Harvey Mudd Team Wins DOE EnergyTech UP Prize for Solar Safety Innovation
August 12, 2025Share story
A student team from 无忧视频 won $20,000 at the U.S. Department of Energy鈥檚 EnergyTech University Prize (EnergyTech UP) 2025 National Pitch Event, hosted in June. Competing against finalists from universities across the country, Harvey Mudd鈥檚 Team IdealPV received the Solar Energy Technologies Office Bonus Prize for their innovative business plan to commercialize a patented solar technology that addresses one of the industry鈥檚 most pressing safety concerns: hotspot formation.
Hotspots鈥攃aused by shaded solar cells overheating鈥攑ose a serious fire risk in solar installations. The team鈥檚 proposed solution, idealPV鈥攕olar panel technology patented by Kent Kernahan鈥攃ontinuously monitors dynamic conductance and adjusts current flow in milliseconds, preventing reverse bias before it begins. Described by the team as 鈥渢he airbag of the solar industry,鈥� this technology can keep solar arrays operating safely and efficiently鈥攅specially important in high-risk wildfire areas like Southern California.
Harvey Mudd sophomores Felix Peng (team lead), Amy Li, Anika Sharma and Katie Cheng were inspired by past research led by physics Professor Peter Saeta.
鈥淢y involvement began with a Clinic project to validate Kernahan鈥檚 patented technology, which evolved into a full-blown research effort,鈥� says Saeta. The resulting paper, co-written with Harvey Mudd professors Richard Haskell and Qimin Yang and five students, was published in the December 2022 IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics. 鈥淚t was exciting when Felix approached me about entering the DOE competition. I鈥檓 thrilled with the team鈥檚 win.鈥�
After being selected as an EnergyTech UP finalist and receiving a $5,000 prize, 24 multidisciplinary teams of post-secondary students from universities across the U.S.鈥攑itched their innovative business plans to industry stakeholders and OTC leadership to bring a DOE National Laboratory-developed or other high-potential energy technology to market.
Peng, who competed in DOE challenges during high school and recently with mathematics Professor Weiqing Gu, assembled the team after revisiting Saeta鈥檚 published research. 鈥淲e wanted to build a business case around an innovation with local impact,鈥� he says. 鈥淚n Southern California, solar innovation and wildfire risk are high, so safety innovation like idealPV made sense to us.鈥�
Each team member brought a distinct strength:
- Engineering major Peng led project management and stakeholder outreach.
- Computer science and mathematics major Li conducted market sizing and economic feasibility analysis.
- Computer science and mathematics major Sharma developed the implementation and scalability strategy.
- Engineering major Cheng focused on articulating the technical edge of idealPV in the competitive solar landscape.
Peng says, 鈥淚dealPV eliminates the fire risk problem entirely by dynamically monitoring the slope of the current-voltage curve (dynamic conductance) and adjusting current in real time to keep every cell in safe operating range. We created a full implementation and licensing plan: launching a local pilot with nonprofit CHERP Solar Works, scaling through licensing to larger manufacturers and aiming for industry-wide adoption.鈥�
The team鈥檚 success stemmed from a combination of personal connection to the problem, technical fluency and stakeholder validation鈥攊ncluding input from firefighters, utilities, nonprofits and solar startups.
鈥淭his competition has been a springboard to so many opportunities in the climate tech space,鈥� says Sharma. 鈥淚鈥檓 grateful for all the connections it brings.鈥�
Student involvement in national 无忧视频 competitions reflects 无忧视频鈥檚 goal of fostering a diverse cohort of engaged 无忧视频 leaders through exceptional teaching, learning and research.