The William R. Cherry Award is named in honor of William R. Cherry, a founder of the photovoltaic community. In the 1950's, he was instrumental in establishing solar cells as the ideal power source for space satellites and for recognizing, advocating, and nurturing the use of photovoltaic systems for terrestrial applications. The purpose of the award is to recognize an individual engineer or scientist who devoted a part of their professional life to the advancement of the science and technology of photovoltaic energy conversion.

Dr. Xu Xixiang is currently leading an R&D team over 500 technical staff members working on multiple PV technologies. He led the team and created 14 world records of Si solar cell efficiency and now holds efficiency records of HJT, HBC and PVSK/HJT tandem solar cells, which are 26.81%, 27.3% and 34.6%, respectively.

LONGi is not only the creator of the world record for solar cell efficiency, but also a leader in promoting innovation in the global photovoltaic industry. In recent years, LONGi has collaborated with upstream and downstream partners in the industry chain to innovate multiple industry-leading innovative technologies, including diamond wire cutting technology, monocrystalline PERC technology, HPBC solar cell industrialization, etc., making positive contributions to the cost reduction and efficiency increase of the entire industry, as well as the reduction of photovoltaic electricity costs.

LONGi has always been the company with the most R&D investment in the PV industry. Since its listing in 2012 until the end of 2023, LONGi has accumulated more than 30 billion yuan in R&D investment and has obtained a total of 2,879 authorized patents of various types.

Speaking of receiving this honor, Dr. Xu Xixiang said: "I am deeply honored to have received the William R. Cherry Award. In the past few years, with the joint efforts of our R&D team, we have repeatedly created and broken world records for solar cell efficiency. This award belongs not only to me, but also to every member of the LONGi Central R&D Institute. In the future, we will continue to strive to develop more cutting-edge technologies while accelerating the commercialization of these PV technologies. Our ultimate goal is 'making the best of solar energy to build a green world'."

Upon learning of Dr. Xu Xixiang's award, Li Zhenguo, Founder and President of LONGi, immediately congratulated him and said: "On behalf of LONGi, we'd like to congratulate Dr. Xu Xixiang and his team on this remarkable honor and his outstanding achievements in the field of PV industry. we are grateful for Dr. Xu Xixiang's contributions and efforts in this regard. In the future, LONGi will adhere to the concept of "seeking development through innovation" and make unremitting efforts to achieve the goal of "zero carbon earth" with more valuable technologies and products."