Nation-states and billionaires' space ambitions alike are calling for better sources of power, and a startup founded by two Stanford PhDs may have the answer.
Allinna, founded by CEO Kusha Nazif and CTO Alex Shearer, announced Wednesday that it has raised $4 million in a seed round to manufacture ultra-thin solar panels from brand new materials developed during doctoral research.
The funding was led by Spacecadet Ventures with participation from Anorak Capital and Breakthrough Energy Foundation. The company declined to share its valuation.
Arinna, named after the Hittite sun god and pronounced like arena, is expected to have its first product tested in orbit by the end of this year. After certifying solar power in space, the company hopes to build a facility capable of mass producing megawatts of solar power in 2028.
“We are in the process of creating a certification panel to send to our first customers that will prove that these two-dimensional solar power plants have the efficiency and durability to survive in space,” Shearer said. “We plan to prove it on a larger scale next year, and as we do so, we refine the processes needed to manufacture each layer of solar power roll-to-roll.”
Arinna manufactures solar cells specifically for spacecraft. In the pre-SpaceX world, where most satellites were custom-made, spacecraft used expensive but durable solar panels made from rare earth elements. Mass-produced satellites use cheaper silicon panels, but they degrade faster due to cosmic rays.
Instead, Arinna's technology is based on a new material called transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), atomically thin semiconductors that have only been developed in recent decades. Arinna's ultra-thin solar technology allows for highly flexible cells that the company claims are cheaper and more durable than traditional space solar panels.
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“Many of the developments in solar power over the years have been small improvements on well-known existing technologies,” Ben Gaddy, materials scientist and senior director at Breakthrough Energy, told TechCrunch. “This is a completely different type of material.”
Rendering of a space data center with solar panels by arinna.
Nazif and Shearer met at Stanford while pursuing their doctoral studies. Natif's research is on materials that can also be used to create solar cells that function similarly to traditional semiconductors, and Shearer has developed techniques to manufacture solar cells on a large scale. “Kusha is really the architect and I'm the construction guy,” Shearer joked.
The company expects solar power to be much more flexible and 32% more efficient than traditional panels. Allinna's technology also requires no protective covering, can last 15 years in orbit and can be delivered within weeks, Shearer said.
As long as the company can get through this year's orbital testing campaign without any surprises and execute its production plans, these will represent a significant upgrade over current technology.
“What we've seen with all the space companies we've invested in is that power is a barrier, a bottleneck,” Wiz Khuzai, general partner at Spacecadet Ventures, which led the round, told TechCrunch. “[Arinna] It will open the door to next-generation power needs in space. ”