III-V Multi-junction solar cells and concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) systems

Philipps, Simon P.; Bett, Andreas W.

doi:10.1515/aot-2014-0051

Cited by 43 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…This type of cells appears to be the only realistic option to achieve extremely high efficiencies, and the monolithic structure will lead to the best results [ 105 ]. However, the manufacturing of large surface cells requires expensive production processes, thus the combined use of multiple smaller cells to cover the same area seems to be economically more viable nowadays.…”

Section: Third-generation Photovoltaic Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the manufacturing of large surface cells requires expensive production processes, thus the combined use of multiple smaller cells to cover the same area seems to be economically more viable nowadays. An alternative to increase efficiency is the combination of these smaller cells with concentration technologies, which concentrate hundreds or thousands of times the sunlight, leading to higher energy production [ 105 ]. Currently, 40% efficiency has been surpassed with multi-junction cells [ 106 , 107 , 108 , 109 ], and they are expected to even surpass 50% [ 110 ], although significant research is carried out in different directions, as depicted in Figure 19 .…”

Section: Third-generation Photovoltaic Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A well-studied alternative over recent years is the metamorphic growth, which is based on the progressive monolithic growth of materials with gradually higher lattice constants [ 107 , 112 , 113 ]. This growth would likely reduce the price of substrates used in cells based on chemical compounds of the III–V groups [ 105 ]. Currently, efficiencies close to 40% have been reached under sunlight concentration, although theoretical calculations indicate higher values.…”

Section: Third-generation Photovoltaic Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Materials for Photovoltaics: State of Art and Recent Developments

Luceño

Díez‐Pascual

Capilla³

2019

IJMS

215

140

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In recent years, photovoltaic cell technology has grown extraordinarily as a sustainable source of energy, as a consequence of the increasing concern over the impact of fossil fuel-based energy on global warming and climate change. The different photovoltaic cells developed up to date can be classified into four main categories called generations (GEN), and the current market is mainly covered by the first two GEN. The 1GEN (mono or polycrystalline silicon cells and gallium arsenide) comprises well-known medium/low cost technologies that lead to moderate yields. The 2GEN (thin-film technologies) includes devices that have lower efficiency albeit are cheaper to manufacture. The 3GEN presents the use of novel materials, as well as a great variability of designs, and comprises expensive but very efficient cells. The 4GEN, also known as “inorganics-in-organics”, combines the low cost/flexibility of polymer thin films with the stability of novel inorganic nanostructures (i.e., metal nanoparticles and metal oxides) with organic-based nanomaterials (i.e., carbon nanotubes, graphene and its derivatives), and are currently under investigation. The main goal of this review is to show the current state of art on photovoltaic cell technology in terms of the materials used for the manufacture, efficiency and production costs. A comprehensive comparative analysis of the four generations is performed, including the device architectures, their advantages and limitations. Special emphasis is placed on the 4GEN, where the diverse roles of the organic and nano-components are discussed. Finally, conclusions and future perspectives are summarized.

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Section: Third-generation Photovoltaic Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Third-generation Photovoltaic Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Third-generation Photovoltaic Solar Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Materials for Photovoltaics: State of Art and Recent Developments

Luceño

Díez‐Pascual

Capilla³

2019

IJMS

215

140

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“…This concept of using concentrating optics to concentrate light onto small high-efficiency multijunction solar cell in the terrestrial application was on the rise with a great deal of research being done in this area [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. The basic idea of this concept is simple.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Optical and thermal simulation for wide acceptance angle CPV module

Ahmad

Ota²,

Araki³

et al. 2017

AIP Conference Proceedings

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Corresponding author: nc13005@student.miyazaki-u.ac.jpAbstract. Concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) technology has the potential to decrease the cost of systems in the near future by using less expensive optical elements in the system which replace the receiving surface aperture and concentrate the sunlight onto small solar cells. One of the main concerns of CPV is the need for high precision tracking system and the relation to the acceptance angle. In this paper, we proposed a CPV module with concentration ratio larger than 100 times and wide acceptance angle. An optical simulation for the module with S-TIM2 glass as a lens material was conducted to estimate the optical performance of the module. Thermal and electrical simulation was also conducted using COMSOL Multiphysics and SPICE respectively to evaluate the working temperature and electrical characteristics of the multijunction solar cell under concentration conditions.

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“…A significantly higher conversion efficiency was achieved with two emerging solar technologies. Concentrator photovoltaic systems (CPV) with multi-junction cells offer a peak cell-level efficiency of over 40%, and a system-level efficiency (including optical and other losses) of over 30% [1]. Solar thermal Dish-Stirling concentrator systems have also achieved over 30% system efficiency [2].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Solar energy conversion with photon-enhanced thermionic emission

Kribus

Segev

2016

J. Opt.

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Photon-enhanced thermionic emission (PETE) converts sunlight to electricity with the combined photonic and thermal excitation of charge carriers in a semiconductor, leading to electron emission over a vacuum gap. Theoretical analyses predict conversion efficiency that can match, or even exceed, the efficiency of traditional solar thermal and photovoltaic converters. Several materials have been examined as candidates for radiation absorbers and electron emitters, with no conclusion yet on the best set of materials to achieve high efficiency. Analyses have shown the complexity of the energy conversion and transport processes, and the significance of several loss mechanisms, requiring careful control of material properties and optimization of the device structure. Here we survey current research on PETE modeling, materials, and device configurations, outline the advances made, and stress the open issues and future research needed. Based on the substantial progress already made in this young topic, and the potential of high conversion efficiency based on theoretical performance limits, continued research in this direction is very promising and may yield a competitive technology for solar electricity generation.

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III-V Multi-junction solar cells and concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) systems

Cited by 43 publications

References 36 publications

Materials for Photovoltaics: State of Art and Recent Developments

Materials for Photovoltaics: State of Art and Recent Developments

Optical and thermal simulation for wide acceptance angle CPV module

Solar energy conversion with photon-enhanced thermionic emission

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