Ebook: Solar Cells and their Applications, Second Edition, Second Edition

A major update of solar cell technology and the solar marketplace

Since the first publication of this important volume over a decade ago, dramatic changes have taken place with the solar market growing almost 100-fold and the U.S. moving from first to fourth place in the world market as analyzed in this Second Edition. Three bold new opportunities are identified for any countries wanting to improve market position. The first is combining pin solar cells with 3X concentration to achieve economic competitiveness near term. The second is charging battery-powered cars with solar cell?generated electricity from arrays in surrounding areas?including the car owners' homes?while simultaneously reducing their home electricity bills by over ninety percent. The third is formation of economic "unions" of sufficient combined economic size to be major competitors.

In this updated edition, feed-in tariffs are identified as the most effective approach for public policy. Reasons are provided to explain why pin solar cells outperform more traditional pn solar cells. Field test data are reported for nineteen percent pin solar cells and for ~500X concentrating systems with bare cell efficiencies approaching forty percent. Paths to bare cell efficiencies over fifty percent are described, and key missing program elements are identified. Since government support is needed for new technology prototype integration and qualification testing before manufacturing scale up, the key economic measure is identified in this volume as the electricity cost in cents per kilowatt-hour at the complete installed system level, rather than just the up-front solar cell modules' costs in dollars per watt.

This Second Edition will benefit technologists in the fields of solar cells and systems; solar cell researchers; power systems designers; academics studying microelectronics, semiconductors, and solar cells; business students and investors with a technical focus; and government and political officials developing public policy.Content:
Chapter 1 Solar Cells: A Brief History and Introduction (pages 1–15): Lewis Fraas and Larry Partain
Chapter 2 Solar Cell Electricity Market History, Public Policy, Projected Future, and Estimated Costs (pages 17–42): Larry Partain and Lewis Fraas
Chapter 3 Solar Cells, Single?Crystal Semiconductors, and High Efficiency (pages 43–66): Lewis Fraas
Chapter 4 Solar Cell Device Physics (pages 67–109): Larry Partain
Chapter 5 Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells and Modules (pages 111–136): Leonid Rubin
Chapter 6 Thin?Film Solar Cells and Modules (pages 137–157): Robert Birkmire
Chapter 7 Terrestrial Module Fabrication and Assembly Technologies (pages 159–169): Christopher Bunner
Chapter 8 Chinese Solar Cell Status (pages 171–206): Wang Sicheng
Chapter 9 Tracking the Sun for More Kilowatt Hour and Lower?Cost Solar Electricity (pages 207–217): Ron Corio, Michael Reed and Lewis Fraas
Chapter 10 Solar Cell Systems: Definition, Performance, and Reliability (pages 219–249): Jason Strauch, Larry Moore and Elmer Collins
Chapter 11 Levelized Cost of Energy for Utility?Scale Photovoltaics (pages 251–270): Matthew Campbell
Chapter 12 Low?Concentration Crystalline Silicon Systems (pages 271–292): Lewis Fraas
Chapter 13 High?Concentration, III–V Multijunction Solar Cells (pages 293–312): Geoffrey Kinsey
Chapter 14 High?Concentration Fresnel Lens Assemblies and Systems (pages 313–335): Gerhard Peharz and Andreas Bett
Chapter 15 High?Concentration Cassegrainian Solar Cell Modules and Arrays (pages 337–360): Michael Ludowise and Lewis Fraas
Chapter 16 Concentrator Solar Cell Installations at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (pages 361–376): Suresh Sadineni and Robert Boehm
Chapter 17 Concentrator Photovoltaic Field Installations (pages 377–394): Francisca Rubio, Maria Martinez and Pedro Banda
Chapter 18 Space Solar Cells and Applications (pages 395–424): Sheila Bailey and Ryne Raffaelle
Chapter 19 Solar Resource for Space and Terrestrial Applications (pages 425–461): Christian A. Gueymard and Daryl Myers
Chapter 20 Solar Energy Costs: The Solar Advisor Model (pages 463–482): Paul Gilman, Nathan Blair and Christopher Cameron
Chapter 21 Challenges of Large?Scale Solar Cell Electricity Production (pages 483–496): David Faiman
Chapter 22 Market Overview of Flat Panel Detectors for X?Ray Imaging (pages 497–509): Carl Lacasce, Larry Partain and Chuck Blouir
Chapter 23 Amorphous Silicon Transistors and Photodiodes (pages 511–532): Robert Street
Chapter 24 Amorphous Silicon Digital X?Ray Imaging (pages 533–557): Richard Colbeth
Chapter 25 Photoconductor Digital X?Ray Imaging (pages 559–579): George Zentai
Chapter 26 Summary, Conclusions, and Recommendations (pages 581–611): Lewis Fraas and Larry Partain