Design and optical characterization of compound eye type solar concentrator

Abstract

A compound eye type solar concentrator (CESC) is designed for solar energy harvesting based on the compound eye of insects. The system is composed primarily of a compound eye and compound parabolic condenser (CPC). The structure and working principle of the CESC are introduced. The curved compound eye has the advantages of a simple structure and wide acceptance angle. The sunlight collected by each lens in the CESC is guided to the same solar cell. The concentrated light spots are then homogenized through the CPC to achieve uniform solar energy distribution on the solar cell. The optical efficiency of the CESC exceeds 60% for an acceptance angle of 20° (−10° to +10°). The indoor and outdoor experiment results are consistent with those of the simulations, which verifies the optical model. The CESC has the potential to become a 3D solar energy static condenser with a large receiving angle.