Solar Cells and Their Applications

Draws upon basic physics and engineering principles coupled with key economic, market, business, investment, and policy factors to explain the status of solar cells and how their applications can expand over the next few decades. It is suitable for technologists in the fields of solar cells and systems and academics studying microelectronics.

I. Introduction to Solar Cells. 1. Solar Cells: A Brief History and Introduction (Lewis Fraas and Larry Partain). 2. Solar Cell Electricity Market History, Public Policy, Projected Future and Estimated Costs (Larry Partain and Lewis Fraas). 3. Solar Cells, Single Crystal Semiconductors, and High Efficiency (Lewis Fraas). 4. Solar Cell Device Physics (Larry Partain). II. Terrestrial Solar Cell Electricity. 5. Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells and Modules (Leonid Rubin). 6. Thin Film Solar Cells and Modules (Robert Birkmire). 7. Terrestrial Module Fabrication & Assembly Technologies (Christopher Bunner). 8. Chinese Solar Cell Status (Wang Sicheng). 9. Tracking the Sun for More kWh and Lower Cost Solar Electricity (Ron Corio, Michael Reed and Lewis Fraas). 10. Solar Cell Systems: Definition, Performance & Reliability (Jason Strauch, Larry Moore and Elmer Collins). 11. Leveled Cost of Energy for Utility-Scale Photovoltaics (Matthew Campbell). III. Terrestrial Concentrator Solar Cell Systems. 12. Low Concentration Crystalline Silicon Systems (Lewis Fraas). 13. High-Concentration, III-V Multijunction Solar Cells (Geoffrey Kinsey). 14. High Concentration Fresnel Lens Assemblies and Systems (Gerhard (Peharz and Andreas Bett). 15. High Concentration Cassengrainian Solar Cell Modules and Arrays (Michael Ludowise and Lewis Fraas). 16. Concentrator Solar Cell Installations at University of Nevada Las Vegas (Suresh Sadineni and Robert Boehm). 17. Concentrator Solar Cell Field Installations (Francisca Rubio, Mar¡a Martinez and Pedro Banda). IV. Solar Cells in Space. 18. Space Solar Cells and Applications (Sheila Bailey and Ryne Raffaelle). V. Other Aspects & Considerations. 19. Solar Resource for Space and Terrestrial Applications (Christian Gueymard and Daryl Myers). 20. Solar Energy Costs: The Solar Advisor Model (Paul Gilman, Nathan Blair and Christopher Cameron). 21. Challenges of Large-Scale Solar Cell Electricity Production (David Faiman). VI. Thin Films & X-ray Imager Technologies. 22. Market Overview of Flat Panel Detectors for X-Ray Imaging (Carl LaCasce, Larry Partain and Chuck Blouir). 23. Amorphous Silicon Transistors and Photodiodes (Robert Street). 24. Amorphous Silicon Digital X-ray Imaging (Richard Colbeth). 25. Photoconductor Digital X-ray Imaging (George Zentai). VII. Summary. 26. Summary, Conclusions, and Recommendations (Lewis Fraas and Larry Partain).