Timothy A. Gessert, Ph.D.
General
From 1983-2015, Timothy Gessert worked for the National Center for Photovoltaics (NCPV) located at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. During this time, he held all research-staff positions – from Research Technician to Principal Scientist. One of his more recent positions was Group Manager of the Polycrystalline Thin-Film Photovoltaic Devices Group. In this position he provided technical leadership and administrative support for more than 25 Junior and Senior Scientists, Technicians, and Graduate Students. From 2015-2017, Dr. Gessert also worked with EPIR Technologies in Bolingbrook, IL, as Senior Scientist in charge of Photovoltaic Research.
Dr. Gessert has served as technical advisor and graduate-review committee member for over 20 Ph.D. and M.Sc. students. He has also mentored more than 30 additional undergraduate students through programs such as the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI) Program. He has been, or is presently, an adjunct or associated faculty member at Colorado School of Mines, Colorado State University, University of Toledo, Vanderbilt University, and University of Illinois at Chicago. Dr. Gessert received numerous awards while at NREL for various technical achievements and NREL facility designs. He is a Fellow and Past President of the American Vacuum Society (AVS), presently serves as Chair of the AVS Educational Committee, and is the Editor-in-Chief for the scientific journal Thin Solid Films.
Tim has authored or co-authored over 230 Journal or Conference publications, authored or co-authored 3 books, 6 book chapters, has more that 13 issued U.S. Patents, and has another >10 U.S. Patents published or pending. Tim has also served on Conference and Program Committees for numerous national and international conferences. Most of Tim’s recent scientific work has involved development of novel contacts for use in photovoltaic and other electronic devices, with an emphasis on enhanced functionality, environmentally stability, or commercial production advantages. His recent activities have been directed at understanding how choices in vacuum-processes consideration and/or overall device design affect the ultimate performance, stability, and other operational aspects of polycrystalline and crystalline photovoltaic devices. Many of the technical foundations reported in Tim’s publications are now incorporated into several important current-generation thin-film photovoltaic solar cell commercial modules.
Education and More:
Tim Gessert received degrees in Physics and Mathematics from University of Wisconsin-River Falls (B.Sc.), in Physics from Colorado School of Mines (M.Sc.), and in Applied Physics from University of Wales – College of Cardiff (Ph.D.). His Ph.D. work involved establishing the foundations for vacuum-processed ZnTe:Cu contacts that are now used in commercial, CdTe-based, thin-film photovoltaic module production. The offices of Gessert Consulting are at 9000-feet elevation in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, near the small mountain town of Conifer. Tim maintains active investigations in development of inexpensive, high-performance, transparent, and/or lightweight photovoltaics, and how these devices could transform use of critical natural resources (e.g., broader deployment in agriculture, forestry, and water/wetlands).