Abstract In this study, a new method to reduce the thermomechanical stress in silicon solar cells induced during the cell interconnection process is proposed. By repositioning the rear pads such that the silicon solar cells are bonded to the front copper conductors ended at the same locations as the outer edges of the outermost rear pads along the busbar direction. Finite element modelling predicts that stress reduction of >50% was achieved when solar cells are interconnected by conventional tabbing or Multi-busbars (MBB) and it was confirmed by the derived stress measured by the micro-Raman spectroscopy. Front busbars terminated with a reduced contact area can further increase the tolerance of any potential misalignment arising from process variations.