News from EPFL-PVlab

A solar-powered adventure: EPFL PV-Lab student shines at the 4L Troph

Published:27.03.26 — This winter, Florentin Julien, a semester student from EPFL PV-Lab, took part in the iconic 4L Trophy, a unique challenge combining engineering, endurance and solidarity. He travelled across France, Spain, and Morocco in a customized classic Renault 4 for 12 days. The student designed and constructed lightweight glass-free photovoltaic modules (Figure 2) as well as a dedicated battery and optimized and state-of-charge (SoC) model.

Record efficiency for perovskite-silicon triple-junction solar cells

Published:18.03.26 — EPFL and CSEM researchers have achieved a record 30% efficiency for triple-junction solar cells, which combine two thin-film perovskite cells and one silicon cell on a single device. The milestone could advance affordable next-generation solar technologies for space and terrestrial applications.

PV-Lab wins international PV stability contest in perovskite cells

Published:28.01.26 — Mostafa Othman achieved benchmark stability records for perovskite solar cells, including the most stable laser-scribed single-junction perovskite minimodules to-date (at 75°C) in both accelerated ageing and outdoor testing conditions.

Congratulations to all new Doctors of the PV-lab!

Published:22.01.26 — 4 PhD students from PV-Lab successfully defended their thesis during the last year. Congratulations to all new Doctors of PV-Lab and good luck in their future adventures!

Christophe Ballif wins ERC Synergy Grants for Ultimate PV

Published:07.11.25 — On 6th of November, the European Research council announced the selection of 66 ERC Synergy Grants for a total 684 m€ ! Fantastic news: our "Ultimate PV project", with EPFL PV-lab (Christophe Ballif) , Stefan Glunz at University of Freiburg, and Stéphane Collin at CNRS has been selected as one of the winning project 

Pierre Vandergheynst and Christophe Ballif win ERC Synergy Grants

Published:06.11.25 — The European Research Council announced on Thursday that School of Engineering professors Pierre Vandergheynst and Christophe Ballif have been awarded ERC Synergy Grants to tackle major scientific challenges.

La Doctorale – 10 Research Prizes reward EPFL Researchers

Published:30.10.25 — 10 young EPFL researchers have been rewarded for their research projects this year again. These prizes are offered by Foundations and EPFL.

Zeno Karl Schindler Award 2025 goes to Dr. Christian Wolff of PV-Lab

Published:28.10.25 — Congratulation to Christian for getting the prestigious Zeno-Karl Schindler Award 2025 (20’000 CHF) ZKS-EPFL – Zeno Karl Schindler Fondation during the “Doctorale 2025”, at the Forum Rolex on Oct. 27th Christian receives the award “For his multiple contributions to the field of perovskite and perovskite-silicon solar cells, allowing among others the first worldwide demonstration of tandem perovskite-silicon solar cells with over 30% efficiency, world record triple junction solar cells, as well as perovskite solar cells with remarkable stability. His achievements open key pathways for providing low-cost clean electricity beyond standard silicon solar cells”. Prix Zeno Karl Schindler – 2025 – Christian Wolff – EPFL

Best poster award in EU PVSEC 2025 Bilbao!

Published:29.09.25 — Big congratulations to Umang Desai from EPFL PV-lab for winning a Best Poster Award at #EUPVSEC2025 in Bilbao for his work on "Façade Application of Light-Weight Glass-Free Colored PV Modules: Reliability Testing of the Large-Format Modules and Monitoring of the Demonstration Site''. Moreover, the presentations of recently graduated Ph.D. students from EPFL, Hugo Quest and Kerem Artuk, were featured among the highlights of the conference. We are delighted that PV-Lab posters and presentations received recognition.

Perovskite-TOPCon tandems are catching up!

Published:17.09.25 — Our article “Over 31%-efficient perovskite–TOPCon solar cells enabled by AlOx-based hydrogenation and front sub-micron texturing” is now published in EES Solar. In this work, we demonstrate high-efficiency perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells using double-sided tunnel oxide passivated contacts (TOPCon2) bottom cells, achieving 30.2% efficiency on both sides flat and 31.3% on front-textured devices. The former is enabled by high passivation quality on flat surfaces and the latter by enhanced optical performance. These results highlight that TOPCon2 is a promising platform for scalable tandem integration beyond silicon heterojunction-based bottom cells.'