Solar Cells

What is a Solar Cell

Solar cell, also called a
photovoltaic cell, is a
device that converts
light energy into
electrical energy.
A single solar cell creates
a very small amount of
energy (about 0.5-0.6
volts DC) so they are
usually grouped together
in an integrated
electrical panel called a
solar panel. Sunlight is a
somewhat diffuse form
of energy and only a
portion of the light
 What are Solar Cells

• Thin wafers of silicon

– Similar to computer chips
– Much bigger
– Much cheaper
• Silicon is in abundance
– Made from sand
– Non-toxic, safe
• Cells convert sunlight energy into
electric current, however they do not
store energy
• Sunlight is its source of “fuel”
 Definitions
• Cells:
Basic photovoltaic device
that is the building block for PV
modules
• Module:
A group of PV cells
connected in series and
encapsulated in an
environmentally protective
laminate Panel

• Panel:
A group of modules that is
the basic building block of a PV
 A Brief History
Photovoltaic Technology

• 1839 – Photovoltaic effect discovered by

Becquerel.
• 1870s – Hertz developed solid selenium
PV (2 %).
• 1905 – Photoelectric effect explained by A.
Einstein.
• 1930s – Light meters for photography
commonly
employed cells of copper oxide or
 Things Start
To Get Interesting...
• 1976 – First amorphous silicon cell developed by
Wronski and Carlson.
• 1980’s - Steady progress towards higher efficiency
and many new types introduced
• 1990’s - Large scale production of solar cells more
than 10% efficient with the following materials:
– Ga-As and other III-V’s
– CuInSe2 and CdTe
– TiO2 Dye-sensitized
– Crystalline, Polycrystalline, and Amorphous
Silicon
• Today prices continue to drop and new “3rd
generation” solar cells are researched.
Photovoltaic Materials
 Conductors, Insulators and
Semiconductors

Conduction Band: white

Band gap
No gap

Valence Band
in red

Conductor Insulator Semiconductor

8
 Band Theory
• There are 3 types
of materials in
Ef
Band Theory,
Ef Eg
Ef
which are
differentiated by
their electronic
Metal Insulator Semiconductor
structure:
– insulators,
– conductors, and
– semiconductors.
 Electronic Structure of
Semiconductors
• Silicon
• Group 4 elemental
semiconductor
• Silicon crystal
forms the diamond
lattice
• Resulting in the
use of four valence
electrons of each
silicon atom.
How do they work?
 How solar cell works
A solar cell is based upon the "photovoltaic effect"
discovered in 1839 by Edmund Becquerel, a French
Physicist. In his experiments he found that certain
materials would produce small amounts of electric
current when exposed to sunlight. Sunlight is
made up of packets of energy called photons.

When the photons strike the semi-conductor layer

(usually silicon) of a solar cell a portion of the
photons are absorbed by the material rather than
bouncing off on it or going through the material.

When a photon is absorbed the energy of that

photon is transferred to an electron in an atom of
the cell causing the electron to escape from its
normal position.

This creates, in essence, a hole in the atom. This

hole will attract another electron from a nearby
 Energy Bands in a
Semiconductor
• Conducti
on Band
– Ec –
empty
• Valence
Band –
Ev – full
of
electrons
 2/(3) Types of
Semiconductors
1. Intrinsic
2. Extrinsic
a) n-type
b) p-type

• Types 2 (a) and 3 (b) are

semiconductors that conduct electricity
- How?
– by alloying semiconductor with an impurity,
also known as doping
– carriers placed in conduction band or
carriers removed from valence band.
Note: Color Protocol
 Type 1: Intrinsic
• Pure semiconductor
(intrinsic): contains
equal no. of valancies or
holes in the valence band
and so in an intrinsic
semiconductor no. of free
electrons is always equal
to the number of holes.
Therefore, conduction
band is empty.

• Because electrons in full

 Type 2 (a) : n-Type
• n-type: current is carried
by negatively charged
electrons - How?
– Group 5 (Pentavalent e.g.,
As, Sb or P) ) impurity
atoms added to silicon
melt from which is crystal
is grown Within
– 4/5 of outer electrons used conduction band
to fill valence band the electrons
– 1/5 left is then put into are moving,
conduction band. These therefore,
impurity atoms are called crystal becomes
donors. a conductor
 Type 3 (b) : p-Type
• p-Type: current
carried by missing
electron holes which
act as positively
charged particles.
How?
– Group 3 (Trivalent e.g.,
B, Ga In & Al) added to
silicon melt
– need 4 outer electrons
but doping creates
lack of electrons in
valence band.
 What Carries the
Current?
• Prevailing charges are called the
majority carriers
– prevailing charge carrier in n-type:
electrons
– prevailing charge carrier in p-type:
holes
Creating a Junction
Generation of Electrical
Energy
 Semiconductor
Junctions
• All the junctions contain strong electric
field
• How does the electric field occur?
– When two semiconductors come into contact,
electrons near interface from n-type, transfer
over to p-type, leaving a positively charged
area
– Holes from p-type by interface transfer over to
n-type leaving a negatively charged area.
– Because electrons and holes are swapped, a
middle potential barrier with no mobile
charges, is formed.
– This potential barrier created does not let any
more electrons or holes flow through.
• Electric field pulls electrons and holes in
opposite directions.
Physics of Photovoltaic
Generation

n-type
semiconducto
+ + + + + + + + + + r
-+ - +- +- +
- +
- - - - - - - - Depletion
- - - - - Zone
p-type
semiconducto
r
 Theory of Solar Cell
Working Principle
The solar cell works on the principle of photovoltaic
effect, which is the process of generating an EMF as a
result of the absorption of ionizing radiation

When photons strike a transparent photovoltaic cell, it

may be reflected pass through or absorbed by material
Absorbed photons provide the thermal energy to excite
the electrons to generate electricity
When enough solar energy is absorbed by the material
of cell electron break through from the atoms
The energy associated with photon is proportional to
the frequency of radiations (As Planck’s law)
E = hv = h c / λ
where h = Planck’s constant; c = speed of
light
λ = wavelength of light v =
frequency (cycle/sec)
 Equivalent circuit of a
solar cell

the current produced by the solar cell is

The schematic symbol of a
solar cell
where
I = output current (ampere)
IL = photo generated current (ampere)
ID = diode current (ampere)
ISH = shunt current (ampere).
A PV device can be modeled by a current source in parallel with a
diode, with resistance in series and parallel.
 Current in a Solar
Cell
• Output current = I = Il-Io [ exp(qV/kT)-1]
– Il=light generated current
– I0= Diode current
– q = electric charge
– V = voltage across the junction
– k = Boltzmann’s constant = 1.3807 × 10-23 J/K
• When in open circuit (I=0) all light generated
current passes through diode
• When in short circuit (V=0) all current passes
through external load
Important points:
1) During open circuit the voltage of open
circuit,
Voc = (kT/q) ln( Il/Io +1)
2) No power is generated under short and
open circuit - but Pmax = VmIm=FFVocIsc
Solar Cell Materials
 Introduction
Solar cell is made up of different materials and Si is the element which is using in nearly
92%-95% solar cells.
Various materials display varying efficiencies and have varying costs.

Materials for efficient solar cells must have characteristics matched to the spectrum of
available light.
Some cells are designed to efficiently convert wavelengths of solar light that reach the
Earth surface. Light absorbing materials can often be used in multiple physical
configurations to take advantage of different light absorption and charge separation
mechanisms.

Materials presently used for photovoltaic solar cells include mono crystalline silicon,
polycrystalline silicon, amorphous silicon, cadmium telluride and copper indium.

Most of the solar cells are made from bulk materials that are cut into wafers between 180
to 240 micrometers thick that are then processed like other semiconductors.

Other materials are made as thin-films layers, organic dyes, and organic polymers that
are deposited on supporting substrates.

A third group are made from nanocrystals and used as quantum dots (electron-confined
nanoparticles).
 PV Classification
Silicon Crystalline Technology Thin Film Technology

Mono Crystalline PV Cells Amorphous

Silicon PV Cells

Multi Crystalline PV Cells Poly Crystallin

PV Cells
( Non-Silicon
based)

Cadmium telluride (CdTe)

Copper indium gallium
selenide (CIGS)
Gallium arsenide (GAs)
Nanocrystalline silicon
 Crystalline
Silicon

Amorphous Silicon
 Mono Crystalline PV Cells
• Monocrystalline, as the name suggests, is
constructed from a single crystal of silicon, by
cutting from ingots.
• This gives the solar panel a uniform appearance
across the entire module.
• This crystal is then cut into thin wafers between
0.2mm and 0.3mm thick, which then form the basis
of the solar PV cell.
• These solar PV cells are the most efficient, however,
they also tend to be the most expensive to produce.
• They are rigid and are mounted in a rigid frame for
protection.
They are still more expensive than polycrystalline,
but can be up to 3% more efficient.
• It is made using the Czochralski process.
• These large single crystals are exceedingly rare,
and the process of 'recrystallising' the cell is more
expensive to produce.
 Multicrystalline PV Cells
• Polycrystalline (or multicrystalline)
modules are composed of a number of
different crystals, fused together to make
a single cell (hence the term 'multi').
Hence, PV cells contain multiple silicon
crystals.

• This gives them a blue marbled

appearance (rather than the much darker
colour of monocrystalling solar PV cells).

• Polycrystalline solar PV cells are slightly

less efficient than monocrystalline cells,
however, they are also less expensive to
produce.

• These solar PV cells also need to be

stored in a rigid protective frame.
 Silicon Crystalline Technology
 Currently makes up 86% of PV market
 Very stable with module efficiencies 10-16%

Mono crystalline PV Cells Multi Crystalline PV Cells

• Made using saw-cut from • Caste from ingot of
single cylindrical crystal melted and recrystallised
of Si silicon
• Operating efficiency up to • Cell efficiency ~12%
15% • Accounts for 90% of
crystalline Si market
 Thin Film Technology
 Silicon deposited in a continuous on a base material such
as glass, metal or polymers
 Thin-film crystalline solar cell consists of layers about
10μm thick compared with 200-300μm layers for
crystalline silicon cells

PROS
• Low cost substrate
and fabrication
process

CONS
• Not very stable
 Amorphous Silicon PV Cells
• Amorphous solar PV cells, are a type of ‘thin film solar
cells’ and are made from a thin film of amorphous (non-
crystalline) silicon.

• Silicon is sprayed onto the substrate as a gas (called

'vapour deposition'), which means that the silicon wafer
is approx 1 micron thick (compared to approx 200
microns for mono and poly). This means that the panel
uses less energy to produce. And, it also means that the
panels are far less efficient than mono or poly (approx 5-
6% efficient).

• This can be placed on a wide range of different surfaces

and, because the amorphous silicon layer is flexible, if
placed on a flexible surface, then the whole solar PV cell
can be flexible.

• These panels are the least expensive to produce but are

also the least efficient than crystalline panels, and a
greater number is required for the same output. On
average, a thin film solar array will need 2.5 times more
roof area than mono or poly.
 Amorphous Silicon PV
Cells
 The most advanced of thin film
technologies
 Operating efficiency ~6%
 Makes up about 13% of PV market

PROS
• Mature
manufacturing
technologies available

CONS
• Initial 20-40% loss in
efficiency
 Poly Crystalline PV Cells
Cadmium telluride

• A cadmium telluride solar cell uses a cadmium telluride

(CdTe) thin film, a semiconductor layer to absorb and convert
sunlight into electricity.

• Cadmium telluride PV is the only thin film photovoltaic

technology to surpass crystalline silicon PV in cheapness
(Rs. 44 per watt-peak, with the lowest crystalline silicon (c-Si)
module at Rs. 55 per watt-peak).

• The cadmium present in the cells would be toxic if released.

However, release is impossible during normal operation of
the cells and is unlikely during fires in residential roofs. A
square meter of CdTe contains approximately the same
amount of Cd as a single C cell Nickel-cadmium battery, in a
more stable and less soluble form.
 Poly Crystalline PV Cells
Non – Silicon Based Technology

Cadmium Telluride ( CdTe)

 Unlike most other II/IV

material CdTe exhibits direct

band gap of 1.4eV and high
absorption coefficient

PROS
• 16% laboratory efficiency
• 6-9% module efficiency
CONS
• Immature manufacturing
process
 Poly Crystalline PV Cells
Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS)

• CIGS (CuIn1-xGaxSe2 or CIGS) is a direct band gap

semiconductor. Because the material strongly absorbs
sunlight, a much thinner film is required than of other
semiconductor materials.
• Traditional methods of fabrication involve vacuum processes
including co-evaporation and sputtering.
• The CIGS absorber is deposited on a glass backing, along
with electrodes to collect current.
• CIGS's absorption coefficient is higher than any other
semiconductor used for solar modules.
• It has the highest efficiency (~20%) among thin film materials.

• The market for thin-film PV grew at a 60% annual rate

• Therefore, a strong incentive exists to develop and improve
deposition methods for these films that will allow lower cost
 Gallium arsenide
• multijunction
High-efficiency multijunction cells were originally
developed for special applications such as satellites
and space exploration.
• Multi-junction solar cells or tandem cells are solar
cells containing several p-n junctions. Each junction
is tuned to a different wavelength of light, reducing
one of the largest inherent sources of losses, and
thereby increasing efficiency.
• These multijunction cells consist of multiple thin
films produced using metal organic vapour phase.
• A triple-junction cell, for example, may consist of
the semiconductors: GaAs, Ge, and GaInP2.
• Each type of semiconductor will have a
characteristic band gap energy. The semiconductors
are carefully chosen to absorb nearly all of the solar
spectrum, thus generating electricity from as much
of the solar energy as possible.
•
 Nanocrystalline silicon
• (nc-Si)
Nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si), also known as
microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si), is a form of porous
silicon.

• It is an allotropic form of silicon with

paracrystalline structure. And it is similar to
amorphous silicon (a-Si), in that it has an
amorphous phase.

• Where they differ, however, is that nc-Si has small

grains of crystalline silicon within the amorphous
phase. And it is in contrast to polycrystalline silicon
(poly-Si) which consists solely of crystalline silicon
grains, separated by grain boundaries.

• nc-Si has many useful advantages over a-Si, one

being that if grown properly it can have a higher
electron mobility, due to the presence of the silicon
crystallites. It also shows increased absorption in
the red and infrared wavelengths, which make it an
important material for use in a-Si solar cells. One of
 Emerging Technologies
‘ Discovering new realms of Photovoltaic Technologies ‘

 Electrochemical solar cells

have their active component in
liquid phase
 Dye sensitizers solar cells
(DSSCs) are used to absorb
light and create electron-hole
pairs in nanocrystalline
titanium dioxide
semiconductor layer
 Cell efficiency ~ 7%

 DSSCs are made of low-cost

materials. It can be
engineered into flexible
sheets, and although its
conversion efficiency is less
than the best thin film cells,
However, its
price/performance ratio
should be high enough to
allow them to compete with Electrochemical solar
 Environmental Aspects

 Exhaustion of raw materials

 CO2 emission during fabrication process
 Acidification
 Disposal problems of hazardous
semiconductor material

In spite of all these environmental concerns,

Solar Photovoltaic is one of the cleanest form of energy
 Solar Cells Background
First Generation – Single Junction Silicon Cells
89.6% of 2007 Production

45.2% Single Crystal Si

42.2% Multi-crystal SI
• Large-area, high quality and single junction devices.
• High energy and labor inputs
significant progress in reducing production costs.
• Single junction silicon devices
theoretical limit efficiency of 33%.
Payback period 5–7 years.
• Single crystal silicon - 16-19% efficiency
• Multi-crystal silicon - 14-15% efficiency

Silicon Cell Average Efficiency

 Solar Cells Background
Second Generation – Thin Film Cells

CdTe 4.7% & CIGS 0.5% of 2007 Production

• New materials and processes to improve efficiency and reduce cost.
• As manufacturing techniques evolve, production costs will be dominated
by constituent material requirements, whether this be a silicon substrate,
or glass cover. Thin film cells use about 1% of the expensive
semiconductors compared to First Generation cells.
• The most successful second generation materials have been cadmium
telluride (CdTe), copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS),
amorphous silicon and micromorphous silicon.
• Trend toward second gen., but commercialization has proven difficult.
– 2007 - First Solar produced 200 MW of CdTe solar cells, 5 th largest producer
in 2007 and the first to reach top 10 from of second generation technologies
alone.
– 2007 - Wurth Solar commercialized its CIGS technology producing 15 MW.
– 2007 - Nanosolar commercialized its CIGS technology in 2007 with a
production . capacity of 430 MW for 2008 in the USA and Germany.
– 2008 - Honda began to commercialize their CIGS base solar panel.

• CdTe – 8 – 11% efficiency (18% demonstrated)

• CIGS – 7-11% efficiency (20% demonstrated)
• Payback time < 1 year in Europe
 Solar Cells Background
Third Generation – Multi-junction Cells
• Third generation technologies aim to enhance poor electrical
performance of second generation (thin-film technologies) while
maintaining very low production costs.
• Current research is targeting conversion efficiencies of 30-
60% while retaining low cost materials and manufacturing
techniques. They can exceed the theoretical solar conversion
efficiency limit for a single energy threshold material, 31% under
1 sun illumination and 40.8% under the maximal artificial
concentration of sunlight (46,200 suns).
• Approaches to achieving these high efficiencies including the use
of multijunction photovoltaic cells, concentration of the incident
spectrum, the use of thermal generation by UV light to enhance
voltage or carrier collection, or the use of the infrared spectrum
for night-time operation.
• Typically use fresnel lens (3M) or other concentrators, but cannot
use diffuse sunlight and require sun tracking hardware
How Solar Cells are Made
 Solar Cell
Construction
• Materials
– Crystalline Silicon
– Thin Film
– Gallium Arsenide (more expensive)
• Grown into large single-crystal
ingots
• Sawed into thin wafers
• 2 wafers are bonded together (p-n
junction)
• Wafers grouped into panels or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_panel
Creating Silicon
Wafers
Growing Silicon
Ingots

Czochralski Process
Drawing a Silicon
Ingot
 Silicon Ingots &
Wafers

http://www.sumcosi.com/english/products/products2.html
Polycrystalline
silicon wafers
are sawn from
cast
rectangular
ingots.
Creating PV Cells
Solar Modules and Arrays
PV Modules have efficiencies approaching 17%
Modules are constructed from PV cells that are encapsulated by several
layers of protective materials.
Solar Panel
An array is a group of PV modules integrated as a
single power-generating unit.
 A junction box on the back of a module provides a
protected location for electrical connections and bypass
PV cells or modules are connected in series strings to
Strings of PV cells or modules are connected in
The overall I-V curve of PV devices in parallel depends on
the similarity of the current outputs of the individual
The overall I-V curve of PV devices in parallel depends on
the similarity of the current outputs of the individual
 Modules are available in several sizes and shapes,
including squares, rectangles, triangles, flexible units,
Modules are added in series to form
Modules are added in series to form strings or
panels, which are then combined in parallel to
 Output current of the
Array
For increasing the necessary output current and
power output, a number of modules having same
nominal voltage to be connected in parallel:

Let V = Operating voltage of solar generator

I = Operating current of solar generator
Vn = Nominal voltage of a module
Ns = Number of modules connected in series
Np = Number of modules connected in parallel
then NS = V / Vn and operating current
I = P/V
NP = I / I n

Hence, the total number of modules in the solar

Solar Power Plant
 Types of solar power plant

1. Photovoltaic solar energy

plant

Grid Independent SPP Grid

Connected SPP

2. Solar thermal energy plant

3. Concentrating power plant
Photovoltaic solar energy
plant
Solar Cells produce DC power which fluctuates
with the sunlight's intensity. For practical use
this usually requires conversion to certain
desired voltages or alternating current (AC),
through the use of inverters.

Multiple solar cells are connected inside

modules. Modules are wired together to form
arrays, then tied to an inverter, which produces
power at the desired voltage, and for AC, the
desired frequency/phase.

Many residential systems are connected to the

grid wherever available, especially in developed
countries with large markets. In these grid-
Block Diagram of Solar Power
Plant
 Solar Power Plants in India
Pavagada Solar Park (Shakti Sthala), Karnataka

Shakti Sthala Pavagada Solar Park in Karnataka is one of the world’s biggest
solar farms over 13,000 acres with 2,000 MW of capacity power generation.
Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park, Andhra Pradesh.
Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park spread over 5,932.32 acres of area in Kurnool
district of Andhra Pradesh and is one of the world’s largest solar park at the
time.

Basic Physics of Solar Photovoltaic Cells 78

 Solar Power Plants in India….cont’d
• Kamuthi Solar Power Project, Tamil Nadu
Kamuthi Solar Power Project is the largest single location solar power plant in the
world, located at Kamuthi in Tamil Nadu. The Kamuthi solar plant the world’s largest
solar power plant with a capacity of 648 MW commissioned by Adani Power,
surpassing the Topaz Solar Farm in California (capacity 550 MW). It’s covers an
area of 10 sq km. The project was completed on 21 September 2016 with an
investment of around 4,550 crore. The solar plant consists of 2,500,000 solar
modules, 27,000 metres of structures, 576 inverters, 154 transformers, and almost
7500 km of cables. The plant was completed in just eight months. It is cleaned
everyday by a self-charged robotic system
 Solar Power Plants in India….cont’d

• Charanka Solar Park, Gujarat

Charanka village solar park is one of the Asia’s biggest solar park, located at northern
Gujarat. The site is the world’s second largest photovoltaic power station and spread
across 5,384 acres of unused land.

• Sakri Solar Plant, Maharashtra

Sakri Solar Power Plant is the largest solar power plant in Maharashtra, located at
Dhule district in Maharashtra. The 125 MW Shivajinagar Sakri solar plant is also one of
the largest of its kind solar projects in the country.

• Welspun Solar MP Project, Madhya Pradesh

Welspun Solar MP project of 151 MW is one of the largest solar power projects in
India. The project will use solar energy for electricity generation and an upcoming
750MW solar power plant in Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh will be largest solar
plant in India.
 Solar Power Plants in India….cont’d

• Dhirubhai Ambani Solar Park, Rajasthan

Dhirubhai Ambani Solar Park was constructed by Reliance Industries near Pokhran in
the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan. The solar park is one of the largest in the Thar
Desert and also biggest in the state of Rajasthan.
 PV’nomics ….

 Module costs typically represents only

40-60% of total PV system cost and the
rest is accounted by inverter, PV array
support, electrical cabling and
installation

 Most PV solar technologies rely on

semiconductor-grade crystalline-silicon
wafers, which are expensive to produce
compared with other energy sources

 The high initial cost of the equipment

they require discourages their large-
scale commercialization
 The Other Side

• Use newer and cheaper materials

like amorphous silicon , CuInSe2 ,
CdTe.

• Thin-film solar cells use less than

1% of the raw material (silicon)
compared to wafer based solar
cells, leading to a significant
price drop per kWh.

• Incentives may bring down the

cost of solar energy down to 10-
12 cents per kilowatt hour -
which can imply a payback of 5 to
 Applications @ PV
• Water Pumping: PV powered pumping systems are
excellent, simple, reliable – life 20 yrs
• Commercial Lighting: PV powered lighting systems are
reliable and low cost alternative. Security, billboard sign,
area, and outdoor lighting are all viable applications for PV
• Consumer electronics: Solar powered watches, calculators,
and cameras are all everyday applications for PV
technologies.
• Telecommunications
• Residential Power: A residence located more than a mile
from the electric grid can install a PV system more
inexpensively than extending the electric grid

(Over 500,000 homes worldwide use PV power as their only

source of electricity)
A Step towards achieving the
Vision

The Delhi Government decided to make use of solar

power compulsory for lighting up hoardings and for
street lighting
 “ By the year 2030, India should
achieve Energy Independence
through solar power and other forms
of renewable energy ”

Dr. A. P. J. Abdul
Kalam
President of India
Independence Day
Speech, 2005
Production and Disposal Concerns

Production - Worker Health and

Safety
• Amorphous silicon -Silane, an explosive gas,
is used in making amorphous silicon. Toxic
gases such as phosphine and diborane are
used to electronically "dope" the material.
• Copper indium diselenide -Toxic hydrogen
selenide is sometimes used to make copper
indium diselenide, a thin-film PV material.
• Cadmium telluride -Cadmium and its
compounds, which are used in making
cadmium telluride PV cells, can be toxic at
high levels of lung exposure.
Disposal
• Module lifespan typically around 30
 Advantages
• Non polluting: no noise, harmful or
unpleasant emmisions or smells
• Reliable: most solar panels have a 25 year
warranty and even longer life expectancy
• Solar modules over their lifetime produce
more power per gram of material than
nuclear power but without the problem of
large volumes of environmentally hazardous
material
• Solar panels produce more power within 5
years than the power consumed in their
production
• Solar power is a renewable energy source.
It cannot be used up thus is effective in
 Advantages:

• Solar energy is renewable unlike the conventional resources (coal, oil) which will inevitably run
out.
• Non-polluting, no carbon dioxide like fossil fuels (Free except for capital expenses)
• Environmentally friendly because the conversion of energy doesn't produce any carbon
dioxide.
• It comes from the sun, which, unless you are in The South or North pole, comes out almost
everyday
• Solar power is better for the environment, compared to burning fossil fuels and other electrical
power.
• sun is renewable
• You get clean energy without harming the environment [in term of carbon emissions], in certain
countries, excessive power generated can be sold back to local electricity provider
educes pollution
• Reduced dependence on fossil fuels
• It is environmentally friendly and no pollution is associated with solar power
• It can be installed anywhere
• Batteries can be used to store power for use at night
It does no damage to the earth or its atmosphere
• It produces no carbon dioxide
• It doesn't have to be dug up from the ground like coal, oil, natural gas, or uranium
• It doesn't have to be cut down, like wood from forests.
• It produces clean, green power in the form of electricity and can be used to power just about
everything we need.
• Solar cells last a long time, typically guaranteed for 20 or 25 years.
 Disadvantages
• We are unable to utilize the
power of the sun at night or
cloudy days
• Solar panels are expensive
to buy and hard to set up
 Solar PV
Dependencies
• Location, Location, Location!
• Latitude
– Lower latitudes are better than higher
latitudes
• Weather
– Clear sunny skies are better than cloudy
skies
– However the temperature is not
important
• Direction solar arrays face
– South is preferred, east and west are
acceptable
– However, solar panels are more effective
if they are arranged like trees
 Solar PV Applications
• Spacecraft
 Solar PV Applications
• Residential
 Solar PV Applications
• Commercial