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the science behind it! Solar Photovoltaic (PV) cells are produced from thin wafers of silicon that are connected together to form a solar panel.
When exposed to sunlight, the cells convert the light directly into energy in the form of electricity.
When a number of these panels are wired together, they form a solar array which is the major component of a solar powered system.
Photovoltaics is the direct conversion of light into electricity at the atomic level.
Some materials such as silicon exhibit a property known as the photoelectric effect.
This property causes the material to absorb photons of light and release electrons.
The electric current that results is harvested and used as electricity.
The French physicist, Edmund Becquerel first observed the photoelectric effect in 1839 when he found that certain materials would produce small amounts of electric current when exposed to light.
You maybe more familiar with his son Henri Becquerel who discovered radioactivity, and whom the SI unit of radioactivity, the Becquerel is named after.
The first photovoltaic module was made by Bell Laboratories in 1954.
At that time, it was called a solar battery and was way too expensive to gain widespread use.
Similarly to many other things in common use today, the photovoltaic cell advanced as a result of the space, age.
As the technology advanced, the cost began to decline and so did the affordability.
Following the energy crisis in the 1970s, photovoltaic technology gained recognition as a serious source of power for non-space applications.
The basic photovoltaic cell, or solar cell is it is more widely known as, is usually made of the same silicon used in semiconductor chips.
Solar cells consist of a thin semiconductor wafer that is specially treated to form an electric field, positive on one side and negative on the other.
When the Sun or other type of light strikes the solar cell, electrons are knocked loose from the atoms in the semiconductor material.
The two sides of the wafer are connected to form an electrical circuit.
These electrons are then captured to form of an electric current (electricity).
This electricity than be used to power the lights on your house or the television.
In order to produce a realistic amount of electricity for the home, a number of solar cells are electrically connected to each other and mounted in a frame which is known as a photovoltaic module.
The resulting current is directly dependent on how much light strikes the module.
To make your own solar panel, these modules are then in-turn wired together to form an array.
They arrays can be connected in both series and parallel electrical arrangements to produce any required voltage and current combination.
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