How do solar cells work ?

So you are asking yourself " How do solar cells work ? ".

It's amazing how the energy from a star that is situated 92 million miles away from the earth can be used to power solar cells. The sun is is only one factor in the equation. It supplies light. At the receiving end of this equation we have a photovoltaic cell - aka - a solar cell. This instrument captures the light from the sun. In the middle of this equation we have the nuts and bolts. In the middle is where the energy from the sun is converted into electricity. Let's go into those nuts and bolts of solar power generation to see more details about how solar cells work.

What would we be without solar energy ? The first human being must have been amazed at the brilliant radiating disc that shined in the heavens on any given day when the sky was clear. That amazement about solar energy has continued to amaze humanity since. As the suns energy weaves it's way through space we make ways to filter that power. Sometimes it is about sheltering ourselves from the armful sun rays, sometimes it is about harnessing the sunlight and converting it to something useful. The sun provides massive amounts of solar energy but it is only through invention and imagination that we survive it all. The solar cell is just one such concept of human survival. With solar energy we live or die. 

While the sun is radiating energy, we, here on earth, are capturing a very small amount of that energy through a filter called a solar cell or a photovoltaic cell. The filter is made of light absorbing material. A solar cell is usually a thin film sensitized with organic or non organic compounds. The first solar cell was built in 1883 by Charles Fritts who was expanding on the original discovery of converting light energy into electricity made in 1839 by Antoine Cesar Becquerel. The original solar cell made by Fritts used selenium as a semiconductor covered with a very thin gold leaf layer. As photovoltaic cells evolved silicon became a common material used in the manufacturing of these sun light filters. Then in 1954 along comes the solar panel thanks to 3 American inventors. The most modern solar cell technology uses organic materials and nanotechnology.

Understanding the science of how sun light is converted to electricity is not a prerequisite to using that energy but inquiring minds want to know how solar cells work on a micro level. Once the sunlight hits the filter ( the PV cells made of semiconductors ) then a chemical reaction occurs between the electrons that bond an atom together. This reaction is influenced by the elements used in the building material used in the manufacturing of the cell. The main material used in conventional PV cells is silicon as stated before. However the silicon is put through a process of doping. This introduction of impurities into a pure silicon environment changes the behavior of the atoms. It might render the microscopic land within the silicon into a more positively charged space or into a more negatively charged space. The term used to define this introduction of impurities is doping. N-doping or P-doping, negative doping or positive doping of a silicon wafer is achieved by introducing elements such as arsenic, phosphorous, boron, etc.

Photovotaic cells or solar cells are filters that capture sun light and convert that energy into electricity which can then be used to power other sources. The conventional material used in the manufacturing of PV cells is silicon which is sometimes put through a process of doping. Modern research is looking at replacing the conventional material with organic materials and this field of science is pushing into nanotechnology and nanoparticles such as nanocrystals.

More and more solar panels made up of solar cells are popping up on rooftops, in electrical devices, in vehicles, and elsewhere.

We have yet found another use for a filter that makes use of solar energy. Human ingenuity never ceases to amaze.