Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) created a solar cell with a record 39.5% efficiency under 1-sun global illumination. This is the highest efficiency solar. Contact online >>
Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy''s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) created a solar cell with a record 39.5% efficiency under 1-sun global illumination. This is the highest efficiency solar...
Solar-cell efficiency is the portion of energy in the form of sunlight that can be converted via photovoltaics into electricity by the solar cell.
The efficiency of the solar cells used in a photovoltaic system, in combination with latitude and climate, determines the annual energy output of the system. For example, a solar panel with 20% efficiency and an area of 1 m2 will produce 200 kWh/yr at Standard Test Conditions if exposed to the Standard Test Condition solar irradiance value of 1000 W/m2 for 2.74 hours a day. Usually solar panels are exposed to sunlight for longer than this in a given day, but the solar irradiance is less than 1000 W/m2 for most of the day. A solar panel can produce more when the Sun is high in Earth''s sky and will produce less in cloudy conditions or when the Sun is low in the sky; usually the Sun is lower in the sky in the winter.
As of 2024, the world record for solar cell efficiency is 47.6%, set in May 2022 by Fraunhofer ISE, with a III-V four-junction concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) cell.[7] This beat the previous record of 47.1%, set in 2019 by multi-junction concentrator solar cells developed at National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, Colorado, USA,[8] which was set in lab conditions, under extremely concentrated light. The record in real-world conditions is held by NREL, who developed triple junction cells with a tested efficiency of 39.5%.[9][10]
The factors affecting energy conversion efficiency were expounded in a landmark paper by William Shockley and Hans Queisser in 1961.[11] See Shockley–Queisser limit for more detail.
Solar cells with multiple band gap absorber materials improve efficiency by dividing the solar spectrum into smaller bins where the thermodynamic efficiency limit is higher for each bin.[15]
When a photon is absorbed by a solar cell it can produce an electron-hole pair. One of the carriers may reach the p–n junction and contribute to the current produced by the solar cell; such a carrier is said to be collected. Or, the carriers recombine with no net contribution to cell current.
The internal quantum efficiency (IQE) gives insight into the internal material parameters like the absorption coefficient or internal luminescence quantum efficiency.[17] IQE is mainly used to aid the understanding of the potential of a certain material rather than a device.[17]
Quantum efficiency is most usefully expressed as a spectral measurement (that is, as a function of photon wavelength or energy). Since some wavelengths are absorbed more effectively than others, spectral measurements of quantum efficiency can yield valuable information about the quality of the semiconductor bulk and surfaces.
Quantum efficiency is not the same as overall energy conversion efficiency, as it does not convey information about the fraction of power that is converted by the solar cell.
A solar cell may operate over a wide range of voltages (V) and currents (I). By increasing the resistive load on an irradiated cell continuously from zero (a short circuit) to a very high value (an open circuit) one can determine the maximum power point, the point that maximizes V×I; that is, the load for which the cell can deliver maximum electrical power at that level of irradiation. (The output power is zero in both the short circuit and open circuit extremes).
Another defining term in the overall behaviour of a solar cell is the fill factor (FF). This factor is a measure of quality of a solar cell. This is the available power at the maximum power point (Pm) divided by the open circuit voltage (VOC) and the short circuit current (ISC):
The fill factor can be represented graphically by the IV sweep, where it is the ratio of the different rectangular areas.[20]
The fill factor is directly affected by the values of the cell''s series, shunt resistances and diodes losses. Increasing the shunt resistance (Rsh) and decreasing the series resistance (Rs) lead to a higher fill factor, thus resulting in greater efficiency, and bringing the cell''s output power closer to its theoretical maximum.[21]
Energy conversion efficiency is measured by dividing the electrical output by the incident light power. Factors influencing output include spectral distribution, spatial distribution of power, temperature, and resistive load. IEC standard 61215 is used to compare the performance of cells and is designed around standard (terrestrial, temperate) temperature and conditions (STC): irradiance of 1 kW/m2, a spectral distribution close to solar radiation through AM (airmass) of 1.5 and a cell temperature 25 °C. The resistive load is varied until the peak or maximum power point (MPP) is achieved. The power at this point is recorded as Watt-peak (Wp). The same standard is used for measuring the power and efficiency of PV modules.
However, there is a way to "boost" solar power. By increasing the light intensity, typically photogenerated carriers are increased, increasing efficiency by up to 15%. These so-called "concentrator systems" have only begun to become cost-competitive as a result of the development of high efficiency GaAs cells. The increase in intensity is typically accomplished by using concentrating optics. A typical concentrator system may use a light intensity 6–400 times the Sun, and increase the efficiency of a one sun GaAs cell from 31% at AM 1.5 to 35%.
A common method used to express economic costs is to calculate a price per delivered kilowatt-hour (kWh). The solar cell efficiency in combination with the available irradiation has a major influence on the costs, but generally speaking the overall system efficiency is important. Commercially available solar cells (as of 2006) reached system efficiencies between 5 and 19%.
Undoped crystalline silicon devices are approaching the theoretical limiting efficiency of 29.43%.[25] In 2017, efficiency of 26.63% was achieved in an amorphous silicon/crystalline silicon heterojunction cell that place both positive and negative contacts on the back of the cell.[26][27]
Like any other technology, solar cell manufacture is dependent on the existence of a complex global industrial manufacturing system. This includes the fabrication systems typically accounted for in estimates of manufacturing energy; the contingent mining, refining and global transportation systems; and other energy intensive support systems including finance, information, and security systems. The difficulty in measuring such energy overhead confers some uncertainty on any estimate of payback times.[36]
The illuminated side of some types of solar cells, thin films, have a transparent conducting film to allow light to enter into the active material and to collect the generated charge carriers. Typically, films with high transmittance and high electrical conductance such as indium tin oxide, conducting polymers or conducting nanowire networks are used for the purpose. There is a trade-off between high transmittance and electrical conductance, thus optimum density of conducting nanowires or conducting network structure should be chosen for high efficiency.[5]
The use of front micro-structures, such as those achieved with texturizing or other photonic features, can also be used as a method to achieve anti-reflectiveness, in which the surface of a solar cell is altered so that the impinging light experiences a gradually increasing effective refractive-index when travelling from air towards the photovoltaic material. These surfaces can be created by etching or using lithography. Concomitantly, they promote light scattering effects which further enhance the absorption, particularly of the longer wavelength sunlight photons.[37] Adding a flat back surface in addition to texturizing the front surface further helps to trap the light within the cell, thus providing a longer optical path.
An increase in solar cell temperature of approximately 1 °C causes an efficiency decrease of about 0.45%. To prevent this, a transparent silica crystal layer can be applied to solar panels. The silica layer acts as a thermal black body which emits heat as infrared radiation into space, cooling the cell up to 13 °C.[44] Radiative cooling can thus extend the life of solar cells.[45] Full-system integration of solar energy and radiative cooling is referred to as a combined SE–RC system, which have demonstrated higher energy gain per unit area when compared to non-integrated systems.[46]
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