Photovoltaic Solar Energy

List of Contributors xxvii

Foreword xxxii

Acknowledgments xxxiv

About the Companion Website xxxv

Part One Introduction to Photovoltaics 1

1.1 Introduction 3
Angèle Reinders, Wilfried van Sark, and Pierre Verlinden

Part Two Basic Functional Principles of Photovoltaics 13

2.1 Semiconductor Materials and their Properties 15
Angèle Reinders

2.2 Doping, Diffusion, and Defects in Solar Cells 21
Pierre J. Verlinden

2.3 Absorption and Generation 32
Seth Hubbard

2.4 Recombination 39
Seth Hubbard

2.5 Carrier Transport 47
Seth Hubbard

2.6 PN Junctions and the Diode Equation 54
Seth Hubbard

Part Three Crystalline Silicon Technologies 67

3.1 Silicon Materials: Electrical and Optical Properties 69
Andreas Fell

3.2 Silicon Solar Cell Device Structures 80
Andrew Blakers and Ngwe Zin

3.3 Interdigitated Back Contact Solar Cells 92
Pierre Verlinden

3.4 Heterojunction Silicon Solar Cells 104
Wilfried van Sark

3.5 Surface Passivation and Emitter Recombination Parameters 114
Bram Hoex

3.6 Passivated Contacts 125
Martin Hermle

3.7 Light Management in Silicon Solar Cells 136
Zachary Holman and Mathieu Boccard

3.8 Numerical Simulation of Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells 150
Pietro Altermatt

3.9 Advanced Concepts 160
Martin Green

Part Four Chalcogenide Thin Film Solar Cells 167

4.1 Basics of Chalcogenide Thin Film Solar Cells 169
Susanne Siebentritt

4.2 Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ and CdTe Absorber Materials and their Properties 179
Sylvain Marsillac

4.3 Contacts, Buffers, Substrates, and Interfaces 190
Negar Naghavi

4.4 CIGS Module Design and Manufacturing 204
William Shafarman

Part Five Thin Film Silicon-Based PV Technologies 213

5.1 Amorphous and Nanocrystalline Silicon Solar Cells 215
Etienne Moulin, Jan-Willem Schüttauf, and Christophe Ballif

5.2 Thin Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells on Glass 226
Onno Gabriel, Daniel Amkreutz, Jan Haschke, Bernd Rech, and Rutger Schlatmann

5.3 Light Management in Crystalline and Thin Film Silicon Solar Cells 238
Franz Haug

5.4 New Future Concepts 248
Jan-Willem Schüttauf, Etienne Moulin, and Christophe Ballif

Part Six Organic Photovoltaics 255

6.1 Solid-State Organic Photovoltaics 257
Bernard Kippelen

6.2 Hybrid and Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells 267
Woojun Yoon

6.3 Perovskite Solar Cells 277
Samuel D. Stranks and Henry J. Snaith

6.4 Organic PV Module Design and Manufacturing 292
Veronique S. Gevaerts

Part Seven Characterization and Measurements Methods 303

7.1 Methods and Instruments for the Characterization of Solar Cells 305
Halden Field

7.2 Photoluminescence and Electroluminescence Characterization in Silicon Photovoltaics 322
Thorsten Trupke

7.3 Measurement of Carrier Lifetime, Surface Recombination Velocity, and Emitter Recombination Parameters 339
Henner Kampwerth

7.4 In-situ Measurements, Process Control, and Defect Monitoring 350
Angus Rockett

7.5 PV Module Performance Testing and Standards 362
Geoffrey S. Kinsey

Part Eight III-Vs and PV Concentrator Technologies 371

8.1 III-V Solar Cells - Materials, Multi-Junction Cells - Cell Design and Performance 373
Frank Dimroth

8.2 New and Future III-V Cells and Concepts 383
Simon Fafard

8.3 High Concentration PV Systems 396
Karin Hinzer, Christopher E. Valdivia, and John P.D. Cook

8.4 Operation of CPV Power Plants: Energy Prediction 411
Geoffrey S. Kinsey

8.5 The Luminescent Solar Concentrator (LSC) 420
Michael Debije

Part Nine Space Technologies 431

9.1 Materials, Cell Structures, and Radiation Effects 433
Rob Walters

9.2 Space PV Systems and Flight Demonstrations 444
Phillip Jenkins

9.3 A Vision on Future Developments in Space Photovoltaics 455
David Wilt

9.3.1 Current Status and Near-Term Challenges/Opportunities 455

Part Ten PV Modules and Manufacturing 463

10.1 Manufacturing of Various PV Technologies 465
Alison Lennon and Rhett Evans

10.2 Encapsulant Materials for PV Modules 478
Michael Kempe

10.3 Reliability and Durability of PV Modules 491
Sarah Kurtz

10.4 Advanced Module Concepts 502
Pierre Verlinden

Part Eleven PV Systems and Applications 511

11.1 Grid-Connected PV Systems 513
Greg J. Ball

11.2 Inverters, Power Optimizers, and Microinverters 530
Chris Deline

11.3 Stand-Alone and Hybrid PV Systems 539
Matthias Vetter and Georg Bopp

11.4 PV System Monitoring and Characterization 553
Wilfried van Sark, Atse Louwen, Odysseas Tsafarakis, and Panos Moraitis

11.5 Energy Prediction and System Modeling 564
Joshua S. Stein

11.6 Building Integrated Photovoltaics 579
Michiel Ritzen, Zeger Vroon, and Chris Geurts

11.7 Product Integrated Photovoltaics 590
Angèle Reinders and Georgia Apostolou

Part Twelve PV Deployment in Distribution Grids 601

12.1 PV Systems in Smart Energy Homes: PowerMatching City 603
Albert van den Noort

12.2 New Future Solutions: Best Practices from European PV Smart Grid Projects 612
Gianluca Fulli and Flavia Gangale

Part Thirteen Supporting Methods and Tools 621

13.1 The Economics of PV Systems 623
Matthew Campbell

13.2 People's Involvement in Residential PV and their Experiences 634
Barbara van Mierlo

13.3 Life Cycle Assessment of Photovoltaics 646
Vasilis Fthenakis

13.4 List of International Standards Related to PV 658
Pierre Verlinden and Wilfried van Sark

Index 672