Title :
High specific power amorphous silicon alloy photovoltaic modules
Author :
Beemink, K.J. ; Pietka, G. ; Noch, J. ; Wolf, D. ; Banerjee, Adrish ; Yang, J. ; Guha, S. ; Jones, S.J.
Author_Institution :
United Solar Syst. Corp., Troy, MI, USA
Abstract :
Amorphous silicon (a-Si) alloy solar cells are attractive for space applications for several reasons, including potential for very low mass. Ultralight a-Si alloy solar modules have been fabricated and modifications to achieve dramatic increases in specific power (W/kg) identified. For modules on stainless steel and Kapton, specific powers of 384 W/kg and 1256 W/kg have been achieved. For 0.5 mil Kapton with thinner bus bars, an extremely high specific power > 2000 W/kg is possible for a module with 10% AM0 efficiency.
Keywords :
amorphous semiconductors; elemental semiconductors; silicon; solar cells; Si; a-Si alloy solar cells; photovoltaic modules; space applications; specific power; Amorphous silicon; Bars; Indium tin oxide; Photovoltaic cells; Photovoltaic systems; Satellites; Silicon alloys; Solar power generation; Steel; Substrates;
Conference_Titel :
Photovoltaic Specialists Conference, 2002. Conference Record of the Twenty-Ninth IEEE
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-7471-1
DOI :
10.1109/PVSC.2002.1190773
