Cadmium telluride (CdTe) CdTe

spore: profile
id: cadmium-telluride
spore_version: 0.2
family: semiconductor-materials
name: Cadmium telluride (CdTe)
abbreviation: CdTe
role: thin-film photovoltaic absorber semiconductor
category: energy
type: solar-cells
summary: |
  Cadmium telluride (CdTe) is a zinc-blende compound of cadmium and tellurium with a direct band gap of 1.5 eV at 300 K, per Wikipedia. It is the absorber in the thin-film solar modules made by First Solar, whose Series 7 module is listed at up to 19.3% efficiency. Wikipedia reports a record CdTe cell efficiency of 22.1% in February 2016, credited to First Solar, and says CdTe held 5.1% of worldwide PV production in 2013. No flight or radiation-test record for CdTe was found in the sources read for this profile.
best_for: Utility-scale thin-film PV built on a high-volume line, where Wikipedia records a direct manufacturing cost of $0.57 per watt in 2013
weakest_at: 'Cadmium toxicity and tellurium supply: Wikipedia prints GHS codes H302, H312, H332, H410 and H411 for CdTe, and the USGS lists tellurium as a critical mineral that is recovered mainly from copper refining'
identity:
  formula: CdTe
  cas: 1306-25-8
  crystal_system: zinc blende
  space_group: F43m
  source: cdte-wiki
  where: 'Infobox: formula, CAS number 1306-25-8, crystal structure zinc blende, space group F43m'
tags:
  environments: []
  stresses:
    - extreme-heat
  applications:
    - solar-arrays
properties:
  - benchmark: density
    value: 5.85
    unit: g·cm−3
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: not printed on the page
    method: Value in the Wikipedia infobox
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Density row
  - benchmark: melting_point
    value: 1041
    unit: °C
    scope: material
    conditions:
      pressure: not printed on the page
    method: Infobox value, printed as 1,041 °C (1,906 °F; 1,314 K)
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Melting point row; Chemical properties section
  - benchmark: boiling_point
    value: 1050
    unit: °C
    scope: material
    conditions:
      pressure: not printed on the page
    method: Infobox value, printed as 1,050 °C (1,920 °F; 1,320 K)
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Boiling point row
  - benchmark: thermal_conductivity
    value: 6.2
    unit: W·m/m2·K
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: 293 K
    method: Infobox value, unit as printed on the page
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Thermal conductivity row
  - benchmark: specific_heat
    value: 210
    unit: J/kg·K
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: 293 K
    method: Infobox value for heat capacity (C), unit as printed on the page
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Thermochemistry (heat capacity C) row
  - benchmark: cte
    value: 0.0000059
    unit: /K
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: 293 K
    method: Printed on the page as 5.9×10−6/K; written here in the file's exponent form
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Physical properties section, thermal expansion coefficient
  - benchmark: elastic_modulus
    value: 52
    unit: GPa
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: not printed on the page
    method: Printed value for Young's modulus
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Physical properties section, Young's modulus row
  - benchmark: poissons_ratio
    value: 0.41
    unit: '-'
    scope: material
    conditions:
      basis: no unit or temperature printed on the page
    method: Printed value for the Poisson ratio
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Physical properties section, Poisson ratio
  - benchmark: refractive_index
    value: 2.67
    unit: '-'
    scope: material
    conditions:
      wavelength: 10 μm, printed as @10 μm
    method: Infobox value, labelled nD on the page
    status: ground
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Refractive index row
  - benchmark: band_gap
    label: Band gap
    value: 1.5
    unit: eV
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: 300 K
      gap_type: direct, printed as @300 K, direct
    method: Infobox value. The page relates it to a band-gap wavelength of about 830 nm
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml; short snake_case name used.
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Band gap row; Optical and electronic properties section
  - benchmark: electron_mobility
    label: Electron mobility
    value: 1100
    unit: cm2/V·s
    scope: material
    conditions:
      basis: printed with a tilde (~1100 cm2/V·s) in a radiation-detector context
    method: Value printed in the Applications section
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml. Approximate, as printed.
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Applications section (electron mobility)
  - benchmark: hole_mobility
    label: Hole mobility
    value: 100
    unit: cm2/V·s
    scope: material
    conditions:
      basis: printed with a tilde (~100 cm2/V·s) in a radiation-detector context
    method: Value printed in the Applications section
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml. Approximate, as printed.
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Applications section (hole mobility)
  - benchmark: water_solubility
    label: Solubility in water
    value: 0.1
    bound: upper
    unit: mg/L
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: not printed on the page
    method: 'Footnote to the infobox: the insoluble classification rests on a value below 0.1 mg/L'
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml.
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Solubility in water row and its footnote
  - benchmark: lattice_constant
    label: Lattice constant
    value: 0.648
    unit: nm
    scope: material
    conditions:
      temperature: not printed on the page
    method: Infobox value, printed as a = 0.648 nm
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml.
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Lattice constant row
  - benchmark: molar_mass
    label: Molar mass
    value: 240.01
    unit: g/mol
    scope: material
    conditions:
      basis: molar mass of the compound as printed
    method: Infobox value
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml.
    source: cdte-wiki
    where: Infobox, Molar mass row
  - benchmark: cell_efficiency_record
    label: Record CdTe cell efficiency
    value: 22.1
    unit: '%'
    scope: cell
    conditions:
      basis: record CdTe cell, laboratory
      date: February 2016
      maker: First Solar
    method: Printed on Wikipedia with the company and date; not re-measured here
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml.
    source: cdte-pv-wiki
    where: 'Section 3.1, Technology: Cell efficiency'
  - benchmark: module_efficiency
    label: Module efficiency, Series 7
    value: 19.3
    bound: upper
    unit: '%'
    scope: cell
    conditions:
      basis: printed as 'Up to 19.3%' efficiency
      product: First Solar Series 7 CdTe module
    method: Manufacturer product-page headline; a marketing figure with no test method stated
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml.
    source: firstsolar-s7
    where: Product page intro headline
  - benchmark: annual_degradation_rate
    label: Warranted annual degradation rate
    value: 0.3
    unit: '%/year'
    scope: cell
    conditions:
      basis: manufacturer warranty rate, printed as 0.3% per year
      product: First Solar Series 7 CdTe module
    method: Manufacturer warranty figure, not a measured field result
    status: ground
    note: Not in spores/property-canon.yaml.
    source: firstsolar-s7
    where: Product page intro headline and 'More Lifetime Energy per Nameplate Watt' section
corrosion:
  - environment: Outdoor field operation of a thin-film module (ageing)
    headline: First Solar warrants 0.3% per year degradation and a 30-year linear performance warranty.
    effect: The Series 7 product page prints a 'Warranted Annual Degradation Rate' of 0.3% per year and a '30 Year Linear Performance Warranty'. Wikipedia says PV modules last 25 to 30 years. These are a manufacturer warranty and a general statement, not a measured field test.
    rating: low
    conditions:
      basis: manufacturer warranty figure
      product: First Solar Series 7 CdTe module
    source: firstsolar-s7
    where: Product page intro headline; 'More Lifetime Energy per Nameplate Watt' section
  - environment: High operating temperature (module output)
    headline: Wikipedia says CdTe modules yield 5 to 9% more annual energy than crystalline silicon at high temperature.
    effect: 'The page prints: CdTe modules lose about half the performance of crystalline silicon modules at high temperature, yielding 5–9% more annual energy. The page gives no test temperature or conditions for this statement.'
    rating: low
    conditions:
      comparison: crystalline silicon modules
      temperature: high temperature, not defined on the page
    source: cdte-pv-wiki
    where: Section 3.3, Ambient temperature
risks:
  hazards:
    - text: Wikipedia prints the GHS hazard statements H302, H312, H332, H410 and H411 for cadmium telluride, under the signal word Warning. The page does not print the wording of these statements.
      ghs:
        - H302
        - H312
        - H332
        - H410
        - H411
      source: cdte-wiki
      where: Safety section, GHS hazard statements row
    - text: The Kurt J. Lesker safety data sheet for cadmium telluride (pieces), SDS No. 4766 revision 2, prints the signal word Warning and the hazard statements H302, H312, H332, H400 and H410. It prints H302 as Harmful if swallowed, H312 as Harmful in contact with skin, H332 as Harmful if inhaled, H400 as Very toxic to aquatic life and H410 as Very toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects. The Wikipedia list above has H411 and no H400, so the two sources differ.
      ghs:
        - H302
        - H312
        - H332
        - H400
        - H410
      source: kjlesker-cdte-sds
      where: Label elements (signal word and hazard statements); Hazard statements in full at the end of the sheet
    - text: 'NIOSH limits printed for cadmium in CdTe: a time-weighted average permissible exposure limit of 0.005 mg/m3 as Cd (listed as 1910.1027), and an IDLH of 9 mg/m3 as Cd. The page gives no numeric REL.'
      ghs: []
      source: cdte-wiki
      where: Safety section, NIOSH PEL, IDLH and REL rows
  failure_risks:
    - mode: Cadmium release at high temperature
      trigger: Laboratory heating at about 1100 °C
      consequence: 0.4 to 0.6% of the cadmium content was released in these lab tests (Wikipedia prints 0.4–0.6%).
      severity: moderate
      source: cdte-pv-wiki
      where: Section 6, Environmental and health impact
  side_effects:
    - text: 'Cadmium air emissions: 0.02 to 0.5 grams per GWh of PV electricity, as printed on Wikipedia.'
      affects: Air around the plant and its surroundings
      source: cdte-pv-wiki
      where: Section 6, Environmental and health impact
  handling:
    - text: First Solar recovers up to 95% of semiconductor material and 90% of glass from end-of-life modules, per Wikipedia. Its recycling program began in 2005.
      source: cdte-pv-wiki
      where: Section 5, Recycling
  mitigations:
    - text: Keep airborne cadmium below the NIOSH permissible exposure limit of 0.005 mg/m3 as Cd, as printed on Wikipedia.
      source: cdte-wiki
      where: Safety section, NIOSH PEL row
uses:
  - application: solar-arrays
    device: Utility-scale thin-film PV plants
    example: Wikipedia lists Agua Caliente, Arizona at 290 MW and Topaz Solar Farm, California at 550 MW, whose construction finished in November 2014.
    source: cdte-pv-wiki
    where: Section 7.1, Notable systems
  - application: solar-arrays
    device: Thin-film PV panels made in the United States
    example: USGS reports that the leading domestic CdTe solar-panel maker began production at a fifth facility in mid-2025, with capacity expected to reach about 14 gigawatts per year once ramped up in 2026.
    source: usgs-mcs2026-cadmium
    where: Events, Trends, and Issues (cadmium chapter)
  - application: solar-arrays
    device: Thin-film photovoltaic market share (market context, not one device)
    example: Wikipedia says CdTe held 5.1% of worldwide PV production and more than half of the thin-film market in 2013.
    source: cdte-pv-wiki
    where: Introduction (lead)
supply:
  - subject: Cadmium
    abundance: The USGS gives the cadmium content of typical zinc ores as about 0.03%, and says cadmium is generally recovered from zinc ores. A crust abundance was not found in the sources read.
    producers:
      - country: China
        share_percent: 41.3
        year: 2025
      - country: Korea, Republic of
        share_percent: 18.7
        year: 2025
      - country: Canada
        share_percent: 5.7
        year: 2025
    critical_lists:
      - list: USGS 2025 List of Critical Minerals
        listed: false
      - list: EU critical raw materials list (European Commission page)
        listed: false
    recycling: 'USGS: secondary cadmium is mainly recovered from spent NiCd batteries, and CdTe solar panels are named among the scrap from which cadmium can be recycled.'
    substitutes:
      - 'USGS: batteries with other chemistries, particularly lithium-ion, can replace NiCd batteries, and zinc-nickel coatings can replace cadmium in many plating applications.'
    source: usgs-mcs2026-cadmium
    where: 'World Refinery Production table, 2025e: China 9,500 t, Korea 4,300 t and Canada 1,300 t of a 23,000 t world total (rounded); shares calculated by Space Mushroom. Recycling; Substitutes. Critical lists from the USGS and EC pages'
  - subject: Tellurium
    abundance: Wikipedia says tellurium's abundance in the Earth's crust is comparable to platinum's. No numeric crust abundance was read in this run.
    producers:
      - country: China
        share_percent: 80
        year: 2025
      - country: Japan
        share_percent: 6.1
        year: 2025
      - country: Canada
        share_percent: 2.8
        year: 2025
    critical_lists:
      - list: 'USGS 2025 List of Critical Minerals (entry: Tellurium, used in solar cells)'
        listed: true
      - list: EU critical raw materials list (European Commission page)
        listed: false
    recycling: 'USGS: tellurium was recycled from CdTe solar cells in the United States, but the quantity was limited because most of those cells had not reached the end of their useful life.'
    substitutes:
      - 'USGS: amorphous silicon and copper indium gallium diselenide are the two principal competitors with CdTe in thin-film photovoltaic cells.'
    source: usgs-mcs2026-tellurium
    where: 'Events, Trends, and Issues (China 80% of estimated 2025 global production, as printed); World Refinery Production table, 2025e: Japan 61 t and Canada 28 t of a 1,000 t world total (shares calculated by Space Mushroom); Recycling; Substitutes; USGS 2025 critical list (usgs-crit2025)'
media: []
documents:
  - title: 'USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Cadmium'
    type: report
    url: https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-cadmium.pdf
    year: 2026
  - title: 'USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Tellurium'
    type: report
    url: https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-tellurium.pdf
    year: 2026
  - title: First Solar Series 7 CdTe module (product page, EMEA)
    type: datasheet
    url: https://www.firstsolar.com/en-EMEA/Products/Series-7
    year: 2026
  - title: Kurt J. Lesker safety data sheet, Cadmium Tellurium (pieces), SDS No. 4766 rev. 2
    type: sds
    url: https://cores.research.utdallas.edu/files/2023/04/CdTe-MSDS.pdf
    year: 2018
gaps:
  - No flight record for CdTe was found. The AlSat-1N Wikipedia page, read in this run, does not mention CdTe, so the AlSat-1N flight claim in the brief is not in this file.
  - No radiation-tolerance comparison with silicon or III-V cells was found in the sources read, so radiation tolerance is not stated.
  - The PubChem record could not be read (the site returned a browser-verification page), so PubChem could not confirm which hazard list is current. The GHS codes come from the Wikipedia safety section and from a Kurt J. Lesker safety data sheet (SDS No. 4766, 2018). The two lists differ on H411 and H400.
  - The NREL Best Research-Cell Efficiency chart could not be reached (host did not resolve), so the 22.1% record is the value printed on Wikipedia, not a checked NREL row.
  - Elemental atomic weights of cadmium and tellurium are not printed on the pages read, so the recipe parts carry no atomic_weight. The molar mass of 240.01 g/mol is printed.
  - Temperature coefficient of power, nominal operating cell temperature and operating temperature range are not printed on the First Solar product page. Its linked Series 7 datasheet was not read.
  - No corrosion or chemical-resistance test for CdTe was found. The corrosion section covers only warranted field ageing and the high-temperature output statement.
  - No vacuum, thermal-cycling or proton or electron irradiation result for CdTe was found in the sources read.
  - Band gap, electron and hole mobility, water solubility, lattice constant, molar mass, record cell efficiency, module efficiency and annual degradation rate are not in spores/property-canon.yaml. Short snake_case names were used.
  - The crust abundance of cadmium is not printed in the sources read. The USGS gives only the cadmium content of typical zinc ores (about 0.03%).
  - CdZnTe radiation-detector substrates named in the USGS cadmium chapter are a different compound and are not used in this profile.
  - No media images were fetched, so the media section is empty.
sources:
  cdte-wiki:
    title: Cadmium telluride
    id: Wikipedia, Cadmium telluride (infobox, physical, optical and safety sections, read 2026-11-01)
    url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadmium_telluride
    year: 2026
    kind: web
    license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikipedia)
  cdte-pv-wiki:
    title: Cadmium telluride photovoltaics
    id: Wikipedia, Cadmium telluride photovoltaics (read 2026-11-01)
    url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadmium_telluride_photovoltaics
    year: 2026
    kind: web
    license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikipedia)
  usgs-mcs2026-cadmium:
    title: Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, Cadmium
    id: USGS MCS 2026, February 2026
    url: https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-cadmium.pdf
    year: 2026
    kind: report
    license: public domain (USGS)
  usgs-mcs2026-tellurium:
    title: Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, Tellurium
    id: USGS MCS 2026, February 2026
    url: https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-tellurium.pdf
    year: 2026
    kind: report
    license: public domain (USGS)
  usgs-crit2025:
    title: About the 2025 List of Critical Minerals (USGS, final list of 60 minerals)
    id: Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals, November 2025
    url: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/mineral-resources-program/science/about-2025-list-critical-minerals
    year: 2025
    kind: web
    license: public domain (USGS)
  ec-crm:
    title: Critical raw materials (European Commission, critical raw materials list)
    id: European Commission critical raw materials page
    url: https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/sectors/raw-materials/areas-specific-interest/critical-raw-materials_en
    year: 2026
    kind: web
    license: European Commission web page
  firstsolar-s7:
    title: First Solar Series 7 CdTe module (EMEA product page)
    id: First Solar product page, undated; read 2026-11-01
    url: https://www.firstsolar.com/en-EMEA/Products/Series-7
    year: 2026
    kind: datasheet
    license: manufacturer web page, linked not reproduced
  kjlesker-cdte-sds:
    title: 'Safety data sheet: Cadmium Tellurium (pieces), Kurt J. Lesker Company'
    id: SDS No. 4766, revision 2, revision date 8/31/2018 (copy hosted by UT Dallas)
    url: https://cores.research.utdallas.edu/files/2023/04/CdTe-MSDS.pdf
    year: 2018
    kind: datasheet
    license: supplier safety data sheet, linked not reproduced
license: CC-BY-4.0
updated: '2026-11-01'
review:
  status: draft
  method: assistant
  checked_values: 18
  unreachable: 2
  caveats: 2
  note: 'Read by an AI assistant on 2026-11-01. 18 properties taken from fetched pages. Unreachable in this run: the PubChem record (browser-verification page) and the NREL efficiency chart (host did not resolve). The First Solar datasheet linked from the product page was not read. The AlSat-1N flight claim in the brief was not confirmed.'
story:
  recipe:
    line: CdTe is a compound of one cadmium atom and one tellurium atom per formula unit, in the zinc-blende crystal structure. Wikipedia prints a molar mass of 240.01 g/mol and says CdTe is commercially available as a powder or as crystals, and can be made into nanocrystals. The page names only one production technique, growth of single crystals by HPVB and HPVZM methods.
    parts:
      - name: Cadmium
        symbol: Cd
        role: The cadmium half of the lattice. Cadmium is a toxic element, and CdTe carries the GHS codes listed in the risks section.
      - name: Tellurium
        symbol: Te
        role: The tellurium half of the lattice. Tellurium is recovered mainly as a byproduct of copper refining, according to the USGS.
  risk_groups:
    - title: For people
      verdict: Carries GHS hazard codes (Wikipedia)
      lead: Wikipedia prints GHS hazard codes for CdTe and a NIOSH limit for cadmium. It does not give a verdict on the powder.
      points:
        - label: The compound
          line: Wikipedia prints the GHS hazard codes H302, H312, H332, H410 and H411 for CdTe, under the signal word Warning. A Kurt J. Lesker safety data sheet for the same CAS number prints H302, H312, H332, H400 and H410, also under the signal word Warning.
        - label: Exposure limit
          line: NIOSH lists 0.005 mg/m3 as Cd as a time-weighted average permissible exposure limit, and an IDLH of 9 mg/m3 as Cd.
    - title: If a module overheats
      lead: These results come from laboratory heating tests and from air-emission figures on Wikipedia, not from field incidents.
      points:
        - label: Lab heating
          line: In lab tests at about 1100 °C, 0.4 to 0.6% of the cadmium content was released, according to Wikipedia.
        - label: Air emissions
          line: Wikipedia prints cadmium air emissions of 0.02 to 0.5 grams per GWh of PV electricity.
    - title: Handling and storage
      points:
        - label: Dust
          line: Keep airborne cadmium below 0.005 mg/m3 as Cd, the NIOSH limit printed on Wikipedia.
        - label: Recycling
          line: First Solar recovers up to 95% of semiconductor material and 90% of glass from end-of-life modules, per Wikipedia.
        - label: Water
          line: Wikipedia gives CdTe as insoluble in water, with a footnote placing the basis below 0.1 mg/L.
  why: 'Cadmium telluride (CdTe) is a semiconductor that absorbs sunlight in thin-film solar modules. Wikipedia gives its band gap as 1.5 eV at 300 K. Its importance comes from the module business: First Solar makes CdTe thin-film modules at scale, and Wikipedia says CdTe held 5.1% of worldwide PV production in 2013.'
  uses:
    - where: Utility-scale solar plants
      line: Wikipedia lists Agua Caliente, Arizona at 290 MW and Topaz Solar Farm, California at 550 MW, whose construction finished in November 2014.
    - where: U.S. manufacturing
      line: USGS reports that the leading domestic CdTe solar-panel maker began production at a fifth facility in mid-2025, with capacity expected to reach about 14 gigawatts per year once ramped up in 2026.
    - where: Market share
      line: Wikipedia says CdTe held 5.1% of worldwide PV production and more than half of the thin-film market in 2013.
  can_do:
    - label: Band gap
      benchmark: band_gap
      value: 1.5 eV
      line: Wikipedia gives a direct band gap of 1.5 eV at 300 K, which it relates to a band-gap wavelength of about 830 nm.
    - label: Cell efficiency
      benchmark: cell_efficiency_record
      value: 22.1%
      line: Wikipedia reports a record CdTe cell efficiency of 22.1% in February 2016, credited to First Solar.
    - label: Module efficiency
      benchmark: module_efficiency
      value: Up to 19.3%
      line: First Solar lists its Series 7 module at up to 19.3% efficiency. This is a manufacturer headline, not a measured test with a stated method.
    - label: Ageing
      benchmark: annual_degradation_rate
      value: 0.3% per year
      line: First Solar warrants an annual degradation rate of 0.3% and a 30-year linear performance warranty.
    - label: High-temperature output
      value: 5 to 9% more energy
      line: Wikipedia says CdTe modules lose about half the performance of crystalline silicon modules at high temperature, yielding 5 to 9% more annual energy.
  compare: Cadmium telluride is a thin-film semiconductor, and the sources collected here compare it mainly with crystalline silicon. Wikipedia says CdTe modules lose about half the performance of crystalline silicon modules at high temperature, yielding 5 to 9% more annual energy. The USGS says CdTe solar panels compete with crystalline silicon panels. No silicon band gap or silicon efficiency was read in this run, so the comparison stops at what these sources print.
  compare_rows:
    - label: Band gap
      benchmark: band_gap
    - label: Record cell efficiency
      benchmark: cell_efficiency_record
    - label: Density
      benchmark: density
  handling:
    - Keep airborne cadmium below the NIOSH permissible exposure limit of 0.005 mg/m3 as Cd (Wikipedia).
    - 'Recycle end-of-life modules: First Solar recovers up to 95% of semiconductor material (Wikipedia).'
    - Note that lab heating at about 1100 °C released 0.4 to 0.6% of the cadmium content (Wikipedia).
  good_for:
    - 'Utility-scale thin-film PV: Wikipedia lists plants of 290 MW and 550 MW built with CdTe modules.'
    - 'High-temperature energy yield: Wikipedia says CdTe modules yield 5 to 9% more annual energy than crystalline silicon at high temperature.'
  watch_out:
    - 'Cadmium toxicity: Wikipedia prints H302, H312, H332, H410 and H411 for CdTe, and a NIOSH limit of 0.005 mg/m3 as Cd.'
    - 'Tellurium supply: the USGS lists tellurium as critical and says China produced 80% of estimated 2025 global output.'
    - 'Efficiency figures: 22.1% is a laboratory record cell, and 19.3% is a manufacturer headline for the Series 7 module, not a field result.'
  verdict: CdTe is a mature thin-film absorber, backed by utility-scale plants and a manufacturer warranty of 0.3% per year degradation. Its main drawbacks are cadmium toxicity and a tellurium supply tied to copper refining. No source in this profile supports a space-flight or radiation-tolerance claim.