title: Concentrator photovoltaic module architectures with capabilities for capture and conversion of full global solar radiation.
abstract: Emerging classes of concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) modules reach efficiencies that are far greater than those of even the highest performance flat-plate PV technologies, with architectures that have the potential to provide the lowest cost of energy in locations with high direct normal irradiance (DNI). A disadvantage is their inability to effectively use diffuse sunlight, thereby constraining widespread geographic deployment and limiting performance even under the most favorable DNI conditions. This study introduces a module design that integrates capabilities in flat-plate PV directly with the most sophisticated CPV technologies, for capture of both direct and diffuse sunlight, thereby achieving efficiency in PV conversion of the global solar radiation. Specific examples of this scheme exploit commodity silicon (Si) cells integrated with two different CPV module designs, where they capture light that is not efficiently directed by the concentrator optics onto large-scale arrays of miniature multijunction (MJ) solar cells that use advanced III-V semiconductor technologies. In this CPV+scheme ("+" denotes the addition of diffuse collector), the Si and MJ cells operate independently on indirect and direct solar radiation, respectively. On-sun experimental studies of CPV+modules at latitudes of 35.9886° N (Durham, NC), 40.1125° N (Bondville, IL), and 38.9072° N (Washington, DC) show improvements in absolute module efficiencies of between 1.02% and 8.45% over values obtained using otherwise similar CPV modules, depending on weather conditions. These concepts have the potential to expand the geographic reach and improve the cost-effectiveness of the highest efficiency forms of PV power generation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Kyu-Tae
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Yuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Junwen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Semprius, Durham, NC 27713.
authors.forename: Brent
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fisher
authors.affiliation: Department of Electronic Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China 100084.
authors.forename: Xing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sheng
authors.affiliation: The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20037.|US Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lumb
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Mikayla A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.affiliation: US Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Scheiman
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Seungyong
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Yongseon
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: Integrated Nanotechnology Lab, Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Abdurrahman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gumus
authors.affiliation: Integrated Nanotechnology Lab, Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Rabab R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Bahabry
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791, Republic of Korea.|Department of Energy Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jung Woo
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791, Republic of Korea.|Department of Energy Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ungyu
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Paik
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720.
authors.forename: Noah D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Bronstein
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720.|Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720.|Kavli Energy NanoScience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720.|Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720.
authors.forename: A Paul
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Alivisatos
authors.affiliation: Semprius, Durham, NC 27713.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meitl
authors.affiliation: Semprius, Durham, NC 27713.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Burroughs
authors.affiliation: Integrated Nanotechnology Lab, Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Muhammad Mustafa
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Hussain
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801; jcleegm@illinois.edu r-nuzzo@illinois.edu jrogers@illinois.edu.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Jeong Chul
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801; jcleegm@illinois.edu r-nuzzo@illinois.edu jrogers@illinois.edu.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: Ralph G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Nuzzo
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801; jcleegm@illinois.edu r-nuzzo@illinois.edu jrogers@illinois.edu.|Frederick Seitz Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.|Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801.
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Rogers
keywords: concentration optics; diffuse light capture; multijunction solar cells; photovoltaics