SHJ Low-Ag / Indium-Free Solar Cell Patent Snapshot
The SHJ low-silver and indium-free heterojunction solar cell field is a nascent but expanding space, with Delft University of Technology holding the largest share of an 8-family corpus and China accounting for the majority of filing jurisdictions. Activity has grown substantially on a multi-year basis, though annual volume eased from its 2022 peak and the most recent years remain understated by publication lag.
A nascent field dominated by academic and specialist entrants
Delft University of Technology leads with 2 patent families, followed by seven applicants — Xidian University, the Institute of Physics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nuovo Film Suzhou. China Inc., Anhui Qianjing Yuchen New Energy, Meyer Burger (Germany) GmbH, Amoco Enron Solar, and Jiashanxian Dengding Technology — each holding 1 patent family.
The top five filers account for 67% of the combined total among the ranked applicants visible in this query, indicating meaningful concentration for so small a corpus. The gap between the leader and the remaining applicants is narrow in absolute terms — one family — suggesting no single entity has established a commanding structural advantage.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delft University of Technology | 2 | |
| 2 | Xidian University | 1 | |
| 3 | Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences | 1 | |
| 4 | Nuovo Film Suzhou China Inc. | 1 | |
| 5 | Anhui Qianjing Yuchen New Energy Co., Ltd. | 1 | |
| 6 | Meyer Burger (Germany) GmbH | 1 | |
| 7 | Amoco Enron Solar | 1 | |
| 8 | Jiashanxian Dengding Technology Co., Ltd. | 1 |
The presence of academic institutions (Delft, Xidian, CAS Physics Institute) alongside industrial specialists (Meyer Burger, Nuovo Film) and smaller Chinese firms indicates the field sits at the research-to-commercialization interface, where foundational claims are still being staked.
The most recent two years of filings are likely understated due to typical patent publication lag of 18–24 months and should not be interpreted as reduced activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Multi-year growth from a low base, concentrated in semiconductor device claims
Filing activity emerged from zero in 2017–2019, began in 2020, and reached a peak of 3 families in 2022 before easing. The technology mix is heavily weighted toward semiconductor device patents, with a small cluster of coating and electroplating approaches.
Annual filing trend
The field recorded no filings from 2017 through 2019, then grew steadily to a 2022 peak of 3 families. The subsequent easing in 2023–2024 and apparent zero in 2025–2026 should be interpreted with caution given publication lag; the three-year recent window remains 200% above the prior equivalent window. The 2022 peak marks the field’s highest single-year activity on record.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01L (semiconductor devices) accounts for the large majority of patent records, reflecting that core cell architecture and junction engineering are visible in current filings. C23C (coating and surface deposition) and C25D (electroplating and electroforming) each appear with a single record, pointing to emerging interest in alternative transparent conductive contact deposition methods.
↗ 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.
Method of production of silicon heterojunction sol…
The present invention relates to a method of production of silicon heterojunction solar cells having at least one stabilization step, wherein the stabilization step is performed after amorphous silicon layers, and preferably also transparent layers or even metallic contact materials, have already been applied beforehand to crystalline silicon solar wafers… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
Open this patent in Eureka →| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Copper oxide/N-silicon heterojunction photovoltaic… | 13 |
| 2 | Method for forming indium oxide/n-silicon heteroju… | 6 |
| 3 | 一种HJT太阳能电池 | 5 |
| 4 | Method of production of silicon heterojunction sol… | 2 |
| 5 | 一种含有透明导电氧化物层结构的晶硅异质结太阳能电池及其制备方法 | 1 |
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.
Assignee snapshot from the current evidence set
The applicants below are visible in this query result. Because the evidence set is relatively small, read this section as a directional snapshot rather than a full competitive ranking.
Delft University of Technology
Holds 2 patent families, the largest share in the corpus, both concentrated in H01L 31 (semiconductor devices for photovoltaic applications). Momentum is classified as a new entrant, indicating recent initial filing activity rather than a sustained historical position. As a leading photovoltaic research institution, Delft’s focus on junction-level architecture suggests foundational claim-building in silicon heterojunction contact design.
families: 2Xidian University
Holds 1 patent family but is the only applicant in the corpus with claims spanning C23C 18 (coating and surface deposition), C23C 28 (multilayer coatings), and C25D 3 (electroplating), in addition to H01L 31. This multi-branch technical footprint distinguishes Xidian as the sole filer pursuing deposition and electroplating routes for low-Ag or indium-free contacts, representing a differentiated process-engineering approach. Momentum is classified as a new entrant.
families: 1Frequently asked questions
The corpus contains 8 patent families in scope. This is a small, nascent corpus consistent with a field that has only been actively filed since 2020.
Delft University of Technology leads with 2 patent families, the highest count among all applicants. The remaining seven applicants each hold 1 patent family.
China leads with 5 patent records at the jurisdiction level, followed by the United States with 3, Europe (EPO) with 1, and WIPO (PCT) with 1. China’s dominance reflects the concentration of Chinese academic and commercial filers in the corpus.
Filings began in 2020 and peaked at 3 families in 2022. The apparent easing in 2023–2024 and near-zero figures in 2025–2026 should not be interpreted as a real decline: publication lag of 18–24 months means recent filings are substantially undercounted. The recent three-year window remains 200% above the prior equivalent window.
H01L (semiconductor devices) is by far the visible IPC class, covering the core heterojunction cell architecture and junction engineering. C23C (coating and surface deposition) and C25D (electroplating and electroforming) each appear with a single patent record, representing the sparse but emerging process-route approaches.
No co-applicant or collaborative filing relationships are present in the current corpus. All 8 patent families are held by individual assignees, suggesting the field has not yet attracted consortium-level or joint-development activity.
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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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