Solar panel
device · 1954 · Digital age
A panel of photocells that turns light into current.
What it is made of
- Silicon solar cell — has part. A silicon wafer with a p–n junction.
- Window glass — has part. Tempered cover glass.
- Aluminium panel frame — has part. An aluminium profile.
- Busbar ribbons — has part. They collect current from the cells.
Principles and materials it uses
- Photovoltaic effect — uses. The photoelectric effect in a semiconductor.
- Silicon — is made of. Silicon photocells.
Where it is used
- Space station — is part of. Power comes from solar panels.
- Artificial satellite — is part of. Powering satellites.
- Space telescope — is part of. Solar panels.
- Solar power station — is part of. A field of panels.
- Electronic calculator — is part of. Many run on a solar cell.
- Energy-efficient house — is used in. Solar energy.
- Ion thruster — is part of. Power supply.
- Lunokhod — is part of. A solar panel.
- International Space Station — is part of. Solar panels.
- Communications satellite — is part of. Power comes from solar panels.
- CubeSat — is part of. Power comes from solar panels.
What it is a kind of
- Electric generator — is a kind of. A solar panel also generates electricity — from light rather than rotation.
Things built in a similar way
- Photosynthesis — works like. Two ways of turning light into energy.