Solar power

Solar power

Solar power is the conversion of sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV), or indirectly using concentrated solar power (CSP). Concentrated solar power systems use lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam. Photovoltaics convert light into electric current using the photoelectric effect.

Industry: Energy

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Solar power

Photon

Energy; Solar power

A particle of light that acts as an individual unit of energy.

Thin film

Energy; Solar power

A layer of semiconductor material, such as copper indium diselenide or gallium arsenide, a few microns or less in thickness, used to make photovoltaic cells.

Electron

Energy; Solar power

An elementary particle of an atom with a negative electrical charge and a mass of 1/1837 of a proton; electrons surround the positively charged nucleus of an atom and determine the chemical ...

Thin film photovoltaic module

Energy; Solar power

A photovoltaic module constructed with sequential layers of thin film semiconductor materials. See amorphous silicon.

Electron volt (EV)

Energy; Solar power

The amount of kinetic energy gained by an electron when accelerated through an electric potential difference of 1 Volt; equivalent to 1.603 x 10^-19; a unit of energy or work.