Parameter extraction of photovoltaic models using atomic orbital search algorithm on a decent basis for novel accurate RMSE calculation

Abstract

In the available literature, there are several methods and techniques are employed to extract the unknown parameters of solar cell. The performance of the method used is validated on the basis of Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) value. This work aims to promote a decent basis for proper investigation and the implementation of an optimization algorithm to extract solar unknown parameters. In this work, the true value of RMSE is calculated for the single diode model of the RTC France solar cell using 30 different methods published in several literatures. The obtained results show that the approach of calculating RMSE is not precise in most of the published literature. The Atomic Orbital Search algorithm is proposed as a new metaheuristic optimisation method to extract the parameters of a single diode, double diode and three diode models for RTC France and PVM752 GaAs thin film solar cell. Last, the performance of the proposed algorithm is compared with other different optimisation algorithms. It is observed that the proposed algorithm gives best results with less RMSE as compared to other algorithms. This work intends to provide a solid foundation for thorough analysis and implementation of an optimization technique to extract unknown solar parameters.