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Thin-Film Solar Cells on Metal Foil Substrates for Space PowerPhotovoltaic arrays have played a key role in power generation in space. The current technology will continue to evolve but is limited in the important mass specific power metric (MSP or power/weight ratio) because it is based on bulk crystal technology. The objective of this research is to continue development of an innovative photovoltaic technology for satellite power sources that could provide up to an order of magnitude saving in both weight and cost, and is inherently radiation-tolerant through use of thin film technology and thin foil substrates such as 5-mil thick stainless steel foil or 1-mil thick Ti. Current single crystal technology for space power can cost more than $300 per watt at the array level and weigh more than 1 kg/sq m equivalent to specific power of approx. 65 W/kg. Thin film material such as CuIn(1-x),Ga(x)S2, (CIGS2), CuIn(1-x), G(x)Se(2-y),S(y), (CIGSS) or amorphous hydrogenated silicon (a-Si:H) may be able to reduce both the cost and mass per unit area by an order of magnitude. Manufacturing costs for solar arrays are an important consideration for total spacecraft budget. For a medium sized 5kW satellite, for example, the array manufacturing cost alone may exceed $2 million. Moving to thin film technology could reduce this expense to less than $500 K. Previous work at FSEC demonstrated the potential of achieving higher efficiencies from CIGSS thin film solar cells on 5-mil thick stainless steel foil as well as initial stages of facility augmentation for depositing thin film solar cells on larger (6"x 4") substrates. This paper presents further progress in processing on metal foil substrates. Also, previous work at DayStar demonstrated the feasibility of flexible-thin-film copper-indium-gallium-diselenide (CIGS) solar cells with a power-to-weight ratio in excess of 1000 W/kg. We will comment on progress on the critical issue of scale-up of the solar cell absorber deposition process. Several important technical issues need to be resolved to realize the benefits of lightweight technologies for solar arrays, such as: monolithic interconnects, lightweight array structures, and new ultra-light support and deployment mechanisms. Once the technology has gained spaceflight certification it should find rapid acceptance in specific satellite markets.
Document ID
20050202087
Acquisition Source
Headquarters
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Raffaelle, Ryne P.
(Rochester Inst. of Tech. NY, United States)
Hepp, Aloysius F.
(NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Hoffman, David J.
(NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Dhere, N.
(Florida Solar Energy Center Cape Canaveral, FL, United States)
Tuttle, J. R.
(Daystar Technologies, Inc. Denver, CO, United States)
Jin, Michael H.
(Ohio Aerospace Inst. Cleveland, OH, United States)
Date Acquired
August 23, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2004
Subject Category
Solar Physics
Meeting Information
Meeting: International Energy Conversion Engineering Conference
Location: Providence, RI
Country: United States
Start Date: August 16, 2004
End Date: August 19, 2004
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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