Message
Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
School of Materials Science
Energy and Environment
Welcome to the website of Ohdaira laboratory
Our research theme is the development of next-generation Si-based solar cells.
Since 2000, photovoltaic systems have been rapidly introduced, and photovoltaic industries have been promoted in Japan. Our group investigates the fabrication process and the performance improvement of solar cells, which compose photovoltaic modules, also called as solar panels.
Today, the most commonly used solar cells are fabricated from silicon as main raw material. Although silicon is the second most abundant element after oxygen on the earth, the production cost and the performance of solar cells differ widely depending on how it is applied for solar cells. We thus investigate the effective ways to develop next-generation solar cells with low cost, high quality, and high durability to realize their mass production. Our research is mainly separated into three themes; “Formation of polycrystalline Si films for solar cells by flash lamp annealing”, “Application of Cat-CVD to the fabrication of solar cells,” and “Long-term stability of crystalline Si photovoltaic modules”. We are working toward the establishment of the new basic technologies by these approaches.
Solar energy is more environmentally friendly compared to petroleum or nuclear energy, and the demand for solar cells will be increasing more than ever as the devices contributing to a sustainable society. Global warming and energy problem are global issues to be solved by all human beings. In this laboratory, we are welcoming students who recognize the significance of them and work on the researches with us.
Teaching policy
In this laboratory, students’ initiatives are highly respected. They are encouraged to plan and do their research by their own idea. Every morning, we have a meeting at 8:00 a.m. to share daily schedules with each other and to have a brief research discussion. In two years of the master’s course, all students have some experiences in presentations in several conferences. Preparation for the conferences, such as summarizing your own data and practicing your presentation for other researchers helps you to improve your own skills needed as a researcher. In addition, you have to write at least one paper in English and have it reviewed by an expert. That requires the skills of sentence structure, data collection, and its analysis. By the time you graduate, you can improve these skills and be confident in yourself.
Other than research activities, we have a lot of events to promote friendship among members. Climbing Mt. Hakusan, once every two years, is one of the events in this laboratory.
For Companies
For Companies
In Ohdaira laboratory, collaborative researches with companies are welcomed. We have Cat-CVD apparatus for mass-production solar cells, by which you can form thin films on the solar cells. Besides, short-duration annealing for any samples can be tried with FLA apparatus. In addition to solar cells, we would like to collaborate with companies on various researches to provide our technology to you as well as to have new points of view for us. We are looking forward to expanding our researches’ possibilities by collaboration between us.
Professor Profile
【Degrees】
Ph.D. from The University of Tokyo
【Profile】
- 2018/10 – :
- Professor, JAIST
- 2012/01 – 2018/09 :
- Associate Professor, JAIST
- 2009/10 – 2013/03 :
- PRESTO researcher, JST
- 2005/09 – 2011/12 :
- Assistant Professor, JAIST
- 2004/04 – 2005/08 :
- Postdoctoral Researcher, Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University