UNIQUE PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS
Abstract
Four major areas were investigated to improve the following figures of merit of photovoltaic solar energy converters; power output per unit cost, weight, or surface area. Polycrystalline CdTe was investigated as a solar cell material. The work has not established any fundamental physical reason why this material should not be useful. Attempts to construct a composite cell from a Se, CdN, or CdSe cell in optical series with a Si cell have not produced a composite cell with efficiency greater than that of the Si cell alone. The possibility of using a variable band gap material (i.e., material that has a band gap which is a function of one of the linear dimensions of the material) for a high efficiency converter was examined theoretically. This analysis indicates that present semiconductor materials have not reached a state of development which would permit a useful cell to be constructed. Different design considerations for a conventional Si solar cell were studied. Several would apparently make second order improvements in conversion efficiency. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1961
- Accession Number
- AD0267519
Entities
People
- J.f. Elliott
Organizations
- General Electric