SiliconBeat

As part of the continued greening of Applied Materials — which last March announced the biggest deal in the company’s history when it said it received a $1.9 billion order for thin-film solar-panel production equipment for ”multiple solar factories,” — the Santa Clara company named Alexander “Andy” Karsner, a former Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy, to its board of directors last week.

He began serving on the board “effective immediately” and will serve on its strategy committee.

In May, Applied Materials welcomed back Randhir Thakur, who left the company to join Sandisk in 2005, to become senior vice president and general manager of its new solar initiative.

Karsner was automatically granted 20,000 shares of restricted stock scheduled to vest in four equal annual installments beginning one year after the grant date Sept. 23.