Extension of PV Optics to include front metallization

PV Optics is an optical design package that was developed about a decade ago and has been extensively used since then for design of c-Si, and multijunction a-Si solar cells by researchers and engineers. However, this software did not have the capability to include the front metallization into the device structure. We have now developed version 3.0 of PV Optics, which overcomes this limitation and can be used for most of the current electrode designs for crystalline Si solar cells. A summary of this addition along with the results of a detailed study of the effect of front electrode architecture on the performance of (100) textured monocrystalline cells have been presented here.