PERC Solar Cell Patent Landscape 2026
PERC Solar Cell Patent Landscape in 2026
The PERC solar cell patent field is heavily concentrated among Chinese manufacturers, with JinkoSolar and Aiko Solar entities collectively dominating the top positions. Annual filings peaked in 2017 and have eased since, signaling a maturing technology field where incremental process and materials improvements now drive most new activity.
JinkoSolar and Aiko Solar dominate a highly concentrated field
Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd leads the applicant ranking, followed closely by Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd and Jinko Solar Co. Ltd — three entities that, together with Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd, occupy four of the top five positions. The top five filers account for 39% of the combined total among the hundred largest filers, indicating a field where a small cluster of vertically integrated Chinese manufacturers holds the commanding share of IP.
A clear two-tier structure exists: the top four applicants are clustered tightly at 117–133 patent records each, while the fifth-ranked entity (Jinko Solar (Haining) Co. Ltd) drops to 51. The tier below — including Kyocera Corp, Tongwei Solar Energy (Chengdu), and Resonac Corp — ranges from 43 to 45 patent records, forming a secondary cohort well behind the leaders.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | 133 | |
| 2 | Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 128 | |
| 3 | Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | 128 | |
| 4 | Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 117 | |
| 5 | Jinko Solar (Haining) Co. Ltd | 51 | |
| 6 | Kyocera Corporation | 45 | |
| 7 | Tongwei Solar Energy (Chengdu) Co. Ltd | 44 | |
| 8 | Resonac Corporation | 43 | |
| 9 | Shanghai Jinko Green Energy Enterprise Management Co. Ltd | 36 | |
| 10 | Caelux Corporation | 28 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | EI DU PONT DE NEMOURS & CO | 25 | |
| 12 | CSI Cells Co. Ltd | 25 | |
| 13 | NewSouth Innovations Pty Ltd | 24 | |
| 14 | Hengdian Group DMEGC Magnetics Co. Ltd | 23 | |
| 15 | Tianjin Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 23 | |
| 16 | Hanwha Q Cells GmbH | 20 | |
| 17 | AmberWave Inc. | 19 | |
| 18 | Flex Ltd | 19 | |
| 19 | TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research) | 18 | |
| 20 | Trina Solar Co. Ltd | 17 |
The leaders’ positions reflect deep vertical integration and active cross-entity co-filing within each corporate family, suggesting that their IP moats are built not just on individual innovations but on coordinated portfolio strategies across manufacturing subsidiaries. A new entrant would face both a volume gap and a coordination disadvantage.
The most recent 18–24 months of data are subject to publication lag and are likely under-counted; conclusions about the pace of very recent activity should be treated as provisional. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Activity has eased from a 2017 peak; semiconductor device patents dominate the mix
The annual filing trend and the technology branch breakdown together show a field that established its core IP foundation early and is now consolidating around process refinement and system-level integration rather than new device architectures.
Annual filing trend
Annual filings peaked at 147 in 2017 and have since trended lower, settling in the 100–130 range through 2022–2024. The sharp drops visible for 2025 and 2026 reflect publication lag rather than a real acceleration of decline and should not be read as a further downturn. The overall recent-window change of -11% is consistent with a past-peak, maturing technology rather than a field in active growth.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01L (Semiconductor devices) dominates the IPC mix by a wide margin, reflecting the core silicon cell architecture that defines PERC technology. H02S (Photovoltaic/solar power generation) and H01B (Cables, conductors & insulators) form a secondary tier, indicating meaningful parallel activity in balance-of-system and interconnect engineering. Process-oriented branches such as C23C (Coating & surface deposition) and C03C (Glass & enamel compositions) are present at lower levels, pointing to ongoing passivation and encapsulation work.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
A PERC solar cell having enhanced interface proper…
Disclosed is a method and apparatus for manufacturing a PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Cell) solar cell, the method including a passivation layer formation step of placing a substrate for a PERC solar cell in a chamber and forming a passivation layer on the rear surface of the substrate in the chamber and a capping layer formation step of forming a capping… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一种三层介电钝化膜PERC太阳电池及制作工艺 | 56 |
| 2 | 一种双面PERC太阳能电池结构及其制备工艺 | 52 |
| 3 | Aluminum pastes and use thereof in the production … | 44 |
| 4 | Shingled array solar cells and method of manufactu… | 43 |
| 5 | Shingled array solar cells and method of manufactu… | 38 |
| 6 | 一种PERC太阳能电池的抛光刻蚀方法 | 36 |
| 7 | Hybrid tandem solar cell | 36 |
| 8 | Process for the formation of a silver back electro… | 35 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the IP structure means for R&D and competitive strategy
Four structural signals — maturity stage, concentration, intra-group collaboration, and geographic skew — define the strategic context for any organization entering or defending a position in PERC solar cell IP.
Decline stage: annual volume easing from a 2017 peak
The lifecycle evidence places PERC solar cell IP in a decline stage, with annual filings having eased back from their 2017 peak of 147. A -11% recent-window change confirms the trend is not just a publication-lag artifact in the near term. R&D investment is shifting toward incremental process gains — passivation layer optimization, rear-side metallization, and tandem cell integration — rather than foundational cell architecture, which is now well-covered IP territory.
Lifecycle: DeclineTop four applicants hold a tight cluster; tier gap is steep
The top five filers account for 39% of the hundred largest filers’ combined patent records, and four of those five are JinkoSolar or Aiko Solar group entities. The drop from the fourth-ranked applicant (117 patent records) to the fifth (51) is substantial, and the gap to the secondary cohort is wider still. For a challenger, differentiation through niche process technology — particularly in coating deposition (C23C) or glass formulations (C03C) — may offer more accessible entry points than competing head-on in core H01L device claims.
High ConcentrationCo-filing is almost entirely intra-group, reinforcing incumbent barriers
The most active co-filing pairs are Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd with Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd (96 joint filings) and Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd with Jinko Solar Co. Ltd (74 joint filings). All ten of the top collaboration pairs identified in the evidence are pairings within the JinkoSolar or Aiko Solar corporate families. There is no evidence of significant cross-group or academic-industry collaboration among the top co-filers, which limits external visibility into leading-edge developments.
Intra-group OnlyChina leads filing volume; US and EPO are the key secondary markets
China is the primary filing jurisdiction, followed by the United States and Europe (EPO), with WIPO PCT filings providing a pathway to broader coverage. Australia, Germany, Taiwan, India, and Japan each carry meaningful filing counts, reflecting the global manufacturing and deployment markets for PERC modules. South Korea and Singapore trail significantly, suggesting either lower commercial priority or alternative IP strategies in those markets. An entrant seeking global freedom-to-operate should prioritize the CN-US-EP triad.
CN-US-EP TriadGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 96 |
| Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | 74 |
| Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Shanghai Jinko Green Energy Enterprise Management Co. Ltd | 36 |
| Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Jinko Green Energy (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd | 29 |
| Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Jinko Solar (Haining) Co. Ltd | 29 |
| Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Tianjin Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 20 |
| Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Jinko Solar (Haining) Co. Ltd | 17 |
| Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Tianjin Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 17 |
| Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Zhuhai Fushan Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 11 |
| Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Zhuhai Fushan Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 11 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
JinkoSolar accelerating; Aiko Solar entities pulling back
The two dominant corporate families are moving in opposite directions on recent momentum: JinkoSolar entities are increasing their filing pace while Aiko Solar entities have sharply reduced theirs, reshaping the near-term competitive balance.
Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd
The top-ranked applicant with 133 patent records, Zhejiang Jinko Solar is showing strong upward momentum with recent filings up +68% versus the prior period. Its technology focus is concentrated in H01L 31 (Semiconductor devices, 130 records), with secondary activity in H02S 30 (Photovoltaic/solar power generation). The affiliated entity Jinko Solar Co. Ltd (128 patent records) is growing even faster at 6.5× versus its prior three-year base, and Jinko Solar (Haining) Co. Ltd enters as a new filer, reinforcing the group’s coordinated portfolio expansion.
patent records: 133Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd
Ranked second with 128 patent records, Zhejiang Aiko Solar has a distinct process-engineering orientation, with C23C 16 (Coating & surface deposition, 23 records) as a notable secondary focus alongside its dominant H01L 31 position. However, its recent filing trend shows a sharp decline of –82%, and affiliated entity Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd (117 patent records) is similarly down -70%. This pullback may reflect a strategic shift toward next-generation cell architectures beyond PERC, reducing near-term IP activity in this specific domain.
patent records: 128| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | 89 | ▲ +68% |
| Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 10 | ▼ -82% |
| Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | 12 | ▼ -70% |
| Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | 78 | ▲ 6.5× vs prior 3-yr |
| Jinko Solar (Haining) Co. Ltd | 46 | ▲ new entrant |
| Shanghai Jinko Green Energy Enterprise Management Co. Ltd | 19 | ▲ +12% |
| Tongwei Solar Energy (Chengdu) Co. Ltd | 7 | ▼ -68% |
Under-served branches adjacent to the PERC core
Several IPC branches appear at lower relative share in the corpus. These are observations of sparsity relative to the dominant H01L core; where technical relevance and a plausible entry path exist, they may warrant closer evaluation.
C23C · Coating & surface deposition
With 57 patent records and a 3% share of the corpus, coating and surface deposition is under-represented relative to its technical centrality to PERC passivation layers — the defining feature of the architecture. ALD and PECVD process innovations for Al2O3 and SiNx rear-side passivation remain active areas of process engineering. An entrant with materials or deposition-equipment expertise could build differentiated IP in this branch without directly competing in the crowded H01L device-claim space.
Search this in Eureka →C03C · Glass & enamel compositions
At 37 patent records and a 2% share, glass and enamel compositions — relevant to front-side encapsulants, anti-reflective coatings, and the silver paste glass frit chemistry used in front metallization — is sparsely covered. The top-cited patent on aluminum paste formulations indicates that conductive paste chemistry is a cited reference point in the field, yet the C03C branch itself remains thin. Materials suppliers and specialty glass manufacturers could find accessible IP territory here, particularly for bifacial PERC module front-glass optimization.
Search this in Eureka →How leaders differ by technology route
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | H01L 31 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 21 · Semiconductor devices | H01B 1 · Cables, conductors & insulators | H02S 40 · Photovoltaic / solar power generation | H02S 20 · Photovoltaic / solar power generation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Strong · 130 | Absent | Absent | Emerging · 9 | Emerging · 3 |
| Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Strong · 126 | Emerging · 12 | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd | Strong · 113 | Emerging · 14 | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Jinko Solar Co. Ltd | Strong · 77 | Absent | Absent | Emerging · 15 | Emerging · 14 |
| Kyocera Corporation | Strong · 45 | Emerging · 8 | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Plant PV Inc. | Strong · 34 | Absent | Moderate · 10 | Emerging · 6 | Absent |
| E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company | Strong · 32 | Absent | Strong · 17 | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The analysis covers 949 patent families in the PERC solar cell domain. Applicant rankings are reported at the patent-record level, which can exceed the family count because a family may be filed in multiple jurisdictions.
Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd leads with 133 patent records, closely followed by Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd and Jinko Solar Co. Ltd, both at 128 patent records each.
No. Annual filings peaked at 147 in 2017 and have eased since, with a recent-window change of -11%. The lifecycle evidence places the field in a decline stage. Note that 2025 and 2026 figures are under-counted due to publication lag and should not be interpreted as an accelerated decline.
China is the leading jurisdiction, followed by the United States and Europe (EPO). WIPO PCT filings provide a route to broader international coverage. Australia, Germany, Taiwan, India, and Japan each carry meaningful filing counts as secondary markets.
H01L (Semiconductor devices) dominates the corpus by a wide margin. H02S (Photovoltaic/solar power generation) and H01B (Cables, conductors & insulators) form a secondary tier, with process-oriented branches such as C23C (Coating & surface deposition) and C03C (Glass & enamel compositions) present at lower levels.
Co-filing activity is almost entirely intra-group. The most active pair is Zhejiang Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd with Guangdong Aiko Solar Energy Tech Co. Ltd at 96 joint filings, followed by Zhejiang Jinko Solar Co. Ltd with Jinko Solar Co. Ltd at 74. All top collaboration pairs identified in the evidence are within the JinkoSolar or Aiko Solar corporate families; no significant cross-group or academic-industry co-filing pairs appear in the top ten.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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