September 28, 2016
In Golden, Colorado, there exists a facility devoted to innovating new technology in order to solve today’s energy challenges. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is large enough to be visible from a large part of the surrounding area, and is home to many rattlesnakes, enough for visitors to be warned to stay on the paths in order to avoid them.
One of our engineers recently installed a brand new EvoVac thin film deposition PVD platform in an NREL lab, the fourth system to be included into this particular lab. We spoke with Graham Colegrove, the project manager, about the installation, what the machine will be used for, and how Angstrom Engineering helps NREL achieve its goals.
“Our Angstrom systems are very well built and dependable, and they allow many depositions to be performed each day in a very reproducible manner, even when operated by relative non-experts. By being very user-friendly and having the ability to deposit a range of materials, the tools have allowed a large number of users to experiment with many different depositions.”
“We are doing photovoltaic research with the EvoVac, including perovskite solar cells. It will be used primarily for metallization, interface layers, and some optical coatings. We are particularly excited about the added capabilities that it will give us, including glovebox integrated e-beam chamber and the gradient control fixturing.”
“The installation went very well and your technician was great to work with. He was prompt, knowledgeable, hard-working, and very customer-oriented. He was able to answer all of the questions we had or get us the answers quickly. From the initial ordering process, to changes made during the build, to delivery and installation, Angstrom was great.”
“I have dealt with many companies that can make a great product, but their customer service is terrible. Angstrom Engineering provides both great products and great customer service and that is what makes people return customers.”
The EvoVac at the NREL lab with integrated glovebox.