Finite element method description and intrinsic parameters extraction of solar cells with different sizes and metallization patterns

Abstract

The current density-voltage (J−V) curve of a solar cell and the parameters extracted from that can describe the characteristics of the solar cell and can used for optimizing its front metallization pattern. Solar cells with different front metallization patterns or sizes correspond to different J-V curves. It is not sure which curve is more suitable for optimizing the front metallization pattern. In this paper, a method for extracting the intrinsic parameters of the one-diode model of solar cells is proposed. It is based on the finite element method (FEM) to construct solar cells and a genetic algorithm to solve the intrinsic parameters of solar cells. The effectiveness of FEM in constructing solar cells is verified by comparing the simulation results with previously published modeling results. Three different solar cell configurations are established to verify the validity of the proposed method. The results show that there is almost no difference in the intrinsic parameters extracted from solar cells of different sizes and metallization patterns. These intrinsic parameters are almost the same as the characteristic parameters of the unit cell used in the numerical model. This research is expected to become a fundamental study for optimizing the front metallization pattern of solar cells.