DEPUAW Valerie

Valerie Depuaw defended her PhD in 2009 on epitaxy-free thin film monocrystalline solar cells, developing a unique solar-cell process on transferable micron-thin Si layers fabricated by controlled porosification of silicon, “epifree”. She received the “young scientist award” of the E-MRS that same year. She is still working on layer-transfer solar cells, including thicker epitaxially grown films, and is also developing nanoimprint lithography for these thin cells. Besides, she has expertise in various methods for bonding and handling of thin substrates. Her competences in both thin-film solar cells and nanoimprint lithography are of perfect relevance to this project. She is currently the project coordinator of the EC FP7 project PhotoNVoltaics.