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Concept
Theory of solar cells
Résumé
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. 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 efficiency.
Photons in sunlight hit the solar panel and are absorbed by semi-conducting materials.
Electrons (negatively charged) are knocked loose from their atoms as they are excited. Due to their special structure and the materials in solar cells, the electrons are only allowed to move in a single direction. The electronic structure of the materials is very important for the process to work, and often silicon incorporating small amounts of boron or phosphorus is used in different layers.
An array of solar cells converts solar energy into a usable amount of direct current (DC) electricity.
When a photon hits a piece of semiconductor, one of three things can happen:
The photon can pass straight through the semiconductor — this (generally) happens for lower energy photons.
The photon can reflect off the surface.
The photon can be absorbed by the semiconductor if the photon energy is higher than the band gap value. This generates an electron-hole pair and sometimes heat depending on the band structure.
When a photon is absorbed, its energy is given to an electron in the crystal lattice. Usually this electron is in the valence band. The energy given to the electron by the photon "excites" it into the conduction band where it is free to move around within the semiconductor. The network of covalent bonds that the electron was previously a part of now has one fewer electron. This is known as a hole, and it has positive charge. The presence of a missing covalent bond allows the bonded electrons of neighboring atoms to move into the "hole", leaving another hole behind, thus propagating holes throughout the lattice in the opposite direction to the movement of the negatively electrons.
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