The figure shows the I-V characteristics of a solar cell illuminated uniformly with solar light of power $100 \text{ mW/cm}^2$. The solar cell has an area of $3 \text{ cm}^2$ and a fill factor of $0.7$. The maximum efficiency (in %) of the device is ___________
The efficiency of a solar cell is given by:
Efficiency \( \eta = \frac{P_{max}}{P_{in}} \times 100\% \)
Where \( P_{max} \) is the maximum power output and \( P_{in} \) is the input power.
Step 1: Calculate Input Power \( P_{in} \)
The input power per area is given as \( 100 \text{ mW/cm}^2 \) and the area of the solar cell is \( 3 \text{ cm}^2 \).
\( P_{in} = 100 \text{ mW/cm}^2 \times 3 \text{ cm}^2 = 300 \text{ mW} \)
Step 2: Calculate Maximum Power Output \( P_{max} \)
The maximum power is given by:
\( P_{max} = V_{mp} \times I_{mp} \)
Where \( V_{mp} \) and \( I_{mp} \) are the voltage and current at the maximum power point.
We use the open-circuit voltage \( V_{OC} = 0.5 \text{ V} \) and short-circuit current \( I_{SC} = 180 \text{ mA} \).
The fill factor \( FF \) relates to the maximum power as:
\( FF = \frac{V_{mp} \times I_{mp}}{V_{OC} \times I_{SC}} \)
\( V_{mp} \times I_{mp} = FF \times V_{OC} \times I_{SC} \)
\( P_{max} = 0.7 \times 0.5 \text{ V} \times 180 \text{ mA} \)
\( P_{max} = 0.7 \times 0.5 \times 180 \times 10^{-3} \text{ W} \)
\( P_{max} = 0.063 \text{ W} \) or \( 63 \text{ mW} \)
Step 3: Calculate Efficiency
\( \eta = \frac{63 \text{ mW}}{300 \text{ mW}} \times 100\% = 21\% \)
Validation: The calculated efficiency of \( 21\% \) is within the range of 20.5 to 21.5.
Important Questions from Solar Cell
- The device that convert optical radiation into electrical energy is :
Which among the following Electronic component works with the principle of Light to Voltage conversion?
Solar cells are made of
A pn junction solar cell of area 1.0 cm2, illuminated uniformly with 100 mW cm-2, has the following parameters: Efficiency = 15%, open circuit voltage = 0.7 V, fill factor = 0.8, and thickness = 200 μm. The charge of an electron is 1.6 × 10-19 C. The average optical generation rate (in cm-3s-1) is
- The photocurrent of a PN junction diode solar cell is 1 mA. The voltage corresponding to its maximum power point is 0.3 V. If the thermal voltage is 30 mV, the reverse saturation current of the diode (in nA, rounded off to two decimal places) is ________.
