New developments in the fabrication of amorphous silicon photovoltaic modules on very large 2.60 m × 2.20 m glass

Abstract

The fabrication of photovoltaic thin film modules based on hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) technology on very large float glass is presented. In high volume manufacture of about 900 modules/day production present an average power of about 105 W ±5 W (initial state, 1.43 m² modules). Light-induced degradation (LID) of modules results in an average power of about 85±2 W after about 500 kWh of degradation. Degradation of the fill factor (FF) of current voltage curves under illumination is the main contributor to degradation reducing from about 70% to 60% (artificial light). The dependency of the power in the initial and in the degraded state on the intrinsic layer thickness of the pin-structure is investigated. Thicker intrinsic layer results in higher initial power, however also the degradation rate is higher resulting in very similar power of all modules in the degradation state. LID is performed in in-door conditions under metal-halogen lamp light and in outdoor conditions with sun-light. Under outdoor conditions the degraded state of the modules is not stable, but depends on the season, resulting in lower power in winter months and higher power in summer months. Main contributor to this effect is the change of short circuit current. (© 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)