Temperature influence on performance of a solar cell receiving direct sunlight and a halogen lamp irradiation

Physical parameters of a photovoltaic cell can be determined from its experimental current-voltage characteristic. The accurate determination of these parameters is particularly dependent on experimental measurements conditions. The reliability of measurements of temperature variations and intensity of solar radiation are dependent on the sampling time of the measurements. Controlling the radiation intensity and the temperature can be better achieved by using an artificial light source. However, the spectral characteristics of some artificial sources of radiation can cause a substantial increase in the temperature of solar cells. The characterization of a solar cell by using the sun as a source of radiation and considering its temperature and received radiation intensity as constants requires automation of the experimental setup. And this in order to acquire all of the characteristic current-voltage (I–V) in a sufficiently short time range. To this end, a programmable electronic control device was carried out in our laboratory. In this paper, we compare the obtained current-voltage characteristics of a photovoltaic solar cell under direct sunlight and with a halogen lamp, for different temperatures measured using an infrared camera.