SUNLAB News
SUNLAB welcomes new people
We are thrilled to have welcomed many new faces at the SUNLAB this fall. These include:
Administrative assistant, Work-Study Program, Alissa Laureus
MASc electrical engineering student, Harry Wu
4th year project physics student, Hugo Lafleur
Welcome to all!
SUNLAB students awarded scholarships
Many SUNLAB students have received scholarships to pursue their studies and support their research over the past few months.
Congratulations to BSc physics / BASc electrical engineering students Aya Achaby and Louis‑Philippe St‑Arnaud for receiving research awards. Aya was awarded the Faculty of Engineering Women Undergraduate Summer Student Research Award and Louis-Philippe received an NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Award. These awards enabled them to conduct research at SUNLAB last summer.
Congratulations as well to BSc electrical engineering and computer technology student Ketsia Bokele and BASc electrical engineering student Bernadette Tona on receiving a University of Ottawa Faculty of Engineering International Experience Bursary. This bursary enabled them to travel to Taiwan where they participated in the National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) Academy of Innovative Semiconductor and Sustainable Manufacturing (AISSM) Semiconductor Summer School.
SUNLAB summer thesis defences
Congratulations to Rob Hunter, Mandy Lewis, and Derrick Wu who defended their theses in the last few months! You can now find their theses on ruor.uottawa.ca.
Rob Hunter, PhD Electrical Engineering, Next-generation multi-junction photovoltaic design paradigms and adaptive optics techniques for telecommunications applications and the global energy transition, 2025. DOI: 10.20381/ruor-31380
Mandy Lewis, PhD Electrical Engineering, Improving bifacial photovoltaic models by quantifying the impact of racking, artificial reflectors, and varying solar spectrum, 2025. DOI: 10.20381/ruor-31394
Derrick Wu, MASc Electrical and Computer Engineering, Fabrication of gold hyperdoped silicon photodetectors, 2025. DOI: 10.20381/ruor-31369
Rob Hunter, Mandy Lewis and Derrick Wu receive their cup of knowledge under the watchful eye of their supervisor, Karin Hinzer, at Nostalgica on campus.
Mandy Lewis and Karin Hinzer
Rob Hunter celebrating becoming a Dr.
New publication from the SUNLAB : Cell Reports Physical Science
What if you never had to worry about recharging your devices again? The University of Ottawa has just made a major advance in the area of betavoltaic batteries. Imagine a world where a heart pacemaker works for your whole life on its own. Such an innovation could revolutionize daily life!
For the first time, in collaboration with Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), uOttawa researchers have proposed three new, clear indicators to measure and compare the batteries’ performance. The goal is to facilitate and accelerate the development of super long-lasting betavoltaic batteries. CNL has been working in the field of nuclear batteries for over a decade and is well positioned in this area because of their capability to handle radioactive tritium in large amounts.
Betavoltaic batteries can generate electricity for more than 10 years without recharging and function in extreme conditions, whether in space, on the sea floor or in the Arctic. The three “figures of merit” presented — capture efficiency (the capacity of material to absorb beta energy), gain (the multiplier effect in current generation — a beta particle generates more than one charge contributing to the electrical current) and gain efficiency (the ability of the device to collect the charge generated) —enable understanding of the internal physical mechanisms, identify limitations and offer a universal framework for a fair comparison of all betavoltaic technologies.
“With capture efficiency, gain and gain efficiency, we can finally compare betavoltaic cells simply and accurately. These tools will enable big improvements, thus making the energy transition more efficient and sustainable,” says Mathieu de Lafontaine, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Engineering and study lead author.
This step forward positions the University of Ottawa at the cutting edge of research on the batteries of the future. This new means of standardization will benefit scientists and industry, and society as a whole, enabling a faster transition to sustainable energy sources, especially for extreme conditions.
“Thanks to this advance, researchers will be able to characterize and optimize betavoltaic cells more easily. It will also help manufacturers speed up development of long-life batteries,” says de Lafontaine.
Click here for the full article.
M. de Lafontaine, C. Succar, R. F. H. Hunter, G. P. Forcade, J. P. D. Cook, J. Patel, B. Ellis, H. Fritzsche, J. J. Krich, and K. Hinzer, Figures of merit to quantify betavoltaic device performance, Cell Rep. Phys. Sci., 6, 102789 (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrp.2025.102789
Mathieu de Lafontaine
SUNLAB spin-off Enurgen closes $4.1M USD seed to accelerate global growth of solar performance software
Congratulations to SUNLAB spin-off Enurgen, developer of the solar industry’s most accurate energy yield performance model, on yesterday’s announcement it has secured $4.1M USD in new financing. The round was co-led by Business Development Bank of Canada, Brightspark, and Diagram, with participation from MaRS IAF.
The investment will accelerate the global expansion of Enurgen’s flagship software platform. Enurgen’s novel energy yield modelling software leverages advanced, physics-based models across the lifecycle of solar assets to deliver breakthrough rates of returns.
“This funding marks a major milestone for Enurgen,” said former SUNLAB student Kibby Pollak, CEO and Co-Founder of Enurgen. “In an era dominated by AI and LLMs, it’s crucial to recognize that critical systems like energy infrastructure continue to rely on physics-based models for accurate and deterministic outputs.”
Headquartered in Ottawa and founded in 2022 by former and current SUNLAB members, Enurgen specializes in energy yield performance modelling for utility-scale solar assets across their entire lifecycle—from design to operations—empowering global customers to maximize returns and accelerate the clean energy transition.
Click here to learn more about this announcement.
Chris Valdivia (Co-Founder, CTO) and Kibby Pollak (Co-Founder, CEO), Enurgen. Chris is a former postdoctoral fellow and senior research associate at the SUNLAB while Kibby completed his master’s degree there.
New Publication from the SUNLAB: Solar Energy
We are excited to share a new publication from the SUNLAB team in Solar Energy, titled “Spectral irradiance correction of photovoltaic energy yield predictions in six high-latitude locations with measured spectra”, first-authored by PhD candidate Mandy R. Lewis.
This study addresses a critical challenge in photovoltaic (PV) performance modeling: the variability of the solar spectrum in real-world conditions and its effect on PV efficiency. While most PV models assume a standard reference spectrum, actual sunlight varies significantly with location, weather, and time.
Using measured spectral data from seven North American sites (ranging from 39.7° to 69.1° N), the authors quantified how spectral mismatch affects bifacial silicon PV energy yield. They found that instantaneous spectral impacts can range from −45% to +32%, and annual energy yield can be underestimated by up to 2.7% if spectral effects are ignored.
The study highlights that diffuse and ground-reflected irradiance—which are more prominent in cloudy and snowy conditions—cause the largest spectral errors. These effects are especially relevant for bifacial systems, which can absorb scattered and ground-reflected light on the rear side. The authors recommend applying spectral correction methods in locations with high diffuse fractions (above 35%) and for bifacial systems.
Importantly, the work also shows that limited spectral measurement wavelength range (e.g., 280–1100 nm) can misrepresent spectral effects, underscoring the need for full-spectrum irradiance data in PV modeling.
Click here for the full article.
M. R. Lewis, V. Jancowski, C. E. Valdivia, and K. Hinzer, Spectral irradiance correction of photovoltaic energy yield predictions in six high-latitude locations with measured spectra, Solar Energy 300, 113816 (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.solener.2025.113816
SUNLAB at PVSC
Earlier this month, SUNLAB students and researchers attended the 53rd IEEE Photovoltaics Specialists Conference in Montréal. Postdoctoral fellows Mathieu de Lafontaine and Paige Wilson, PhD electrical engineering candidate Mandy Lewis, PhD physics candidate Alison Clarke, PhD civil engineeering candidate Milad Nouri as well as Professor Jacob Krich presented results on a wide range of topics including photonic power converters, bifacial photovoltaic systems, and betavoltaics. For a full list of SUNLAB presentations, see our Conference Presentations page.
Congratulations to:
Mathieu de Lafontaine for receiving the Best Poster Award for Area 1;
Alison Clarke for a poster prize nomination for Area 3;
Jacob Krich and Mandy Lewis for mentions in the Friday Daily Highlights.
Congratulations also go to former SUNLAB student and postdoctoral fellow Viktar Tatskiankou for an informative and interesting plenary presentation in Area 10. Viktar was supervised by Professors Karin Hinzer and Henry Schriemer.
The IEEE Photovoltaics Specialists Conference is the longest-running technical gathering for photovoltaics. This year, for the first time, it was hosted in Canada, at the Palais des Congrès in Montréal, Québec, from June 8 to 13. SUNLAB director Karin Hinzer will chair the next conference, scheduled for June 7 to 11, 2026, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
New faces at the SUNLAB
We are thrilled to welcome many new and returning faces at the SUNLAB this summer. These include:
Visiting research students Alex Solecki, PhD mechanical engineering candidate at the University of Illinois, and Talia Aharony, undergraduate student in electrical engineering at the University of Toronto.
Undergraduate summer students in physics and electrical engineering Aya Achaby, Louis-Philippe St-Arnaud and Steffen Zylstra.
Undergraduate summer student in electrical engineering and computer technology Ketsia Bokele.
Undergraduate summer student in physics Trinity Berube.
Welcome to all!
New publication from the SUNLAB: IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics
How do photovoltaic (PV) system irradiance models hold up for vertical and high latitude PV? The SUNLAB’s latest paper, first-authored by recent PhD graduate Erin Tonita, shares results from validating five PV system irradiance models: PVSyst, bifacial_radiance, the System Advisor Model, bifacialVF, and DUET, with a year of vertical reference cell data in Fairbanks, Alaska (65°N) and half a year of data in Golden, Colorado (40°N).
The paper shows:
The impact of low irradiance timestamps, snowy ground conditions, cloudy conditions, and operations and maintenance practices on model accuracy.
That deviations between model-predicted annual insolation tend to be 2 to 3 times higher for vertical PV systems than south-facing fixed-tilt systems.
The importance of temporal resolution for vertical PV and PV systems in snowy locations.
Click here for the full article.
E. Tonita, S. Ovaitt, H. Toal, K. Hinzer, C. Pike, and C. Deline, Vertical bifacial photovoltaic system model validation: Study with field data, various orientations, and latitudes, IEEE J. Photovolt., Early Access (2025). DOI: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2025.3561395
New publication from the SUNLAB: Progress in Photovoltaics
In a recent article first-authored by former postdoctoral fellow Meghan Beattie in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy, researchers demonstrate a three-step reverse voltage biasing external quantum efficiency method (EQE) which measures any number of subcells with overlapping absorptance. They demonstrate this approach for a two-junction GaAs-based photonic power converter, comparing to the standard light biasing method and revealing better than 0.8% absolute agreement when the top junction is preferentially biased in the reverse voltage biasing method. They demonstrate the viability of the method by measuring the EQE of all subcells in a six-junction GaAs-based photonic power converter.
Click here for the full article in Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications.
M. B. Beattie, M. Schachtner, G. Siefer, D. Lackner, O. Höhn, K. Hinzer, and H. Helmers, Subcell-resolved EQE method using reverse voltage biasing for multijunction photovoltaics with overlapping subcell absorptance, Prog. Photovoltaics: Res. Appl., Early View (2025). DOI: 10.1002/pip.3914.
Visit to Canadian High Arctic Research Station
Research associate Erin Tonita recently visited the Canadian High Arctic Research Station in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, as part of a collaboration between Polar Knowledge Canada and SUNLAB. Read more on her LinkedIn post.
Erin Tonita at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station, March 2025.
New position at the SUNLAB: Designing Lasers Using AI
The SUNLAB is looking for a new master’s or doctoral student to study laser designing using artificial intelligence. See this page for a full description and how to apply: https://sunlab.ca/about/open-positions.
New publication from the SUNLAB: Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells
Is it possible to grow a high-efficiency photovoltaic device on a broadband back reflector? The SUNLAB’s latest publication in Solar Energy and Solar Cells, with recent PhD graduate Gavin Forcade as first author, makes progress toward this goal. In this collaboration between researchers at the University of Ottawa and the University of Waterloo, the authors fabricated thermophotovoltaic devices featuring an epitaxially grown highly n-doped InAs broadband back reflector with up to 93% reflectivity.
Click here for the full article.
G. P. Forcade, M. de Lafontaine, M. Giroux, M. C. Tam, Z. Wasilewski, J. J. Krich, R. St-Gelais, K. Hinzer, Epi-grown broadband reflector for InAs-based thermophotovoltaics, Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, 285, 113544 (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.solmat.2025.113544.
SUNLAB winter thesis defences
Congratulations to Erin Tonita, Gavin Forcade, and Jaskiran Kaur who defended their theses in the last few months! They will receive their diplomas at the spring convocation. Congratulations also to our friend from the PTLab, Narmada Rajaram, on her thesis defense. You can now find their theses on ruor.uottawa.ca.
Erin Tonita, PhD Physics, Bifacial photovoltaic performance and optimization in mid-to-high latitudes, DOI: 10.20381/ruor-30881
Gavin Forcade, PhD Physics, High-efficiency III-V semiconductor device and system optimization for photovoltaic applications, DOI: 10.20381/ruor-30823
Jaskiran Kaur, MASc Electrical Engineering, Numerical modelling, simulations and experimental analysis of quantum well, quantum dot and quantum dash mode-locked lasers DOI: 10.20381/ruor-30936
Narmada Rajaram, MASc Electrical Engineering, Simulation and experimental analysis of optical frequency comb generation methods and its application in high-capacity optical communication systems, DOI: 10.20381/ruor-30870
SUNLAB members and alumni celebrated with a lunch last month. Left hand side, from front to back: Paige Wilson, Valentin Daniel, Gavin Forcade, Erin Tonita, Kayden Kaller, and Mandy Lewis. Right hand side, from front to back: Karin Hinzer, Jaskiran Kaur, Alison Clarke, Derrick Wu, Daisy Xia, and John Cook.
SUNLAB Skating!
Earlier this week, SUNLAB members enjoyed a sunny day and very good ice conditions on the Rideau Canal, the world's largest skating rink.
From left to right: Mandy Lewis, Christine Couture, John Cook, Derrick Wu, Gavin Frodsham, Valentin Daniel, and Jacob Krich.
Some were on foot, some were on skates, and some even made it to the end of the skateway and back!
From left to right: Jacob Krich, Derrick Wu, Gavin Frodsham, and Valentin Daniel.
SUNLAB at Photonics West
Professor Karin Hinzer and postdoctoral fellow Valentin Daniel represented SUNLAB at the SPIE Photonics West Conference in San Francisco, which took place from January 25 to 30, 2025. Professor Hinzer delivered a presentation on "Vertical bifacial photovoltaic system field data performance and model validation". She was featured in the January 29 Show Daily, which it can be found here, on pages 18-19.
Congratulations to SUNLAB friend Professor Paul Corkum from the Department of Physics, who gave a plenary presentation as part of the OPTO Symposium. Dr. Corkum was highlighted in a one-page spread in the conference's January 22-23 Show Daily, available here on page 15.
SUNLAB director Karin Hinzer interviewed by Radio-Canada
SUNLAB director Karin Hinzer discussed the potential of solar energy in Québec on Radio-Canada's “Première heure” programme. Click here to listen to the interview (in French only).
SUNLAB welcomes new people
We are thrilled to have welcomed many new faces at the SUNLAB this fall. These include:
PhD mechanical engineering candidate Nada Boubrik
PhD electrical engineering candidate Soumi Ghosh
Undergraduate research assistants, Work-Study Program, Charbel Succar
Administrative assistant, Work-Study Program, Sofia Gallardo Pascual
4th year project physics student Mathieu Bossé
4th year project electrical engineering students Mohammed Chouta, Mamadou Mountaga Diallo, Elam Olame Mugabo and Bernadette Tona
Welcome to all!
New publication from the SUNLAB: Crystal Growth & Design
A collaboration between between the University of Ottawa SUNLAB and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the United States resulted in a recent publication first-authored by PhD candidate Gavin Forcade, in Crystal Growth & Design. In this manuscript, the authors demonstrate the potential of epitaxial growth for facilitating the reuse of substrates.
The journal paper titled “Planarizing spalled GaAs(100) surfaces by MOVPE growth” discusses a method to smooth out rough surfaces left by controlled spalling, a technique used to reuse expensive substrates in III-V photovoltaics. We used Metal-Organic Vapor Phase Epitaxy (MOVPE) to grow a layer of carbon-doped gallium arsenide (C:GaAs) on these rough surfaces. This method successfully filled in the rough areas, using up to 95% of the material to do so. We improved the surface smoothing performance by optimizing the initial substrate surface orientation and growth conditions. This technique can significantly reduce the cost of producing high-efficiency solar cells by allowing the reuse of substrates, and the findings provide guidelines for improving the planarization of other semiconductor surfaces.
Click here for the full article.
G. P. Forcade, M. W. E. McMahon, N. Yoo, A. N. Neumann, M. Young, J. Goldsmith, S. Collins, K. Hinzer, C. E. Packard and M. A. Steiner, Planarizing spalled GaAs(100) surfaces by MOVPE growth, Crystal Growth & Design, 1528 - 7483 (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acs.cgd.4c01152
New publication from the SUNLAB: Energy Reports
In a recent paper first-authored by PhD candidate Milad Nouri, researchers from the University of Ottawa and Kyungpook National University in South Korea propose an integrative system driven by airborne wind and photovoltaics (PV) to produce power, liquid nitrogen, and liquid carbon dioxide. The study aims to harness the strengths of both energy sources to create a more efficient and sustainable solution for energy production and the generation of on-demand substances.
Airborne wind energy (AWE) systems have emerged as cost-effective and sustainable solutions which have not yet been coupled with solar technologies and integrated power plants for such uses. This combination can harness stronger and more stable wind energy while decreasing system costs and power intermittency. The proposed system combines seven subsystems, including AWE, PV, air separation unit, oxyfuel power plant, absorption refrigeration, a nitrogen liquefaction process, and organic Rankine cycle (ORC) to simultaneously generate power, liquid nitrogen, and liquid carbon dioxide. An exergy analysis highlights that the total exergy efficiency of the integrated structure reaches 90.21 % and the greatest energy losses occur in the heat exchangers. Additionally, an exergoeconomic analysis indicates that the majority of capital costs are associated with compressors and turbines, underscoring the need to optimize these components for cost-effectiveness. This integrated approach not only aims for efficient energy production but also enhances the overall sustainability of the system.
Click here for the full article.
M. Nouri, M. Kavgic, K. Hinzer, and A. B. Owolabi, Exergy and exergoeconomic analysis of a hybrid airborne wind and solar energy system for power, liquid nitrogen and carbon dioxide production, Energy Reports 12, 2123-2143 (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.egyr.2024.08.006