The many advantages of thin-film solar cells, namely flexibility, high radiation resistance, low mass, and low cost production, will go untapped until space environmental effects on them are well understood, which requires on-orbit testing. In response to the need to perform on-orbit testing of thin-film solar cells, the Space Vehicles Directorate of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is preparing two flight experiments. The thin-film solar cell flight experiment on the AFRL Roadrunner Mission will consist of two technologies, amorphous silicon (a-Si) and Copper Indium Gallium di-Selenide (CIGS), each producing roughly 60 W of power. The flight is planned for mid-2005 and will be in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The AFRL Deployable Structures Experiment (DSX) will host a significantly larger thin-film solar cell experiment (4.5 kW) and will fly in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) in 2009. The main objectives of both flight experiments are to characterize on-orbit thin-film solar cell performance, enabling the creation of on-orbit performance models and successful transition to operational use.
AFRL Thin Film Solar Cell Development and Upcoming Flight Experiments
2005-01-01
682882 byte
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
AFRL Thin Film Solar Cell Development and Upcoming Flight Experiments
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