Perovskite's Breakthrough in Space Photovoltaics: ShuoWei Optoelectronics Leading the Energy Revolution in Commercial Spaceflight – 36 Kr

From March 17th to 18th, 2026, the 2nd Commercial Space Industry Development Conference and Commercial Space Exhibition was held at the Shenzhen International Convention and Exhibition Center (Bao’an New Hall). The exhibition site gathered many well – known domestic rocket, satellite and upstream – downstream related enterprises in the commercial space industry chain. There were many highlights at this exhibition. Among them, reporters found that a rising – star technology enterprise in the field of space photovoltaics made its debut at this exhibition with its industry – level system products for the first time. Beijing Shuowei Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Shuowei Optoelectronics”), as a leading enterprise in the new – generation space perovskite solar wing energy system, presented its industry’s first low – cost and lightweight system – level perovskite solar wing product, “Yuxi·Tianyuan”, at the exhibition, which attracted wide attention in the industry and drew a large number of visitors for communication. During the exhibition, relevant person – in – charge of Shuowei Optoelectronics was interviewed by our newspaper. From an objective perspective of the industry, they interpreted the development trend of commercial space, the competition of photovoltaic material technology routes, and analyzed and forecasted the prospects and trends of future commercial space computing power.
It is understood that 2026 is a crucial node for commercial space to move from technology verification to large – scale application. Industry changes such as the accelerated deployment of low – orbit satellite constellations and the cost reduction of reusable rockets have driven the demand for space energy into an explosive period. Shuowei Optoelectronics chose to launch the “Yuxi·Tianyuan” system – level solar wing at this node. Its core goal is to solve the core pain points of light weight, high efficiency and low cost in the commercial space field, and at the same time, to promote the verification of the application of perovskite technology from the laboratory to space.
Shuowei Optoelectronics is one of the earliest domestic enterprises to deploy the new – generation perovskite space photovoltaic technology. The company’s research on the space application technology of perovskite can be traced back to 2018. The team published the first domestic research paper on the near – space application of perovskite. The company’s chief scientist has also served as a review expert for the research results of sending perovskite into space by NASA. At the same time, Shuowei Optoelectronics is also the only domestic industrial enterprise that has jointly established a joint sub – laboratory of the National Key Laboratory of Space Power Supply with the national team and top universities. The aim is to jointly promote the application of perovskite technology in the space environment by integrating the intellectual resources of professional research institutes and universities.
As the industry’s first solar wing product made of low – cost and lightweight rigid perovskite battery chips, the technological breakthroughs of “Yuxi·Tianyuan” are concentrated in three dimensions. Firstly, it has outstanding performance. Relying on the “Tianyuan” series of perovskite battery chips, its photoelectric conversion efficiency breaks through the industry norm, and its specific power (power generation per unit mass) far exceeds that of traditional crystalline silicon and gallium arsenide batteries. It can maximize the energy output within the limited payload space of satellites. Secondly, it has an innovative structural design. It adopts a lightweight rigid configuration, taking into account both stiffness and stowage ratio, and is suitable for the large – scale deployment requirements of medium – and low – orbit commercial satellites. Thirdly, it has strong scenario adaptability. At present, the product has started the regular satellite – carried testing, focusing on verifying the stability and reliability of perovskite technology in extreme environments such as high vacuum, strong radiation and wide temperature range in space, laying a foundation for subsequent large – scale application.
The essence of the competition in commercial space is the competition for space energy, and the choice of photovoltaic materials is the core of the space energy competition. The relevant person – in – charge of Shuowei Optoelectronics said that the core of the competition among space photovoltaic materials revolves around the three indicators of “efficiency – cost – environmental adaptability”. The three technology routes of crystalline silicon, thin – film batteries and perovskite have formed a clear application hierarchy, rather than a simple substitution relationship.
Among them, crystalline silicon batteries, as a transitional solution for current space applications, represented by P – type ultra – thin HJT batteries, have certain radiation resistance and relatively mature processes. They are a short – term cost – reduction solution for low – orbit satellites. However, this technology route has obvious bottlenecks. The specific power is limited, and the weight is greater under the same power, which will increase the satellite launch cost. Moreover, neither the cost nor the efficiency of crystalline silicon represents the ultimate route in the photovoltaic field. At the same time, the thinning process has approached its limit, and the room for efficiency improvement is narrowing, making it difficult to support the future demand for GW – level space power stations.
Thin – film batteries, with gallium arsenide batteries at the core, used to be the first choice for high – value communication satellites and deep – space exploration missions due to their high efficiency and outstanding radiation resistance. However, the shortcomings of this technology route are also significant. The raw materials are scarce, the cost is extremely high, about a hundred times that of ground – based photovoltaics, and mass production is difficult. It cannot meet the cost requirements for the large – scale deployment of low – orbit constellations, which is the core reason for the industry’s urgent search for alternative solutions.
Perovskite batteries are considered a “disruptive technology” in space photovoltaics. Their advantages are well – suited to space application scenarios: they are extremely lightweight, with an absorption layer thickness of only a few hundred nanometers, and a specific power of up to 30W/g, more than 80 times that of gallium arsenide. Launching a solar wing with the same power can reduce the weight by hundreds of kilograms, and the single – satellite launch cost can be reduced by millions of dollars. They have great efficiency potential. The theoretical efficiency limit of perovskite tandem batteries can reach about 45%, far exceeding that of traditional batteries, and the large – scale production process is simple. Particularly outstanding is their power generation performance in low – light conditions. Thanks to the long carrier diffusion length, high carrier mobility and wide spectral absorption range of perovskite materials, they can generate a stable current even in the shadow area during satellite transit, in the low – light environment of deep – space exploration, or under weak light sources such as indoor lighting and moonlight, effectively filling the gap in the sharp drop in power generation efficiency of traditional crystalline silicon and gallium arsenide batteries in low – light scenarios and ensuring the all – weather stable power supply for satellites and space equipment. They also have good environmental adaptability. The “defect tolerance” characteristic and “self – repair” ability of perovskite make it more resistant to high – energy particle radiation in space than silicon – based batteries. The high – vacuum environment actually alleviates the stability bottleneck in ground – based applications.
From the perspective of industry practice, the current core bottlenecks for the space application of perovskite technology are concentrated in three aspects: space environmental adaptability, large – scale engineering, and the whole industrial chain ecosystem. The extreme space environment places strict requirements on the encapsulation, radiation resistance and thermal cycling ability of perovskite. Large – scale production requires breakthroughs in the preparation of space – grade materials and system integration processes, and at the same time, a full – chain ecosystem covering materials, chips, solar wings and satellite applications needs to be built.
In response to these bottlenecks, Shuowei Optoelectronics has formed a clear layout and accumulated certain advantages: in terms of technological accumulation, as the only enterprise participating in the construction of the Flexible Photovoltaic Joint Laboratory of the National Key Laboratory of Space Power Supply, the company has mastered the core technologies of perovskite material modification, chip preparation and encapsulation in the extreme space environment, with more than 50 core patents and participation in the formulation of multiple photovoltaic standards. In terms of collaborative innovation, Shuowei Optoelectronics has carried out strategic cooperation with material enterprises such as Dongying Carbon Materials to jointly promote the joint R & D of the “Yuxi” solar wing. Through the in – depth integration of high – performance carbon fiber composite materials and perovskite batteries, the lightweight structure and performance optimization of the solar wing are achieved. At the same time, it has carried out payload – carrying test cooperation with satellite enterprises such as Yunyao Aerospace to provide in – orbit verification scenarios for perovskite products and shorten the technology iteration cycle. In terms of full – chain layout, the company has launched the “Qianshuo” brand, built three series of perovskite battery chips, namely “Tianyuan”, “Chuiyun” and “Taisu”, covering different configurations such as rigid, flexible and tandem. It is also promoting the “Yuxi” solar wing system products in parallel, forming a whole industrial chain ecosystem from materials to chips, from systems to applications, providing core support for the autonomy of space energy in commercial space.
Regarding the prospects of future commercial space computing power, the relevant person – in – charge of Shuowei Optoelectronics analyzed from an objective industry perspective that space computing power is the core for commercial space to move from “single – point application” to “industrial ecosystem”. Its energy demand features high efficiency, long service life and low cost. Current traditional energy solutions are difficult to meet these three requirements simultaneously, and the breakthrough of perovskite technology will become a key variable for the implementation of space computing power infrastructure.
From the development trend, in the next 3 – 5 years, perovskite will complete the leap from “technology verification” to “large – scale application” and become the mainstream energy solution for low – orbit satellite computing power nodes. In 5 – 10 years, with continuous breakthroughs in stability and efficiency, perovskite will support the construction of GW – level space power stations, providing continuous and stable energy supply for space computing power clusters, space observations and deep – space exploration.
The support of perovskite technology for space computing power is mainly reflected in four aspects: first, the lightweight characteristic supports the deployment of computing power clusters. Space computing power requires the collaboration of large – scale satellite constellations. The specific power advantage of perovskite can significantly reduce the weight of single satellites and launch costs, promoting the large – scale networking of computing power constellations. Second, the high – efficiency characteristic supports the operation of high – density computing power. The power demand of space computing power nodes is continuously increasing. The high efficiency of perovskite can meet the energy supply of high – density computing power in a limited space, supporting high – end applications such as AI training and big data processing. Third, the low – cost potential supports the commercialization of the industry. The commercial implementation of space computing power requires controlling operating costs. The mass – production potential of perovskite can reduce the cost of space energy to less than 1/10 of traditional solutions, lowering the threshold for using space computing power and promoting the prosperity of the industrial ecosystem. Fourth, the advantage of power generation in low – light conditions ensures the continuity of power supply. Space computing power nodes need to operate 24/7. The stable power generation ability of perovskite in scenarios such as satellite shadows and deep – space low – light can effectively avoid power supply interruptions caused by insufficient light in traditional photovoltaic batteries, providing reliable energy support for the continuous operation of space computing power. This advantage is particularly crucial in scenarios such as deep – space exploration and low – orbit satellite networking. At present, Shuowei Optoelectronics is focusing on space computing power scenarios, continuously optimizing the “Yuxi” series of solar wing products, promoting the in – orbit verification of perovskite technology, and exploring collaborative cooperation with computing power enterprises to build an “energy – computing power” integrated solution to help the high – quality development of China’s commercial space computing power industry.
During this exhibition, the debut of “Yuxi·Tianyuan” demonstrated the technological strength of Shuowei Optoelectronics in the field of space photovoltaics. According to the relevant person – in – charge of the enterprise, the core work will be promoted in three directions: “technological breakthrough, scenario verification and ecosystem co – construction”. At the technological level, the performance of the three perovskite battery chips, “Tianyuan”, “Chuiyun” and “Taisu”, will be continuously optimized. At the verification level, the progress of the satellite – carried testing of “Yuxi·Tianyuan” will be accelerated, and it is planned to complete the in – orbit verification of the battery chips and solar wing system in 2026, forming a replicable and promotable system – level solution. At the industrial level, strategic cooperation with enterprises in the industrial chain such as materials, satellites and launches will be deepened to build a whole industrial chain ecosystem for space photovoltaics, promoting the large – scale delivery and application of perovskite solar wings.
Industry insiders believe that promoting the large – scale application of perovskite technology in the commercial space field requires the industry to jointly break through three key points: first, the construction of a standard system. Industry institutions need to jointly formulate standards and specifications for space – grade perovskite batteries and solar wings, unifying technical thresholds and verification processes. Second, the improvement of the supply chain. Core supporting enterprises for space – grade encapsulation materials and flexible substrates need to be cultivated to build an independent and controllable industrial chain. Third, the expansion of application scenarios. Focusing on core scenarios such as low – orbit constellations, space computing power and deep – space exploration, demonstration projects should be built to verify the feasibility and economy of the technology. With continuous technological breakthroughs and the improvement of the industrial ecosystem, perovskite is expected to become the core choice for space energy in commercial space, promoting the space industry into a new development stage. The whole – industrial – chain layout and technological accumulation of Shuowei Optoelectronics may provide important support for China’s commercial space to achieve “energy autonomy”.
该文观点仅代表作者本人，36氪平台仅提供信息存储空间服务。
36kr Europe (eu.36kr.com) delivers global business and markets news, data, analysis, and video to the world, dedicated to building value and providing business service for companies’ global expansion.
© 2024 36kr.com. All rights reserved.

source