Publications Details

Alpha Solarco`s Photovoltaic Concentrator Development program

Anderson, A.; Bailor, B.; Carroll, D.

This report details the work done under Sandia`s Photovoltaic Concentrator Development contract, funded jointly by Alpha Solarco and the US Department of Energy. It discusses improvements made to the cell assembly and module design of Alpha Solarco`s point-focus, high-concentration photovoltaic module. The goals of this effort were to increase the module efficiency, reduce the manufacturing cost of the cell assembly, and increase product reliability. Redesign of the secondary optical element achieved a 4 percent increase in efficiency due to better cell fill factors and offtrack performance. New, lower cost materials were identified for the secondary optical element, the optical couple between the secondary optical element and the cell, and the cell assembly electrical insulator. Manufacturing process improvements and test equipment are also discussed.