Analysis of mechanism for photovoltaic properties and bypass diode of crystalline silicon and CuInxGa(1-x)Se2 module in partial shading effect

Ji Eun Lee, Soohyun Bae, Wonwook Oh, Yoonmook Kang, Donghwan Kim, Hae Seok Lee

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

This paper presents the impact of partial shading on CuInxGa(1-x)Se2(CIGS) photovoltaic(PV) modules with bypass diodes. When the CIGS PV modules were partially shaded, the modules were under conditions of partial reverse bias. We investigated the characterization of the bypass diode and solar cell properties of the CIGS PV modules when these was partially shaded, comparing the results with those for a crystalline silicon module. In crystalline silicon modules, the bypass diode was operated at a partial shade modules of 1.67 % shading. This protected the crystalline silicon module from hot spot damage. In CIGS thin film modules, on the other hand, the bypass diode was not operated before 20 % shading. This caused damage because of hotspots, which occurred as wormlike defects in the CIGS thin film module. Moreover, the bypass diode adapted to the CIGS thin film module was operated fully at 60% shading, while the CIGS thin film module was not operated under these conditions. It is known that the bypass diode adapted to the CIGS thin film module operated more slowly than that of the crystalline silicon module; this bypass diode also failed to protect the module from damage. This was because of the reverse saturation current of the CIGS thin film, 1.99 × 10-5 A/cm2, which was higher than that of crystalline silicon, 8.11 × 10-7 A/cm2.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)196-201
Number of pages6
JournalKorean Journal of Materials Research
Volume25
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2015

Keywords

  • Bypass diode
  • CIGS thin film
  • Crystalline silicon
  • Photovoltaic module
  • Shading effect

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Materials Science(all)

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Analysis of mechanism for photovoltaic properties and bypass diode of crystalline silicon and CuInxGa(1-x)Se2 module in partial shading effect'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this