Cadmium Telluride Thin Film Solar Panels

Solar photovoltaic technology that is based on cadmium is considered as a thin film technology due to its active layers which are just a few microns thick or about a 10 diameter of human hair.

Cadmium telluride thin film solar panels.

Cadmium telluride cdte photovoltaics or also called cadmium telluride solar cell is a kind of photovoltaic pv technology that can produce electricity from sunlight using a thin film of compound cadmium telluride to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity. Cadmium telluride cdte is the most common type of thin film solar cell in production. Cdte thin film panels are made from several thin layers. The most common cdte solar cells consist of a simple p n heterojunction structure containing a p doped cdte layer matched with an n doped cadmium sulfide cds layer which acts as a window layer.

Cigs is another mainstream thin film technology. Cadmium telluride photovoltaics describes a photovoltaic technology that is based on the use of cadmium telluride in a thin semiconductor layer designed to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity. Cadmium telluride pv is the only thin film technology with lower costs than conventional solar cells made of crystalline silicon in multi kilowatt systems. Copper indium gallium selenide cigs.

One main energy producing layer made from the compound cadmium telluride and surrounding layers for electricity conduction and collection. Cadmium telluride cdte is a stable crystalline compound formed from cadmium and tellurium which is used for manufacturing cdte thin film solar panels in whole lifespan cdte pv has the smallest carbon footprint lowest water use and shortest energy payback time then conventional solar technologies the usage of rare materials may become a limiting factor to the industrial scalability of cdte technology in the mid term future. Thin film solar panels and toxicity cadmium telluride. This structure is similar to the heterojunction in cigs cells.

As with most thin film solar technologies carrier collection is accomplished by drift or field assisted. Cadmium telluride solar cells use low cost manufacturing technology to produce low cost cells.