NASA's Photovoltaic Energy Research Plans and Programs
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
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Terrestrial PV Technology for Space
Application of low-cost solar array blanket manufacturing methods and
terrestrial solar cell technology for space missions
• Automated manufacturing and modularity
Use of silicon PV for short duration missions
Focus is on "lower cost" cell technology
NASA has conducted in-space flight experiments of terrestrial PV to evaluate long-term
survivability under NASA mission requirements
NASA
Use of lower cost epitaxial grow techniques for gallium arsenide-based higher
efficiency solar cells
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Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy (HVPE) growth techniques being developed at National Renewable
Energy Laboratory (NREL)
Increased interest in perovskite solar cell technology
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Potential for high efficiency terrestrial technology at lower fabrication costs
www.nasa.gov
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Recent test results indicate potential for in-space radiation hardnessView entire presentation