Photovoltaic Cells

1. Introduction
Although solar energy is not being used presently as a primary source of fuel energy, a very high level
research and development effort is underway to develop economical systems to harness solar energy as a
major source of fuel energy, particularly for the heating and cooling of buildings.
Solar energy is very attractive because it is non-polluting, non-depletable, reliable and free. The two
principal disadvantages are:
i) It is very dilute
ii) It is not constant
The low solar energy flux dictates the use of large surface area collectors and systems to collect and
concentrate the energy. The low solar energy flux dictates the use of large surface area collectors and
systems to collect and concentrate the energy. This means that some sort of energy storage system or
another conversion system is required to supply at night and during cloudy weather. Solar energy can be
converted into other energy forms in three separate processes:
i) The heliochemical process – it is a photosynthesis process and the source of all fossil fuel.
ii) The helioelectrical process – production of electricity by solar cells.
iii) The heliothermal process – it is the absorption of solar radiation and conversion into thermal energy
(like in solar collectors)
2. Photovoltaic Cells
In this chapter we are mainly concerned with the solar cells or photovoltaic cells, as electromagnetic
energy in the form of light can be directly converted into electrical energy in the photovoltaic cells.

Fig. 1: P-N Junction

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Unlike thermoelectric conversion, the maximum conversion efficiency of this system is not limited by
Carnot efficiency of an externally reversible heat engine cycle. Despite this, however, the conversion
efficiency of solar cells is relatively low from 15-25%.
The most probable energy of the solar radiation is about 2.8 eV, which is more than sufficient to
dislodge the valence electron from many materials. The successful operation of a solar cell depends on
the action of p-n junction. When p-n junction is first formed there is a transient charging process that
establishes an electric field in the vicinity of the junction (Fig. 1).
The charging process continues until the electric field or junction potential inhibits further netflow and
the electronn and holes flow is same in both directions as indicated in Fig. 2(a) and 2 (b).

Fig. 2(a)

Fig. 2(b)

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If a forward bias voltage, vL is applied across the junction, the junction potential is reduced by the
amount of the bias voltage. The forward-bias voltage increases the flow of majority charge carriers
(electrons from n to p-type material and holes from p-type to n-type material) across the junction as
indicated in Fig 2 (b). The net current density J across the junction is:
𝑒𝑣𝐿
𝐽 = 𝐽𝑜 [𝑒𝑥𝑝 ( ) − 1]
𝐾𝑇
Where Jo is the reverse saturation current density. This is due to the flow of minority charge carriers
when a reverse bias is applied.
K is the Boltzman constant
= 1.381 x 10-23 J/K = 1.551 x 10-4 eV/K
T is the temperature in Kelvin scale
𝐾𝑇 𝑇
VT = = Volts = Thermal equivalent voltage
𝑒 11600
In the photovoltaic cells, photons react with the valence electrons near a p-n junction to produce an
effect similar to that produced by the forward bias voltage. In this case vL is the external voltage that is
generated by the photons.
A typical solar cell schematic is shown in Fig. 3. The non-reflected photons incident on the surface of
the cell enter the thin outer layer of the semiconducting material and either converted into heat or
produce ion pair by stripping the valence electrons from the semiconductor atoms. In order to produce
an ion pair the incoming photons must have energy in excess of Eg (the energy gap between the valence
band and conduction band), which is called the excitation energy. These ions reduce the electric field at
the junction and this increase the flow of the majority charge carriers as shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 3

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 Fig. 4
2.1. Optical Effect on Semiconductors
In an un-illuminated p-n junction, the majority and minority charge carriers are equal and balance each
other out. We cannot expect this to generate current since it is in thermal equilibrium with the
surroundings.
When light (photons) strike a semiconductor, the following events may take place:
a) The incident photons may be reflected.
b) The incident photons may be absorbed.
c) The incident photons may pass through semi-conductor material without interaction.
In the events (a) & (c), the photons do not generate current. But in the event (b) when light is absorbed,
the photons can free electrons at an energy that is specific to the material of semiconductor. Different
semiconductor material has different band energy gap at which electron-hole pairs are generated. Some
of them are given in the following table.
Table
Semiconductor Material Band Energy Gap in eV (Eg)
Silicon 1.1
Germanium 0.67
Gallium 1.4
CdS 2.4
ZnO2 3.3

Semiconductor material can absorb photons having energy = h  Eg. Each photon having h  Eg is
capable generating only 1 electron-hole pair and the excess energy is dissipated as heat. Photons with
energy h  Eg cannot generate electron-hole pair and photon’s energy is converted into thermal
energy.
A typical current-voltage characteristic of a solar cell is shown in Fig. 5.

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 Fig. 5
3. Losses in the Solar Cell
The conversion efficiency of a solar cell is not limited by the thermal efficiency of a heat engine cycle,
but there are some inherent losses that severely limit the performance of the cell. The two types of major
losses are:
i) Junction loss
ii) Spectrum loss
3.1. Junction Loss
The junction loss is due to flow of minority charge carriers in the junction. Although this flow is usually
small compared to the flow of majority charge carriers, it is not negligible. For Silicon solar cells, the
junction losses reduce the conversion efficiency to about 50 %. The junction loss decreases as the
radiation intensity is increased, as this effectively increases vL in the current equation
𝑒𝑉𝐿
𝐽 = 𝐽𝑜 [𝑒𝑥𝑝 ( ) − 1]
𝐾𝑇
Care must be taken in increasing the radiation intensity because if the temperature T increases
very much, it can negate the increase in vL.

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3.2. Energy Spectrum Loss
This loss is associated with the energy spectrum of the incident photons and the excitation energy of the
semiconductor material. Any photon with an incident energy less than excitation energy Eg cannot
produce an ion pair and the photon energy is converted in thermal energy and lost. Those photons that
have h  Eg, will normally produce one ion pair and the excess energy will be converted into thermal
energy although excess energy may help in preventing some recombination of the ion pairs. For Silicon
solar cells, the excitation energy is 1.1 eV and the spectrum loss for solar radiation is about 50 %. There
are a number of minor losses such as reflection of the photons, recombination of the ion pair before they
reach the junction, and also the loss due to Joules heating, particularly in the outer thin semiconductor
layer. Taking into account all the losses, the maximum conversion efficiency is about 25 % while the
actual efficiency ranges between 15 % to 20 %.
Silicon is the semiconductor material that is commonly used in fabrication of solar cells because it gives
highest conversion efficiency. Research has also been carried out on Cadmium Sulfide (CdS) cells but
while these systems are less expensive than the Silicon cells, they have lower conversion efficiencies.
Research is also continuing on the following semiconductor materials; In P, Ga As, Cd Te, Al Sb, CdSe.
The major problem associated with the solar cells is its high cost. Actually the principles of fabrication
is relatively simple and the raw material are inexpensive, but the actual production techniques are quite
expensive. Recently, there have been some breakthroughs in fabrication material that have reduced the
costs. But the cost must be lowered much more in order to economically compete with other solar
conversion systems.
4. Solar Cell Performance
A photovoltaic cell connected with an external load resistance is represented by its equivalent circuit as
shown in Fig. 6 below.

J JL
Js Ri RL VL

Fig. 6
Part of the current generated in the solar cell is shunted through the internal cell resistance (Ri). The
current density which flows through the load resistance RL is given by
JL = Js – J
𝑒𝑉
= Js – 𝐽𝑜 [𝑒𝑥𝑝 ( 𝐿) − 1] -------------------- (1)
𝐾𝑇
If vL = 0, the short circuit condition, the exponential term approaches unity, and JL = Js (the short circuit
current density).
The output power from the photo voltaic cell is
P = vL JL A ----------------------- (2)
where A is the surface area of the cell. Substituting Eqn (1) into Eqn (2) gives
𝑒 𝑉𝐿
P = A VL Js - A VL 𝐽𝑜 [𝑒𝑥𝑝 ( ) − 1] --------------------- (3)
𝐾𝑇
𝑑𝑃
Maximizing P w.r.t. vL, i.e. = 0, gives vL, max P that gives maximum cell output power.
𝑑𝑣𝐿
𝑑𝑃 𝑒 𝑣𝐿 𝑒 𝑣𝐿 𝑒
= AJs + AJo – AJo [𝑒𝑥𝑝 + 𝑣𝐿 𝑒𝑥𝑝 ] = 0
𝑑𝑣𝐿 𝐾𝑇 𝐾𝑇 𝐾𝑇

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 𝑒𝑣𝐿 𝑒𝑣𝐿
𝑒
= AJs + AJo – AJo [𝑒 𝐾𝑇 + 𝑣𝐿 𝑒 𝐾𝑇 ] = 0
𝐾𝑇
𝑒𝑣𝐿 𝑒𝑣𝐿
𝑒 𝐽
or [𝑒 𝐾𝑇 + 𝑣𝐿 𝑒 𝐾𝑇 ] = 1 + ( 𝑠)
𝐾𝑇 𝐽𝑜
𝐽
𝑒𝑣𝐿,𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑃 1+ (𝐽 𝑠 )
𝑜
𝑒𝑥𝑝 = 𝑒 𝑣𝐿,𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑃 -------------------------------- (4)
𝐾𝑇 1+ ( )⁄
𝐾𝑇
As Js and Jo are known, vL,max,P can be evaluated by trial and error method. From eqn (3), the maximum
power output is given as
𝐽
1+ 𝐽 𝑠
𝑜
Pmax = A vL Js - A vL Jo [ 𝑒 𝑣𝐿 − 1]
1+ 𝐾 𝑇
𝑒𝑣 𝐽 𝑒𝑣
𝐴 𝑣𝐿 𝐽𝑠 (1+ 𝐾 𝑇𝐿 ) − 𝐴 𝑣𝐿 𝐽𝑜 [1+ 𝐽 𝑠 − 1 − 𝐾 𝑇𝐿 ]
𝑜
= 𝑒 𝑣𝐿
1+
𝐾𝑇
𝑒𝑣 𝑒𝑣
𝐴 𝑣𝐿 𝐽𝑠 + 𝐴 𝑣𝐿 𝐽𝑠 𝐾 𝑇𝐿 − 𝐴 𝑣𝐿 𝐽𝑠 + 𝐴 𝑣𝐿 𝐽𝑜 𝐾 𝑇𝐿
= 𝑒𝑣
1 + 𝐾 𝑇𝐿
𝐴 𝑣𝐿 (𝐽𝑠 + 𝐽𝑜 )
= 𝐾𝑇
1+ 𝑒𝑣
𝐿
Replacing vL = vL,max P, for maximum power output
𝐴 𝑣𝐿,max 𝑃 (𝐽𝑜 + 𝐽𝑠 )
Pmax = 𝐾𝑇
1+
𝑒𝑣 𝐿,max 𝑃
If the energy flux incident on the cell is known i.e. Pin/A, the conversion efficiency corresponding to
max power becomes.
𝑃 ⁄𝐴 𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑉𝐿,max 𝑃 (𝐽𝑜 + 𝐽𝑠 )
ηmax P = 𝑚𝑎𝑥⁄ = = 𝐾𝑇
𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝐴 𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝑃 (1 + )
𝑖𝑛 𝑒 𝑉𝐿,max 𝑃
Since the input energy flux to the cell is normally constant, the equation (7) gives also the maximum
possible conversion efficiency.
The current which flows through the load resistance RL (Fig.6) can be written as:
𝑒 𝑉𝐿
IL = IS - Io [𝑒𝑥𝑝 ( ) − 1]
𝐾𝑇
When IL = 0, VL = VL,max = Voc (open circuit voltage) and under this condition:
𝐾𝑇 𝐼
VL, max = Voc = 𝑙𝑛 ( 𝑠 + 1)
𝑒 𝐼𝑜
Note that V L,max ≠ VL,max P i.e. VL,max P is the maximum voltage that occurs under the open circuit
condition where VL, max P is the cell voltage that gives maximum cell output power.

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Problem 1
At a given intensity on a solar cell, the short circuit current density is 180 A/m2 and the reverse
saturation current density is 8x10-9 A/m2. At a temperature of 27 oC and for the condition of maximum
power, find the effective surface area needed for an output of 10 W and also estimate the conversion
efficiency of the radiation intensity is 950 W/m2.
Solution
For the condition of maximum power output
𝐽
𝑒𝑣 1+ (𝐽 𝑠 )
𝑒𝑥𝑝 𝐿,𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑃 = 𝑜
𝑒 𝑣𝐿,𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑃
𝐾𝑇 1+ ( ⁄𝐾𝑇)
180
11600 𝑣𝐿,𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑃 1+ ( )
8𝑥10−9
𝑒𝑥𝑝 =
300 1+38.67 𝑣𝐿,max 𝑃
22.5𝑥109
𝑒𝑥𝑝(38.67 𝑣𝐿,max 𝑃 ) =
1+38.67 𝑣𝐿,max 𝑃
(1 + 38.67 v L,max P) exp (38.67 vL,max P) = 22.5x109 = X (say)
By trial and error method we substitute the values of vL,max P and calculate the value of X until the above
equation is satisfied.
VL,max P X VL,max P X
0.3 1.376x106 0.54 25.64x109
0.4 8.596x107 0.537 22.71x109
0.5 5.073x109 0.5369 22.62x109
0.55 38.41x109 0.5368 22.53x109
vLmax = 0.5368 V
𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑣𝐿,max 𝑃 (𝐽𝑜 + 𝐽𝑠 )
= 𝐾𝑇
𝐴 1+ 𝑒 𝑣𝐿,max 𝑃

0.5368 (180)
= 300 = 92.18 W/m2
1+ 11600 x 0.5368
𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡 10
Area of the cell = A = 𝑃 =
𝑚𝑎𝑥⁄ 92.18
𝐴
= 0.1084 m2 = 1084.8 cm2
𝑃𝑚𝑎𝑥⁄
𝐴
Conversion efficiency = 𝑃
𝑖𝑛⁄
𝐴
92.18
= = 0.097 = 9.7 %
950

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 Photovoltaic Cell Numerical Problems
Problem 1
A 2 cm square solar cell at 30 oC has an output voltage of 0.4 V at maximum power. If the reverse
saturation current density is 10-7 A/cm2, find the current and output power of the cell.
Problem 2
The reverse saturation current io of a solar cell at 35 oC is 1.4x10-7 A and the short circuit current is 6 A
when it is exposed to sun light. Calculate the power output of the cell.

Photovoltaic Cell Exercise Questions

Q. 1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy?
Q. 2. By which processes solar energy can be converted into other energy forms?
Q. 3. Why the transient charging process, which occurs when p-n junction is first formed during
manufacturing of a photovoltaic cell, stops after a short time?
Q. 4. What is the band energy gap of the semiconductor materials?
Q. 5. Which events may take place when light (photons) strike a semiconductor of photovoltaic cell?
Which of these events cause flow of current when load is connected?
Q. 6. How the flow of majority charge carriers starts when light (photons) strike the semiconductors of
photovoltaic cell and the load is connected?
Q. 7. What is the junction loss of photovoltaic cell?
Q. 8. What is the energy spectrum loss of photovoltaic cell?