Stuart Wenham
Stuart Wenham (15 July 1957 – 23 December 2017) was an Australian engineer and leader in solar technology. He grew up in Bexley North, Sydney, and graduated from the University of New South Wales in 1981 with the university medal in electrical engineering. With Bruce Godfrey, he helped set up Australia’s first solar cell manufacturing line. He invented advanced hydrogenation technology that greatly boosted solar cell efficiency, earning him the nickname the Einstein of the solar world from colleagues. He helped commercialise this technology and built strong industry partnerships to support ongoing research at UNSW’s SPREE.
Wenham also served as Chief Technology Officer of Suntech Power Holdings, a leading solar cell company. His work with Professor Martin Green helped them win the 1999 Australia Prize for solar energy conversion efficiency after holding the record for decades. He received the Clunies Ross Award in 2008 for contributions to solar cell development and commercialisation, the Cherry Award in 2009 at the IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, the J J Ebers Award from IEEE in 2011, and the AF Harvey Engineering Prize from the IET in 2013 for his hydrogenation breakthroughs.
Wenham died in Sydney on 23 December 2017 from melanoma.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 01:36 (CET).