Analysis on Technological Trend of Solar Cell using Patent Database

Though the market demand of solar cell was depressed due to the global economic crisis, the continuous interests of leading country in the regenerable energy are vitalizing the solar cell market. Despite the rapid increase in demand for non-silicon solar cells, which represent the next generation of solar cell technology, silicon solar cells still dominate the market. It goes without saying that nonsilicon type thin-film solar cells are the next generation solar cells and will increase their market share in the solar cell market. Silicon solar cells are helping to expand the solar cell market by enhancing efficiency and cost competitiveness, while non-silicon thin-film solar cells are rising in demand following the widening of its applications. In this study, we studied patents of silicon and non-silicon type solar cells in order to analyze research trends regarding solar cells, along with the characteristics and level of patents by country and main research institute. We would like this study to help the work of researchers and R&D planners, and to suggest various forms of competitive intelligence information that can be provided through patent analysis.