Cadmium Telluride
A semiconductor compound of cadmium and tellurium used as the light-absorbing layer in thin-film solar panels, an alternative to traditional silicon-wafer photovoltaic technology.
Covered in 3 MetalsCost.com News Intelligence articles, most recently on September 2, 2026.
Overview
Cadmium telluride is a compound semiconductor — cadmium bonded with tellurium — that absorbs sunlight so efficiently a layer just a few microns thick can capture most of the usable spectrum, versus the much thicker silicon wafers used in conventional solar cells. That efficiency is what makes it commercially viable as a thin film: manufacturers deposit it directly onto glass in a vapor-transport process, building a complete solar module without ever handling silicon ingots or wafers.
Market Position
CdTe is by far the leading thin-film solar technology, holding 59% of the global thin-film PV market in 2024, well ahead of rival thin-film chemistries. That position is largely built by one company: First Solar, the world's largest thin-film manufacturer, which hit a record 22.6% cell efficiency in 2024. CdTe panels are used mainly in utility-scale solar farms, where their lower embodied energy gives them a niche alongside dominant crystalline-silicon panels.
Sources
- CdTe's 59% share of the thin-film solar market in 2024 — Thin Film Solar PV Market Size, Share & 2030 Growth Trends Report (2025)
- First Solar's record 22.6% CdTe cell efficiency in 2024 — First Solar Expands Its CdTe Solar Cell Footprint In The US (2025)
Coverage
Tellurium's Clean-Energy Role Is Growing, But 90% of It Still Comes From Copper Waste
Tellurium's expanding role in solar power and data-center waste-heat recovery is spotlighted in a new report, even though more than 90% of global supply still comes from copper refining's leftover anode slime.
First Solar's Tellurium Solar Panels Sit Outside New US Tariffs Arriving December 4
A new US tariff and price floor on imported solar panels takes effect December 4. First Solar's tellurium-based panels, built at its $1.1 billion Louisiana plant, aren't covered by it.
Rio Tinto's Utah Copper Mine Builds a 30-Megawatt Solar Plant From Its Own Waste Tellurium
Rio Tinto's Kennecott copper mine in Utah extracts tellurium from anode slime, copper refining's leftover waste, then uses that tellurium in solar panels now powering 30 megawatts of the mine's own operations.
