photovoltaics
thumb|The Solar Settlement, a sustainable housing community project in [[Freiburg, Germany|upright=1.2]] thumb|Charging station in France that provides energy for electric cars using solar energy|upright=1.2 thumb|Solar panels on the International Space Station|upright=1.2Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commercially used for electricity generation and as photosensors.
AI overview
Photovoltaics is the technology that converts light directly into electricity using special semiconductor materials, a process studied across physics and chemistry. This technology is widely used to generate electricity for practical applications and to detect light in various devices.
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Article
36 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- History
- Solar cells
- Solar cell efficiencies
- Performance and degradation
- Influence of temperature
- Degradation
- Manufacturing of PV systems
- Environmental costs of manufacture
- EPBT improvements
- Effects from first generation PV
- Impact from second generation PV
- Effects from third generation PV
- Economics
- Hardware costs
- Levelised cost of electricity
- Subsidies and financing
- Other
- Growth
- Applications
- Photovoltaic systems
- Photo sensors
- Experimental technology
- CIGS
- Perovskite solar cells
- Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells
- OPV
- Thermophotovoltaics
- Photovoltaic-Thermoelectric Generator
- Solar module alignment
- Efficiency
- Advantages
- Disadvantages
- See also
- References
- Further reading
thumb|The Solar Settlement, a sustainable housing community project in [[Freiburg, Germany|upright=1.2]] thumb|Charging station in France that provides energy for electric cars using solar energy|upright=1.2 thumb|Solar panels on the International Space Station|upright=1.2Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commercially used for electricity generation and as photosensors.
A photovoltaic system employs solar modules, each comprising a number of solar cells, which generate electrical power. PV installations may be ground-mounted, rooftop-mounted, wall-mounted or floating. The mount may be fixed or use a solar tracker to follow the sun across the sky.