Proton and electron damage coefficients for GaAs/Ge solar cells

A series of electron and proton irradiations of GaAs/Ge solar cells has been carried out for the purpose of deriving radiation damage coefficients. The electron irradiations were performed at energies of 0.6, 1.0, 2.4, and 12 MeV. The proton irradiation energies used were 0.05, 0.2, 0.3, 0.5, 1.0, 3.0, and 9.5 MeV. I-V characteristics were measured before and after each irradiation. Omnidirectional damage coefficients were calculated for both electrons and protons incident on GaAs/Ge solar cells. The calculations were carried out for infinite backshielding on the cells and for eight different thicknesses of coverglass.<>