Solar simulator class

Fig. 5.48. Temperature dependence of normalized photovoltaic parameters for a typical polymer fullerene solar cell derived from indoor measurements of its I/V curves. The ordinate axis displays all parameters normalized to their measured values at 25°C, namely, Jsc 3.1 mA/cm2, Voc- 840 mV, FF 0.55, and 77 1.45%. Active cell area 7.5 mm2. Measurements were performed with a class A solar simulator (Spectrolab X-10). Measured data were corrected to their corresponding AM 1.5 values using a mismatch factor of 0.9...

Different classes of solar simulators are available the classification is dependent on the spectral mismatch of the true AM 1.5 G spectrum. These devices are... 

The class of a solar simulator is indicated by three consecutive letters, e.g., ABA. The first letter represents the spectral matching, the second the irradiation uniformity, and the third the temporal stability... 

An alternative option is to purchase a good quality commercial solar simulator. Various standards have been defined to evaluate the performance of solar simulators. The three main criteria are spectral matching, uniformity of irradiation, and temporal stability. The quahty with regard to each of these criteria is indicated by three consecutive letters. Table 3.5 shows the widely adopted American, European, and Japanese standards for these criteria. If a manufacturer conforms to all three standards, it is the strictest one that counts. For example, an ABB class solar simulator that conforms to aU three standards of Table 3.5 would have a spectral irradiance (W/m /nm) that deviates no more than —25% to +25% from the AM1.5G intensity within the entire wavelength range (usually 400-1,100 nm). The nonuniformity of the integrated irradiation intensity (W/m ) should be within 3% for every point inside the specified area (e.g., 2 x 2 in.), and the integrated irradiation intensity would vary less than 1% (rms) in time. A 2 x 2 in. class ABB solar simulator would do very nicely for almost all PEC studies. 

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