Crystalline silicon wafer maker Sino-American Silicon Products (SAS) has obtained from Taiwan's Intellectual Property Office a patent for a process to grow polycrystalline silicon ingots, according to the company.
SAS filed for the patent in Taiwan, China and Japan in 2011, the company said.
As the process has been widely adopted by many China- and Taiwan-based fellow makers and wafers made based on the process have been adopted by many Taiwan-based polycrystalline silicon solar cells, a concern has arisen that SAS may launch patent infringement charges against these makers, according to industry sources.
In order to avoid the possible litigation, some Taiwan-based polycrystalline silicon wafer makers are poised to apply for legal invalidation of the patent, the sources indicated. These makers argue that the process had been proposed by international scholars and discussed at international forums much earlier than 2011 and this has actually resulted in wide adoption of the process, the sources said.
