TY - GEN
T1 - Hot spotting and second breakdown effects on reverse I-V characteristics for mono-crystalline Si Photovoltaics
AU - Kim, Katherine A.
AU - Krein, Philip T
PY - 2013/12/31
Y1 - 2013/12/31
N2 - Hot spots are a common problem in photovoltaic (PV) panels that accelerate cell degradation and reduce system performance. Hot spots occur when a cell is reversed biased, sinks power, and heats the cell. At a certain threshold, the PV p-n junction goes into second breakdown and heats a small portion of the cell to very high temperatures. This study experimentally tests mono-crystalline Si cells as they hot spot at different power levels. Heating effects on the I-V characteristics during hot spotting and permanent changes after seven days of hour-long hot spot tests are observed and analyzed. I-V characteristics are significantly affected under second breakdown, which is observed when cells are reverse-biased above two times the rated maximum power level.
AB - Hot spots are a common problem in photovoltaic (PV) panels that accelerate cell degradation and reduce system performance. Hot spots occur when a cell is reversed biased, sinks power, and heats the cell. At a certain threshold, the PV p-n junction goes into second breakdown and heats a small portion of the cell to very high temperatures. This study experimentally tests mono-crystalline Si cells as they hot spot at different power levels. Heating effects on the I-V characteristics during hot spotting and permanent changes after seven days of hour-long hot spot tests are observed and analyzed. I-V characteristics are significantly affected under second breakdown, which is observed when cells are reverse-biased above two times the rated maximum power level.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84891072790&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84891072790&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/ECCE.2013.6646813
DO - 10.1109/ECCE.2013.6646813
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84891072790
SN - 9781479903351
T3 - 2013 IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition, ECCE 2013
SP - 1007
EP - 1014
BT - 2013 IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition, ECCE 2013
T2 - 5th Annual IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exhibition, ECCE 2013
Y2 - 15 September 2013 through 19 September 2013
ER -