The speed with which solar technology has developed has surely caught everyone by surprise but the advantages are there for you, the consumer, to take advantage of. The development of thin film solar cells is just one of the advances that have been of benefit.
Thin film solar panels are considered as the second generation solar technologies, but they have also served greatly in the development of the most modern third generation solar technologies. Each generation has contributed to a reduction in solar panel cost, an increase in efficiency and an easier installation that makes it possible for you and I to set our own homes up to solar power.
Thin film solar panels are also known as thin film photovoltaic panels (TFPV) and are manufactured by depositing material onto a surface, rather than traditionally cutting the silicon itself. The ‘coating’ is done on substrates such as glass or ceramics, and the coat of photovoltaic material can be just one micron thick (1 millionth of a millimetre); the conventional silicon wafer cells are 350 microns thick. There can be more than one layer deposited, with multi-junction solar panels now having as many as three in order to capture as much of the sun’s energy as possible – UV, normal light and IR.
There are five photovoltaic materials used in thin film solar panel technology: cadmium tullride (CdTe), copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), thin-film or amorphous silicon (TF-Si), dye-sensitized solar cell (DSC) and organic solar cell. However, CdTe, CIGS and TF-Si are the three most common as they are already in mass production. The processes through which the material is coated onto a substrate is vapor deposition and electroplating.
The development of this technology means that solar panels are now lighter and therefore less cumbersome to install. The lessened weight on your roof means that more panels can be included in your array, if you wish, providing that bit more power to your home or business.
The efficiency of the technology is also an important part, since it is what really saves you money. The practical efficiency of silicon wafer cells is between 15 percent and 25 percent. The efficiency of CdTe cells is slightly greater than 15 percent, while CIGS cells are at 20 percent efficiency.
While it is comparable to the older generation cells, the advantage remains the light-weight nature of the thin film cells. However, the continued development of thin film solar panels promises to see the cost of solar power to drop significantly as test results on CIGS and CdTe coated panels. If you are looking into thin film panels, then these two types are your best options.
Thin Film Solar Panels Video
Learn about the different types of silicon solar cells
Tweet or Plus 1 us to get a free bonus report as a thank you!
Tweet
How would you like to save hundreds every year on your utility bills?
You can with the tips you will find in No-Cost and Low-Cost Energy Saving Tips For Your Home
- How to find energy leaks in your home
- Low cost ways to seal your windows against energy loss
- How your landscaping can save you money
- How to determine if you have enough insulation and where to add insulation for the most savings.
- And many more money saving tips!
Normally retails for $11.97 – Yours free when you tweet or plus 1 this page:
TweetRelated posts:
Solar Panel News
Recent Comments