Solar cell multicrystalline silicon photovoltaic modules, commonly called solar modules, are the key components used to convert sunlight into electricity. The basic principle behind the function of solar cell is based on photovoltaic effect. Pv has become the cheapest source of electrical power in regions with a high potential, with price bids as low as 0. Fundamental properties of solar cells, principles and varieties of.
A solar cell is a sandwich of two different layers of silicon that have been specially treated so they will let electricity flow through them in a specific way. The energy knocks electrons loose so they can flow freely and produce a difference in electric potential energy, or voltage. Becquerel discovered the photovoltaic effect involving conversion of solar energy into electrical energy in semiconductor element. Working principle of solar cell or photovoltaic cell. Power is the rate at which the energy is converted dedt. As an indirect bandgap semiconductor, most of the recombination in silicon occurs via. Many notions presented in this chapter will be new but nonetheless the general idea of how a solar cell works should be clear. The key feature of conventional photovoltaic pv solar cells is the pn junction. When light reaches the pn junction, the light photons can easily enter in the junction, through very thin ptype layer.
These constraints will be defined by the working environment in which solar cells are produced. For this reason it is useful to characterize light radiation by parameters associated with waves. The name photovoltaic is because of their voltage producing capability. A photodiode works on a narrow range of wavelength while solar cells need to work over a broad. A pn junction is created in silicon by a doping process. Using the same principle, cell phones can also be charged by solar energy.
An electrochemical cell fuel cell or battery cell, however, can directly convert the chemical energy of a fuel into electricity. The boron side of the slab is 1,000 times thicker than the phosphorous. This cell had a yield of only 1% and was, therefore, more of a proof of concept. The top of the slab is very thinly diffused with an n dopant such as phosphorous. Photovoltaic cell is the basic unit of the system where the photovoltaic effect is utilised to produce electricity from light energy.
Working principle of solar cell or photovoltaic cell electrical4u. In the pn junction solar cell, sunlight provides sufficient energy to the free electrons in the n region to allow them to cross the depletion region and combine with holes in the p region. A solar cell is also known as photovoltaic cell or photoelectric cell. Light photon energy electric energy silicon solar photovoltaic cells a device made of semiconductor materials that produce electricity under light. Pdf pv cell working principle and applications how.
The most famous one is a solar pv panel, also referred as solar plate. There is always a potential barrier between ntype and ptype material. Principle of solar cell about solar energy our solar. It is defined as the radiating light and heat from the sun that is harnessed using devices like heater, solar cooker, photovoltaic cell to convert it to other forms of energy such as electrical energy and heat. May, 20 since a solar cell is the only generator in a solar pv system, it is one of the most important parts in a solar pv system. A simple explanation of the working of solar cells i. Usually made from glass, though in thinfilm modules this can also be transparent plastic.
Current is fed into a solar cell essentially a large diode and radiative recombination of carriers causes light emission. Solar photovoltaic pv is the generation of electricity from the suns energy, using pv cells. Working principle of silicon solar pv cells photovoltaic material of device converts. Olmedilla was built with conventional solar panels, which are made with silicon. The working principle of solar cells is based on the. The solar cells and panels will be characterized in detail. While ntype semiconductor and ptype semiconductor contact each other, the free electrons near to the contact surface of ntype semiconductor get plenty of adjacent holes of ptype material. Pv cell working principle how solar photovoltaic cells work. It is devoted to their operating principles and their analysis and design. While total photovoltaic energy production is minuscule, it is likely to increase as fossil fuel resources shrink.
Solar cells contain a material such as silicon that absorbs light energy. Photons falling on the pn junction cause the rise of pairs of opposite electrical charge carriers electron hole, which as a result of the presence of pn junction are separated in two different directions. On the silicon, a pn positivenegative junction was formed as a potential barrier. The photovoltaic cell is the semiconductor device that converts the light into electrical energy. Electroluminescence relies on the same principle as a light emitting diode led. Solar cell working principle explain working of solar cells. How a photovoltaic cell works from silicon to electricity. Learn how a solar cell works, a photovoltaic cell working animation, and the working principle of a pv cell. But in todays world, the words power and energy are leaned more towards electricity. Solar cell is a device or a structure that converts the solar energy i. The earth receives solar energy in the form of light and heat.
Introduction history working principle types of solar cells benefits application disadvantages final thought bibliography further reading 2 3. When operating as a solar cell, the electrons excited to the conduction band ow from the ptype to the ntype side, while the holes left behind in the valence band. In addition the book also covers other forms of solar energy, in particular solar thermal applications and solar. The common single junction silicon solar cell can produce a maximum opencircuit voltage of approximately 0.
It can be changed into electrical energy by using energy converters. It involves some neat physics, chemistry and mathematical trick. Working principles of solar and other energy conversion cells. It consist of silicon, germanium pn junction with a glass windows on the top surface layer of ptype, the ptype material is made very thin and wide so that the incident light photon may easily reach to pn junction. The voltage induces by the pv cell depends on the intensity of light incident on it.
All the aspects presented in this chapter will be discussed in greater detail in the following chapters. Pv cell working principle and applications how powerful is solar. In the following paragraphs, a simple introduction of a solar cell and how it operates is discussed, with reference links for better understanding. It consist of silicon, germanium pn junction with a glass windows on the top surface layer of ptype, the ptype material is made very thin and wide so that the. Conversion of light energy in electrical energy is based on a phenomenon called photovoltaic effect. Pv solar cell technologies are currently being developed in. Energy is the amount of work that can be completed by a force. The overwhelming majority of solar cells are fabricated from silicon with increasing efficiency and lowering cost as the materials range from amorphous noncrystalline to polycrystalline to crystalline single crystal silicon forms.
As shown in the given diagram the solar cell is like an ordinary diode. Covering layers of the material selenium with a thin layer of gold. All waves have a certain distance between peaks called the wavelength figure 11. Two initiatives the european photovoltaic technology platform and pveranet which began during fp6, have been active in recent years in improving the overall coordination of the photovoltaic sector at european level. Solar modules are made of semiconductors that are very similar to those used to create integrated circuits for electronic equipment. The theoretical studies are of practical use because they predict the fundamental limits of a solar cell, and give guidance on the phenomena that contribute to losses and solar cell efficien. The working of a solar cell solely depends upon its photovoltaic effect, hence a solar cell also known as photovoltaic cell. Fundamental properties of solar cells, principles and.
May 15, 2018 there is always a potential barrier between ntype and ptype material. Explain with neat diagram construction and working of solar cell. The solar cell technology is the fastest growing power generating technology in the world. A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts energy of light directly into electricity by photoelectric effect. Lets see how pv cells work in a more detailed manner. Todays most common pv devices use a single junction, or interface, to create an electric field within a semiconductor such as a pv cell. It is due to fact that the solar cells with conversion efficiency of more than 40% are becoming available. Mar 23, 2017 in this video you will learn the construction and working of photovoltaic cell or solar cell and the mechanism involved in converting the light energy from sunlight to electric energy in the form. This article explains how electricity is harvested from the solar energy and how it is utilized. Solar cell working principle is developed in 1883 by charles fritts. The theory of solar cells explains the process by which light energy in photons is converted into electric current when the photons strike a suitable semiconductor device. Light photon energy electric energy silicon solar photovoltaic cells a device made of semiconductor materials that produce electricity under light a pn junction is created in silicon by a doping process. Mar 23, 2019 solar cell is a device or a structure that converts the solar energy i.
Feb 11, 2012 introduction history working principle types of solar cells benefits application disadvantages final thought bibliography further reading 2 3. Photovoltaics pv is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The working principle of a solar cell in this chapter we present a very simple model of a solar cell. The principle operation of a solar cell is similar to conduction in a semiconductor like silicon. Sunlight is composed of photons or packets of energy. Basic operating principle of a photovoltaic solar cell. In this section, we will learn about the photovoltaic cell, their advantages, and disadvantages. Since a solar cell is the only generator in a solar pv system, it is one of the most important parts in a solar pv system. Apr 05, 2017 a simple explanation of the working of solar cells i. The light energy, in the form of photons, supplies sufficient energy to the junction to create a number of electronhole pairs. Solar panel working principle a photovoltaic cell is also called a solar cell. The principles of photovoltaics green rhino energy.
The working principle of a solar cell tu delft opencourseware. It will produce new electronhole pairs when light shines on the pn knot of the semiconductor, under the function of electric field in the pn. Solar cells convert the energy in sunlight to electrical energy. Solar cell is the basic unit of solar energy generation system where electrical energy is extracted directly from light energy without any intermediate process. In the picture below, you see the normal state of a pv cell and the voltage it produces. The photovoltaic pv effect is the basis of the conver sion of lightto electricityin photovoltaic, or solar, cells. Solar pv cells are the building blocks of solar panels. In a singlejunction pv cell, only photons whose energy is equal to or greater than the band gap of the cell material can free an electron for an electric circuit. Solar panel working principle your electrical guide. As seen in the picture, the dark surface is the part that is exposed to sunlight. The biggest pv power plant so far the olmedilla photovoltaic pv park uses 162,000 flat solar photovoltaic panels to deliver 60 mw of electricity on a sunny day. Titanium dioxide nanomaterials for photovoltaic applications. The small fraction of the suns total energy that reaches the earth is enough to meet all of our power needs many times over if it could be harnessed.
Therefore, electrochemical cells create electricity chemically, rather than by combustion, at a higher efficiency at least in principle, because they are not subjected to ther. As an indirect bandgap semiconductor, most of the recombination in silicon occurs via defects or auger recombination. A solar panel is made up of six different components, but arguably the most important one is the photovoltaic cell, which actually generates electricity. Light, which is pure energy, enters a pv cell and imparts enough energy to some electrons negatively charged atomic particles to free them.
Individual solar cell devices can be combined to form modules, otherwise known as solar panels. This potential barrier is essential for working of a photovoltaic or solar cell. How a photovoltaic cell works step 1 a slab or wafer of pure silicon is used to make a pv cell. All pv modules contain a number of layers from the lightfacing side to the back. In fact, calculations based on the worlds projected energy consumption by 2030 suggest that global energy demands would be fulfilled by solar panels operating at 20 percent efficiency and covering only about 496,805 square km 191,817 square miles of earths surface. Silicon is the most widely used semiconductor material for constructing the photovoltaic cell. Relevant information about working principle and development of solar cell about the article working principle and development of solar cell, if you have better ideas, dont hesitate to write your thoughts in the following comment area. In this video you will learn the construction and working of photovoltaic cell or solar cell and the mechanism involved in converting the light energy from sunlight to electric energy in the form. Solar cell, also called photovoltaic cell, any device that directly converts the energy of light into electrical energy through the photovoltaic effect. The reader is told why pv cells work, and how they are made. On the base of the slab a small amount of a p dopant, typically boron, is diffused.