Solar Panels

How do they work?

I know the principle is to turn sunlight into electricity but just how is that achieved?

PV panels collect engergy
from the sun and convert
it into electricity

PV systems convert sunlight directly into electricity. “Photo” refers to light and “voltaic” to electricity. A PV cell is made of a semiconductor material, usually crystalline silicon, which absorbs sunlight. You’ve seen PV cells at work in simple mechanisms like watches and calculators. You’ve probably even seen them for signs on the road. More complex PV systems produce solar electricity for houses and the utility grid. The utility grid is the power source available to your local electricity provider.

PV cells are typically combined into modules, or panels, containing about 40 cells. Roughly ten modules constitute a PV array, or grouping of panels.

Most PV panels contain a top protective layer, two specially treated layers of silicon with collecting circuitry attached to the top layer, and a polymer backing layer.

The top layer of silicon is treated to make it electrically negative; the back layer is treated it make it electrically positive. When sunlight knocks electrons loose from the silicon, electrons move up from the bottom layer of silicon and crowd the electrons in the top layer. The electrons freed from the top layer are collected by electrical contacts on the surface of the top layer and routed through an external circuit, thus providing power to the electrical system attached to the panels.

New technology, which we’ll get to in a later section, uses different, less expensive materials than silicon in PV panels to capture sunlight more affordably.

my brother fits these for a living.

PV panels collect engergy
from the sun and convert
it into electricity

PV systems convert sunlight directly into electricity. “Photo” refers to light and “voltaic” to electricity. A PV cell is made of a semiconductor material, usually crystalline silicon, which absorbs sunlight. You’ve seen PV cells at work in simple mechanisms like watches and calculators. You’ve probably even seen them for signs on the road. More complex PV systems produce solar electricity for houses and the utility grid. The utility grid is the power source available to your local electricity provider.

PV cells are typically combined into modules, or panels, containing about 40 cells. Roughly ten modules constitute a PV array, or grouping of panels.

Most PV panels contain a top protective layer, two specially treated layers of silicon with collecting circuitry attached to the top layer, and a polymer backing layer.

The top layer of silicon is treated to make it electrically negative; the back layer is treated it make it electrically positive. When sunlight knocks electrons loose from the silicon, electrons move up from the bottom layer of silicon and crowd the electrons in the top layer. The electrons freed from the top layer are collected by electrical contacts on the surface of the top layer and routed through an external circuit, thus providing power to the electrical system attached to the panels.

New technology, which we’ll get to in a later section, uses different, less expensive materials than silicon in PV panels to capture sunlight more affordably.

What's that got to do with monkeyfacing though?

Seriously, I firmly believe that it should be a condition when considering planning permission that solar panels should be compulsory on every new-build. That would in turn bring down the cost due to mass-production and open the market up with a reduction in price.

a percentage of all new build estates must have them.