Regensburg 2025 – scientific programme

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CPP: Fachverband Chemische Physik und Polymerphysik

CPP 3: Organic Electronics and Photovoltaics I

CPP 3.1: Talk

Monday, March 17, 2025, 09:30–09:45, H38

Demonstration of flexible organic solar cells in space — •Lukas V. Spanier¹, Lennart K. Reb², Michael Böhmer³, Zerui Li¹, Christoph Dreißigacker⁴, Thomas Voigtmann⁴, and Peter Müller-Buschbaum¹ — ¹TUM School of Natural Sciences, Chair for Functional Materials, Garching, Germany — ²TUM School of Natural Sciences, Zentrales Technologielabor, Garching, Germany — ³Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, Berlin, Germany — ⁴DLR Institut für Materialphysik im Weltraum, Köln, Germany

The deployment of flexible organic solar cells (OSCs) in space presents a transformative opportunity for exceptionally lightweight power generation on satellites and deep space research probes, promising record-breaking gravimetric power densities. In this study, we report the successfull launch, operation and recovery of flexible PEN-based OSCs on a suborbital rocket launch, assessing their performance in the harsh conditions of space. Flexible OSC modules were integrated into the payload and exposed to vacuum, microgravity, and cosmic radiation during the flight. Post-flight analysis of the recovered cells further confirmed the cells’ operational viability. The experiment demonstrates the potential of OSCs for reducing launch mass and enabling novel satellite architectures, paving the way for their adoption in future space missions.