To create competitive concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solutions, Soitec and US-based Reflexite Energy Solutions Inc. have entered a joint venture to establish Reflexite Soitec Optical Technology LLC. The newly formed company will produce the silicone-on-glass (SOG) Fresnel lens plates used in Soitec’s CPV modules and will co-develop next-generation technologies to increase the efficiencies and lower the costs of SOG lens plates. The joint venture will be located in part of the new CPV manufacturing facility that Soitec plans to open in San Diego. At the new site, Reflexite will supply the technology and manufacturing expertise to produce the injection-molded lens plates. Soitec will provide the lens design and its factory’s technical infrastructure as well as business opportunities across the Southwest region of the US. The two companies currently are collaborating on designing their factory space, which will employ approximately 100 people. Soitec says that the Fresnel lens it designed concentrates sunlight more than 500 times, and that it was the first company to use SOG to produce a lens plate design. Reflexite, now a part of the Orafol Group, based in Germany, produces optical components and films that improve the operating efficiency of electro-optical systems. Soitec manufactures semiconductor materials that address energy and electronic challenges. For more information, visit: www.reflexite.com or www.soitec.com