Richard King

Richard King is a Professor at Arizona State University's School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering and a Senior Global Futures Scientist. He holds a Ph.D. (1990), M.S. (1987), and B.S. (1985) in Physics from Stanford University. His research focuses on high-efficiency photovoltaics, semiconductor defects, and multijunction solar cell technologies. Key contributions include achieving over 40% solar cell efficiency in 2006. He leads the King Lab, exploring photovoltaic materials, deployment strategies, and societal integration of solar energy.

Research interests span defect-tolerant materials (e.g., perovskites, CIGS), recombination phenomena, and low-cost thin-film solar cells. Awards include the 2010 William R. Cherry Award and R&D 100 recognition. He has led NSF-funded projects like the Quantum Energy and Sustainable Solar Technologies (QESST) Engineering Research Center.

• Education: Ph.D./M.S. Electrical Engineering, Stanford University (1990/1987); B.S. Physics, Stanford (1985)
• Grants: NSF QESST ERC (2011–2017) and Boeing/Spectrolab collaborations
• Labs/Teams: King Lab at ASU, focusing on photovoltaic science, deployment, and education