How do solar panels work?
Solar panels convert sunlight into electrical energy, and have turned into a key contributor for making energy supplies more sustainable. But how do they actually work?
Transcript
00:00 How do solar panels work?
00:06 Solar panels, also called solar modules, are made up of a number of solar cells linked
00:11 together.
00:12 About 95% of all solar cells are currently made from silicon obtained from quartz sand.
00:19 It's melted and cleaned in a complex process.
00:22 The resulting silicon is cut into thin slices called wafers.
00:27 To make the cell electrically conductive, the silicon is intentionally contaminated
00:31 or doped.
00:33 Some wafers with boron, others with phosphorus.
00:39 When the wafers doped with boron and phosphorus are placed together, excess electrons migrate
00:45 from the phosphorus silicon layer into the boron silicon layer.
00:49 This leads to a surplus of electrons at the bottom and a shortage of them at the top.
00:54 Similar to a battery, solar cells have positive and negative poles.
01:00 When sunlight strikes the cell, electrons are released in the silicon boron layer.
01:05 Since they're negatively charged, they're drawn to the positive pole.
01:09 Solar cells also have metallic conductors at their top and bottom.
01:13 The free electrons travel along these tracks, generating an electrical current as long as
01:18 the sun is shining.
01:25 When more light strikes the surface, more power is generated.
01:29 To increase yield, solar modules are usually connected in series and linked up to form
01:34 larger systems.
01:37 But even small modules can generate enough electricity for everyday needs.
01:42 More than 11% of all renewable energy already comes from solar energy, an increasing trend.
01:48 It's a form of energy with almost infinite potential.
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