Ahmed Ennaoui

Ahmed Ennaoui is a Physician and material scientist. He served as Professor at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) and Research Director of Solar Energy group at Qatar Environmental and Energy Research Institute (QEERI). Prior to joining QEERI, he was working at the Hahn-Meitner Institute-Berlin (HMI) conducting research for his Habilitation with professor Helmut Tributsch, in the “Abteilung Solare Energetik” working on new earth-abundant materials for solar energy conversion. He then promoted senior scientist and project leader at Hahn-Meitner Institute-Berlin and Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB) respectively. During this time at HMI and HZB, he developed state-of-the-art capabilities for processing thin films and related devices. He was promoted in 2000, to head research group and EU-project leader pursuing research on several EU’s Framework programs and funding projects financed by the German Federal Ministry of Education. Meanwhile, he conducted successful feasibility studies financed by the industry (Siemens/Shell-Solar/Avancis, Solibro, Bosch, Atotech). Dr. Ahmed research interests are primarily focused on emerging thin-film PV technology, from planar films to nanostructures including 2D Van der Waals (VdW) layered materials (WS2, MoS2, …), for the conversion of light into chemical and electrical energy, and photo-electrocatalysis of water splitting. He also conducted research on the reduction of the surface state through of hydrogen-terminated silicon for solar energy conversion. At QEERI, he managed the solar energy research team, recruiting top scientists, and developing novel methods allowing Drop on-Demand (D-O-D) patterning of materials with negligible materials waste and small environmental footprint such as inkjet printing technology. His published work on thin-film solar cells with earth-abundant materials for thin-film solar cells such as Kesterite Cu2ZnSn(SxSe1-x)4 (CZTSSe) and Cadmium free chalcopyrite Cu(In,Ga)(SxSe1-x)2 (CIGSSe) solar cells have been recognized with h-index 43. He granted several patents, he is author and co-author for more than 200 peer-reviewed journal articles including numerous conference contributions, and 4 special issues. Dr. Ahmed is very active in academic teaching and tutorial work of advanced PV materials and innovative new solar cell concepts. He was involved in the evaluation of renewable energy seminar program for graduate students at Free University Berlin, Germany. During his career he supervised more than 40 completed thesis and ca. 15 Postdoctoral have worked in his group. He was visiting professor at Osaka University/Japan. He taught several graduate courses and seminars on Advanced Thin Film materials for PV application at the Research Center for Solar Energy Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering Sciences of Osaka University. He serves as a full professor of physics at University Mohamed V (Morocco) for almost 25 years. Dr. Ahmed is permanently a member of the editorial Board of Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, President of the Scientific Council of the Moroccan Solar Energy Institute “IRESEN”, member of International Solar Energy Society (ISES), member of IEEE and served as chair of the scientific-technical committee for the International Renewable and Sustainable Energy Conference (IRSEC)