Mumbai: International Business Machines Corporation has teamed up with semiconductor process company Tokyo Ohka Kogyo (TOK) to develop more efficient, cheaper solar power technologies using thin film technology, the companies said in a release.

IBM will combine its expertise in manufacturing cells with TOK's semiconductor process technology to cut the cost of the clean energy source, the companies said.

The IBM-TOK partnership aims to create thin film technology that will double the efficiency of solar modules, making them capable of converting more of the sun's rays into electricity.

The partnership will focus on developing new methods for printing copper-indium-gallium-selenide (CIGS) cells that can turn more than 15 per cent of sunlight into power - a big leap from the 6 per cent to 12 per cent efficiency that current solar CIGS makers have achieved.

Researchers at the US Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory had, in April, set a new efficiency record of 19.9 per cent for CIGS cells, nearing the record for multi-crystalline silicon cells of 20.3 per cent.

The partnership aims to create a process for making the cells cheaper enough to give it "grid parity," the level in which solar power becomes competitive with traditional forms of electricity generation, said IBM Research's Supratik Guha.

"I think that if we can get to a module cost of less than $1 per watt, and be able to keep a handle on the system costs, then one should be able to get to grid parity ... photovoltaics still need roughly a 2 (times efficiency) improvement,'' said Guha. "We strongly feel that we have a shot,'' he added.

Currently, most photovoltaic solar equipment uses silicon technology, which is more efficient than thin film technology and helps convert more than 20 per cent of sunlight into power. But the thicker cells limit their deployment. Also, silicon prices have skyrocketed in recent years.

While no company has yet neared the CIGS record on the factory floor, Guha said the partnership aims to create a process for making the cells cheaper enough that they reach "grid parity," - the level in which solar power is competitive with traditional forms of electricity generation.

"I think that if we can get to a module cost of less than $1 per watt, and be able to keep a handle on the system costs, then one should be able to get to grid parity ... photovoltaics still need roughly a 2 (times efficiency) improvement," he said.

The move is the latest by large technology companies to enter the growing field of photovoltaic solar products, which turn sunlight into electricity.

The partnership is seeking to create techniques that double the efficiency of thin-film solar modules.

The companies plan to license their technology to producers in the next two to three years, sources said, adding that IBM has already been in discussions with photovoltaic manufacturers for technology licensing.

IBM's photovoltaic venture is the latest in the moves by large technology companies to enter the emerging field of solar energy that utilises sunlight to produce electricity without polluting the atmosphere.