A solar cell module includes: a solar cell; a conductive light-reflective film disposed on a back surface side of the solar cell, the conductive light-reflective film extending from an edge portion of the solar cell; an insulating member disposed between a back surface of the solar cell and the conductive light-reflective film; and a back-surface side encapsulant covering the solar cell and the conductive light-reflective film from the back surface side of the solar cell, wherein the insulating member is made of a material harder than a material of the back-surface side encapsulant.

An airship is equipped with a compact solar generator using concentration to supply the airship in flight with electrical energy from solar radiation. The compact solar generator comprises a first set of row(s) of bifacial photovoltaic solar cells, arranged parallel to a longitudinal central axis of the airship, and a solar radiation concentrator for making solar rays converge towards rear faces of the bifacial solar cells of the first set. The solar radiation concentrator is a second set of one or more local solar radiation concentrator(s), wherein each local concentrator is paired with a corresponding row of solar cells and comprises a reflector of convex form suitable for making solar radiation converge towards the rear faces of the solar cells of the paired row.

A method for manufacturing high efficiency solar cells is disclosed. The method comprises providing a thin dielectric layer and a doped polysilicon layer on the back side of a silicon substrate. Subsequently, a high quality oxide layer and a wide band gap doped semiconductor layer can both be formed on the back and front sides of the silicon substrate. A metallization process to plate metal fingers onto the doped polysilicon layer through contact openings can then be performed. The plated metal fingers can form a first metal gridline. A second metal gridline can be formed by directly plating metal to an emitter region on the back side of the silicon substrate, eliminating the need for contact openings for the second metal gridline. Among the advantages, the method for manufacture provides decreased thermal processes, decreased etching steps, increased efficiency and a simplified procedure for the manufacture of high efficiency solar cells.

A method of fabricating a solar cell is disclosed. The method can include forming a dielectric region on a surface of a solar cell structure and forming a metal layer on the dielectric layer. The method can also include configuring a laser beam with a particular shape and directing the laser beam with the particular shape on the metal layer, where the particular shape allows a contact to be formed between the metal layer and the solar cell structure.

Method of manufacturing a single-side-contacted photovoltaic device (1), comprising the steps of: a) providing a photovoltaically-active substrate (3) defining a plurality of alternating hole collecting zones (3a) and electron collecting zones (3b) arranged in parallel strips; b) depositing a conductive layer (5) across said zones; c) depositing at least one conductive track (9) extending along at least part of each of said zones (3a, 3b); d) selectively forming a dielectric layer (7) on each of said zones (3a, 3b), so as to leave an exposed area free of dielectric at an interface between adjacent zones (3a, 3b); e) etching said conductive layer (5) in said exposed areas; f) applying a plurality of interconnecting conductors (11a, 11b) so as to electrically interconnect at least a portion of said hole collecting zones (3a) with each other, and to electrically interconnect at least a portion of said electron collecting zones (3b) with each other.

A solar cell system and a flexible solar panel are disclosed herein. The solar cell system includes a glass housing, a set of rows of solar cells each defining a front side and a rear side and arranged within the glass housing. The solar cell system can also include a reflective element disposed in the glass housing and facing the rear side of the set of rows of solar cells and a first terminal coupled to a first end of the set of rows of solar cells, traversing through and sealed against the first end of the glass housing. The solar cell system can be configured with other solar cell systems into the flexible solar panel that is deployable in a wide range of potential applications.

A back-contacting solar cell includes: a silicon substrate (1), wherein a shadow face of the silicon substrate (1) is delimited into a first region and a second region (2), and the second region (2) is doped to form a second-charge-carrier collecting end; a metal-chalcogen-compound layer (4), wherein the metal-chalcogen-compound layer (4) is deposited within at least the first region of the silicon substrate (1), and a region of the metal-chalcogen-compound layer (4) that corresponds to the first region forms a first-charge-carrier collecting end; a first electrode (5), wherein the first electrode (5) is correspondingly provided on the first-charge-carrier collecting end; and a second electrode (6), wherein the second electrode (6) is correspondingly provided within a region that corresponds to the second region (2). The collection and transferring of the first charge carrier are realized by using the first-charge-carrier collecting end.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solar cell and a solar cell module. The solar cell includes a first region and a second region, and further includes a substrate having a first surface and a second surface; a tunneling layer covering the second surface; a first emitter disposed on part of the tunneling layer in the first region; and a second emitter disposed on part of the tunneling layer in the second region and on the first emitter, a conductivity type of the second emitter being different from a conductivity type of the first emitter. The solar cell further includes a first electrode disposed in the first region and configured to electrically connect with the first emitter by penetrating through the second emitter; and a second electrode disposed in the second region and configured to electrically connect with the second emitter.

A portable solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity generator module comprises a plurality of smart power slat (SPS) units, each SPS unit comprising a plurality of solar cells electrically connected together based on a specified cell interconnection design, and, N at least one power maximizing integrated circuit collecting electricity generated by the plurality of solar cells. The plurality of SPS units are mechanically connected such that the SPS units can be retracted for volume compaction of the module, and can be expanded for increasing PV electricity generation by the module. The module can be used as part of an electric power supply with a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) power optimizer, storage battery and leads to connect to a load. The load can be AC or DC.

A solar cell panel includes a plurality of solar cells including first and second solar cells, and a plurality of wiring members electrically connecting the first and second solar cells. A first electrode of each of the first and second solar cells includes a first bus bar including a plurality of first pad portions. The plurality of first pad portions include a first end pad positioned on one end side of the first bus bar and on which an end of the wiring member is positioned, and a first extension pad positioned on the other end side of the first bus bar and on an extension of the wiring member. An area of the first end pad is different from an area of the first extension pad.