Firm size, managerial practices and innovativeness: some evidence from Finnish manufacturing

In this study we use a survey data on 398 Finnish manufacturing firms for the years 2002 and 2005 to empirically explore whether and which organizational factors explain why certain firms produce larger innovative research output than others, and whether the incentives to innovate that certain organizational practices generate differ between small and large firms, and between those firms that are operating in low-tech and high-tech industries. Our study indicates that there appear to be vast differences in the organizational practices leading to more innovation both between small and large firms, and between the firms that operate in high- and low-tech industries. While innovation in small firms benefits from the practices that enhance employee participation in decision-making, large firms that have more decentralized decision-making patterns do not seem to innovate more than those with a more bureaucratic decision-making structure. The most efficient incentive for innovation among the sampled companies seems to be the ownership of a firm's stocks by employees and/or managers. Performance based wages also relates positively to innovation, but only when it is combined with a systematic monitoring of the firm's performance.Innovation, firm size; organizational practices; HRM practices

Phosphorus and boron diffusion gettering of iron in monocrystalline silicon

We have studied experimentally the phosphorus diffusion gettering (PDG) of iron in monocrystalline silicon at the temperature range of 650–800 °C. Our results fill the lack of data at low temperatures so that we can obtain a reliable segregation coefficient for iron between a phosphorus diffused layer and bulk silicon. The improved segregation coefficient is verified by time dependent PDG simulations. Comparison of the PDG to boron diffusion gettering (BDG) in the same temperature range shows PDG to be only slightly more effective than BDG. In general, we found that BDG requires more carefully designed processing conditions than PDG to reach a high gettering efficiency.Peer reviewe

Environmental policy, green innovation and market developments

This report explores the implementation of various R&D subsidies and other environmental policy instruments among the OECD countries from 1990-2015 and the relations of these policies to green innovation aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Here, green innovation is measured as patented ideas of the following technology categories: i) reductions of greenhouse gas emissions related to energy generation, transmission or distribution; ii) climate change mitigation technologies related to buildings and iii) climate change mitigation technologies for the production or processing of goods. After 2005, there was clear growth in green innovation and an expansion of markets for energy from renewable sources. The development paths of the countries differ due to the different production structures and policies adopted. Our empirical analysis suggests that the adoption of white certificate schemes promoting end-user energy savings has facilitated the generation of green innovation. The data provide further support for the positive relationship between the stringency of fossil fuel taxation and green innovation. The literature further suggests that carbon pricing and R&D subsidies are complementary policies. R&D subsidies play a substantial role in the early stages of the transition towards clean technologies. For mature technologies, the certificate system may serve as a cost-efficient means to fulfill renewable energy obligations. Renewable energy policies also tend to be more effective in countries with liberalized energy markets. Competition and policy actions that lower entry barriers enhance green innovation.This publication is part of the Government Plan for Analysis, Assessment and Research (tietokayttoon.fi). The content is the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the views of the Government

Impact of phosphorus gettering parameters and initial iron level on silicon solar cell properties

We have studied experimentally the effect of different initial iron contamination levels on the electrical device properties of p-type Czochralski-silicon solar cells. By systematically varying phosphorus diffusion gettering (PDG) parameters, we demonstrate a strong correlation between the open-circuit voltage (Voc) and the gettering efficiency. Similar correlation is also obtained for the short-circuit current (Jsc), but phosphorus dependency somewhat complicates the interpretation: the higher the phosphorus content not only the better the gettering efficiency but also the stronger the emitter recombination. With initial bulk iron concentration as high as 2 × 1014 cm−3, conversion efficiencies comparable with non-contaminated cells were obtained, which demonstrates the enormous potential of PDG. The results also clearly reveal the importance of well-designed PDG: to achieve best results, the gettering parameters used for high purity silicon should be chosen differently as compared with for a material with high impurity content. Finally we discuss the possibility of achieving efficient gettering without deteriorating the emitter performance by combining a selective emitter with a PDG treatment.Peer reviewe

Effect of transition metals on oxygen precipitation in silicon

Effects of iron and copper impurities on the amount of precipitated oxygen and the oxide precipitate and stacking fault densities in Czochralski-grown silicon have been studied under varying thermal anneals. Silicon wafers were intentionally contaminated with iron or copper and subsequently subjected to different two-step heat treatments to induce oxygen precipitation. The iron contamination level was 2 × 10exp13cm-3 and copper contamination level 6 × 10exp13cm-3. Experiments did not show that iron contamination would have any effect on the amount of precipitated oxygen or the defect densities. Copper contamination tests showed some indication of enhanced oxygen precipitation.Peer reviewe

Maarajoitusten taloudelliset vaikutukset suomalaisissa yrityksissä ja kotitalouksissa

Geoblokkaus tarkoittaa myyjän maantieteellisin perustein tai käyttäjän kotimaan perusteella asettamia rajoitteita Internetin kautta myytävien tuotteiden ja palveluiden saatavuudessa ja hinnassa. Tässä raportissa tarkastellaan seuraavan kolmen geoblokkaus -käytännön kieltämisen vaikutuksia: i) Digitaalisten palveluiden siirrettävyyttä ja saatavuutta rajoitetaan yli maarajojen. Käytännössä maasta toiseen matkustavalla tai muuttavalla kuluttajalla ei ole oikeutta käyttää (aiemmassa) kotimaassaan tilamaansa online -palvelua, ii) Maarajat ylittävää kaupankäyntiä rajoitetaan: kuluttajat eivät voi ostaa kotimaastaan käsin Internetin kautta samoja tuotteita tai palveluita, jotka ovat verkkokaupassa saatavilla joissakin muissa EU-maissa ja/tai iii) kuluttajilta veloitetaan verkkokaupassa eri hintoja samoista palveluista ja/tai tuotteista asuinpaikkansa tai kotimaansa perusteella

Significant minority carrier lifetime improvement in red edge zone in n-type multicrystalline silicon

We have carried out experiments on both boron diffusion gettering (BDG) and phosphorus diffusion gettering (PDG) in n-type multicrystalline silicon. We have focused our research on the highly contaminated edge areas of the silicon ingot often referred to as the red zone. Due to poor carrier lifetime attributed to these areas, they induce a significant material loss in solar cell manufacturing. In our experiments, the red zone was found to disappear after a specific BDG treatment and a lifetime improvement from 5 μs up to 670 μs was achieved. Outside the red zone, lifetimes even up to 850 μs were measured after gettering. Against the common hypothesis, we found higher dopant in-diffusion temperature beneficial both for the red zone and the good grains making BDG more efficient than PDG. To explain the results we suggest that high temperature leads to more complete dissolution of metal precipitates, which enhances the diffusion gettering to the emitter.Peer reviewe

Innovation, reallocation, and growth in the 21st century

Our work applies the model developed by Acemoglu et al. (2018), henceforth, AAABK, for assessing the growth and welfare implications of different types of innovation policies. Central to the AAABK model is the ratio of high-productivity and low-productivity firms in total output and how different policy measures affect this relationship. We employ the AAABK framework in order to build a macroeconomic model of the innovative business sector in Finland and fit it to the company-level micro-data on Finnish companies from 2000 to 2016. Acemoglu et al. (2018) employed US data from the 1980s and 1990s. We complement their work by estimating the AAABK model for more recent years: 2000–2016. Our results add to the literature by providing evidence on the aggregate effectiveness of innovation policies in this more recent period of slower economic growth. Our empirical findings yield, by and large, similar qualitative conclusions on the effects of public policies on economic growth and welfare to those reported in the original work using the US data. Generally, increasing R&D subsidies would be a recommendable policy. The welfare impacts of R&D subsidies are highest when they accelerate the re-allocation of R&D workers to companies with high R&D productivity. The most effective innovation policy targets R&D subsidies to companies with the highest innovation capacity (i.e., in these companies, R&D employees generate the highest increase in a firm’s productivity). If subsidies are allocated to companies with low innovation capacity or to low-productivity companies that are close to exiting the market, there will be less innovation and slower economic growth.This publication is part of the implementation of the Government Plan for Analysis, Assessment and Research (tietokayttoon.fi). The content is the responsibility of the producers of the information and does not necessarily represent the view of the government

Koronapandemian tukipolitiikan arviointi

Raportti kartoittaa koronapandemiashokin takia Suomessa käyttöönotettuja yrityksille suunnattuja tukitoimenpiteitä. Jaottelemme tukitoimet julkisiin yritystukiin eli avustuksiin sekä lainoihin ja takauksiin ja markkinaehtoiseen rahoitukseen. Suomen koronatukipolitiikkaa vertaillaan tukitoimiin ja taloustilanteen kehittymiseen Ruotsissa, Norjassa, Tanskassa, Saksassa ja Iso-Britanniassa. Suomessa pandemian takia myönnetyt yritystuet ovat olleet kansainvälisesti mittaluokaltaan pieniä. Koronatukitoimet ovat olleet verrattain tehokkaita ja oikeansuuntaisia. Ekonometrinen analyysi Valtiokonttorin jakamien kustannustukien kausaalivaikutuksista viittaa siihen, että kustannustuet ovet lisänneet yritysten liikevaihtoa ja pienentäneet yrityssaneeraukseen joutumisen riskiä. Laskelmamme osoittavat, että osa muutoin koronapandemian aikana tappiollisista yrityksistä on muuttunut kustannustukien takia voitollisiksi. Analyysimme viittaa siihen, että suorilla tuilla ja väliaikaisilla konkurssilainmuutoksilla voidaan tehokkaasti suojata talouden rakenteita äkillisissä kriisitilanteissa. Pandemian pitkittyessä jatkuvat uudet tukikierrokset lienevät kuitenkin hidastaneet talouden tervettä rakennemuutosta. Kriisitilanteiden pitkittyessä olisikin talouden uusiutumisen vauhdittamiseksi tärkeää muotoilla exit-strategia, jossa sitoudutaan johonkin selkeään kriisitukien loppumisen takarajaan