Temperature dependence of light-induced degradation in amorphous silicon solar cells

When exposed to light, amorphous silicon solar cells undergo a reduction in performance that is caused by structural changes and defect formation. Annealing has been shown to reverse these changes. The goal of this study is to characterize the degradation at different temperatures to create a predictive model of this behavior. A secondary goal is to compare the degradation levels between double junction and triple junction solar cells and between different load conditions during illumination. By observing changes in performance throughout an extended period of continuous light soaking at air mass zero (AM0), it is possible to simulate the degradation that would occur in the different thermal environments of outer space.