The basic components of photovoltaic solar modules are not building a simple process; in fact, making effective solar cells from scratch it is practically impossible without the use of high-tech tools. You can put together easily enough solar panels once you have cells, but the production of solar cells themselves is a very complex process. (By the way, the word "photovoltaic" is a fancy word for the process by which sunlight is converted directly into electricity).
A cell is born
The same is the photovoltaic cell that converts sunlight into electricity. It has many other uses as well; can be used in surveillance equipment that allow law enforcement to "see" through walls by detecting infrared radiation, as well as other types of electromagnetic radiation. It can also be used to measure the intensity of the light and thus help photographers calibrate their cameras and to measure some chemical reactions in laboratory conditions.
The first step in creating a solar panel is to get semiconductora. Usually, this is pure silicon, which is produced by Quartz. The Silicon is melted and combined with traces of boron or phosphorus, then allowed to cool in a block. This block is then cut into thin wafers and the surfaces are carefully engraved and clean.
The next step is to put these wafers in what is known as a diffusion furnace. This exposes the wafer to very high temperatures, which cause the formation of a semiconductortype n. The "N" in this case stands for "Negative"; This heat treatment creates an abundance of negative electrons, that is what helps produce current when direct sunlight hits the surface.
But wait-we are not finished yet! The surface of the wafer must be painted with an anti-reflective coating. After all, we want our photovoltaic cell to absorb sunlight, bouncing back into space! Once this happens, the electrical contacts are imprinted on top.
What is missing? Ah, Yes ... the type p or positively charged surface. This is created on the bottom or on the back of the photovoltaic cell, using a form of aluminum.
Put together
Once the cell has been tested, is connected with other cells to make photovoltaic solar panels. Now you can appreciate why these little devils are so expensive to produce. The good news is that new technologies – particularly nanotech, or the use of microscopic machines built at the molecular level-dramatically is lowering the cost of this process.
Wayne Hemrick writes about- solar panels.
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