Washington, DC - Yesterday, 10 teams were selected to win $100,000, plus vouchers for $37,500 to use anywhere in the American-Made network, as part of the American-Made Solar Prize at a national demonstration day in Boston, MA. Twenty teams presented their proofs of concept to a panel of expert judges and were chosen based on how far they have advanced their solar prototype. The finalists are:

• BREK Electronics (Boulder, CO) is developing silicon carbide–based composite architectures for string inverters.
• Catalyst (Dearborn, MI) is creating a cost-effective plug-in “solar appliance” that simplifies rooftop solar installation.
• Crystal Sonic (Tempe, AZ) is using a novel wafering technology to reduce substrate cost and improve reusability for gallium arsenide–based solar cells.
• Imagen (Milwaukee, WI) is introducing a compact multiport power electronics system for photovoltaic (PV) solar energy systems and electric vehicles.
• Omnisole (Worcester, MA) is developing a ballasted racking system that reduces installation time, eliminating roof penetrations, and can be used on steep roofs.
• Phase3 Photovoltaics (Portland, OR) is designing a power integration system that enables PV systems to be integrated onto manufactured homes during the manufacturing process.
• Solar Guardian (Albuquerque, NM) is creating a low-cost device that prevents electrical fires in PV modules.
• Solar Inventions (Atlanta, GA) is designing a cost-effective PV cell that increases power, improves shading response, decreases hotspot risks, and produces a more reliable module.
• Solar SEED (New York, NY) is creating voltage controller hardware to offer flexible and scalable basic energy access and emergency backup power.
• Tandem PV (Morgan Hill, CA) is creating an innovative PV tandem solar cell prototype using a perovskite material and silicon.

This event was the culmination of the Set! Contest, the second phase of the competition. In September, all the competitors will compete again and pitch their prototypes at Solar Power International in Salt Lake City, UT where two winners will be selected to receive $500,000 in cash prizes.

Meanwhile, Round 2 of the Prize is under way. Submit your ideas by July 16, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. ET to compete!

Congratulations to the finalists and good luck in Round 2!